Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Some 4,905 people live in this town, in Co. Laois.
What it saves you on housing, it gives back elsewhere. Residents’ health trails most towns: bad health runs at 162 and disability at 135 per 100 expected for its ages. Buying a home costs less than in most towns: homes sell for a median €220,000, about 4.6 times what a household here earns in a year. The overall grade comes out at C+, better than 38% of Irish towns. In the ranking it comes #199 of 320 Irish towns. The rest of its grades are middling: B− for safety and C+ for walkability.
Figures: prices, Property Price Register, 2023 to 2025 · incomes, CSO · health, work and commuting, CSO Census 2022 · crime, CSO recorded crime, 2023 to 2025.
This town's Hazard risk Grade uses radon and landslides only: open LiDAR heights don't cover enough of its homes to measure flooding, so flood isn't counted for or against it.
The 3 things Mountmellick does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Mountmellick with Irish towns of 2,500 or more, ordered by how far it is from the middle. Towns in other countries are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades Irish towns →
The record adds 3 archaeological sites.
Homes built before 1919: 9%, against 3% across Irish towns.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Mountmellick.
A disability affects 29% of people in Mountmellick. At the census, 2.9% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, higher than Irish towns (2%). Asked at the census, 86% of residents of Mountmellick said they were in good or very good health.
| Census 2022 | Mountmellick | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| With a disability | 29% | – | 22% |
| Bad or very bad health | 2.9% | – | 2% |
| Good or very good health | 86% | – | 88% |
| Unpaid carers | 5.7% | – | 5.4% |
CSO, Census 2022 general health, disability and carers · CSO life expectancy by region, 2016 · HSE medical cards, 2024 · TownRatings age-standardised ratios
By car: that was how 80% of commuters travelled at the census. Working mainly from home: 7.3% of workers, below Irish towns (11%). Household income averages €48,297 a year before tax.
| Census 2022 | Mountmellick | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In work, 15 to 64 | 61% | – | 68% |
| Unemployment rate | 13% | – | 9.2% |
| Median household income | €48,297 | – | €57,760 |
| Average trip | 30.2 min | – | 27.6 min |
CSO, Census 2022 travel to work, work and education · CSO Geographical Profiles of Income 2022 · Live Register · Census day was 3 April 2022, with working from home still common; shares are of those who travelled.
16% of households rent privately. Renting cost €1,218 a month on average, below Irish towns (€1,606). Home ownership stands at 63% of households.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| New homes | €375,000 | 30 |
| Second-hand homes | €200,000 | 149 |
| The last 12 months | €297,500 | 52 |
| Housing | Mountmellick | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median sale price | €220K | – | €350K |
| Households in social housing | 20% | – | 13% |
| Rent on a new tenancy, a month | €1,218 | – | €1,606 |
| Households renting privately | 16% | – | 22% |
Property Price Register · CSO residential prices by Eircode area · RTB rents · CSO, Census 2022 tenure
Since 2019/20, pupils changed +12%, above Irish towns (+4%). Families in Mountmellick have 5 schools within 3 km to choose from: 4 primary schools and 1 secondary school. Mountmellick Community School is the nearest secondary school, 0.3 km away.
| School | Level | Pupils | Ethos |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Josephs Girls N.S. DEISLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 230 | Catholic |
| Mountmellick Community School DEISLargest post-primary schoolPost-primary · Community school | Post-primary · Community school | 742 | Inter-denominational |
| Na Carraige N.S. DEISIn the DEIS schemePrimary | Primary | 204 | Catholic |
| Schools within 3 km | Mountmellick | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In the DEIS scheme | 80% | – | 35% |
| Single-sex secondaries | 0% | – | 39% |
| Teach through Irish | 0% | – | 8% |
| Pupils since 2019/20 | +12% | – | +4% |
Department of Education school lists, 2025/26 (preliminary) · no results are published by school · Results by school aren’t published in Ireland, so the cards carry none.
An estimated 2.4% of homes in Mountmellick have radon above the reference level. Landslides: none of Mountmellick lies in a high-susceptibility zone. Low ground by water holds almost none of its homes.
| Share of homes | Mountmellick | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In high-radon areas | 0% | – | 0% |
| On high landslide susceptibility | 0% | – | 0% |
EPA radon map, GSI landslide susceptibility and our low-lying homes estimate from OPW LiDAR.
Taken over the whole year, the average temperature in Mountmellick is 9.9°C. July afternoons reach 20.1°C here, above Irish towns (19.9°C). The nearest weather station is Oak Park, 40 km away.
| Climate, 1991–2020 | Mountmellick | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 2.0°C | – | 2.9°C |
| Average temperature over the year | 9.9°C | – | 10.3°C |
| July high | 20.1°C | – | 19.9°C |
Met Éireann, 1991–2020 averages.
Walkers have 0.3 km per km² of paths and tracks, below Irish towns (2.1 km per km²). One park, 7 ha of green space: that is the measure of Mountmellick’s parkland. Among the protected sites near Mountmellick is River Barrow. Within 400 m of green space: 71% of homes.
| Outdoors | Mountmellick | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Near a park | 71% | – | 92% |
| Paths per km² of town | 0.3 km per km² | – | 2.1 km per km² |
| Woodland within 1 km | 0.5% | – | 2.7% |
| Protected nature within 5 km | 3.4% | – | 1.8% |
OpenStreetMap parks and paths, NPWS protected sites and the National Trails Register.
Today stays dry but breezy, with wind up to 20 km/h and a low of 4°C. For warmth, Thursday is the pick of the days ahead at 11°C; the chilliest afternoon gets to just 6°C. December follows with normal highs of 8°C and lows of 2°C.
| Season | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | 9°C | 2°C | 258 mm |
| Spring | 13°C | 5°C | 192 mm |
| Summer | 20°C | 11°C | 223 mm |
| Autumn | 14°C | 6°C | 268 mm |
Forecast: MET Norway (CC BY 4.0) · normals: Met Éireann, 1991–2020
Daily Irish speakers outside school: 0.6%, lower than Irish towns (1.1%). 13% of residents were born abroad. People aged 15 to 24 make up 14% of the town.
Women make up 52.3% of Mountmellick
2,564 women and 2,341 men live here; across Ireland, women are 50.6%.
| Mountmellick | Co. Laois | Ireland | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 21% | – | 20% |
| 15–24 | 14% | – | 12% |
| 25–44 | 27% | – | 29% |
| 45–64 | 25% | – | 24% |
| 65+ | 14% | – | 14% |
| Primary or none | 14% | – | 9.7% |
| Lower secondary | 20% | – | 14% |
| Leaving Cert | 42% | – | 35% |
| Diploma or cert | 5.2% | – | 5.8% |
| Degree or higher | 18% | – | 36% |
CSO, Census 2022 · Co. Laois and Ireland: the median of their towns of 2,500+
No party holds a majority on Laois County Council: Fianna Fáil lead with 6 of 19 seats, short of the 10 needed. One council serves Mountmellick: Laois County Council. In the Dáil, Mountmellick is part of Laois, which elects 3 TDs.
| Turnout | Mountmellick | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local elections, June 2024 | 56% | – | 46% |
| General election, November 2024 | 58% | – | 59% |
Department of Housing count sheets, 2024
Homes from before 1919 make up nearly a tenth of the total. The Sites and Monuments Record lists 3 sites here, below Irish towns (11). The national inventory of architectural heritage lists 54 buildings in Mountmellick, each rated of regional importance.
| Heritage | Mountmellick | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inventory buildings per 10,000 residents | 110 | – | 48 |
| Homes built before 1919 | 9.3% | – | 3.4% |
| Archaeological sites on the record | 3 | – | 11 |
NIAH, the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage · Sites and Monuments Record · CSO, Census 2022 homes by year built
In all, 34.3 crimes per 1,000 residents were recorded a year, lower than Irish towns (54.3). Of the graded crimes in Mountmellick, assaults and harassment came up most often (2023–2025). Each year, 5.4 burglaries and acts of damage are recorded per 1,000 residents.
Not in the gradeTheft, public order and offences found by Garda checks (drugs, road traffic, dangerous acts) are shown but left out of the Safety Grade, which counts violence, burglary and damage.
| Per 1,000 a year | Mountmellick | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Theft | 5.7 | – | 15.3 |
| All recorded crime | 34.3 | – | 54.3 |
| Burglary & damage | 5.4 | – | 6.4 |
CSO recorded crime by Garda station, 2023–2025, shared to towns by where residents live · Census 2022 populations
2 places to visit are mapped within 5 km of Mountmellick; with them, the best known within 40 km.
CastleTinnakill Castle3.5 km outside town, to the east
Museum · Office of Public WorksEmo Court8.6 km east
CastleRock of Dunamase12 km southeast
CastleBirr Castle40 km west
CastleLeap Castle34 km westPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
The national inventory of architectural heritage lists 54 buildings in Mountmellick, each rated of regional importance. 3 archaeological sites are on the record here.
10 notable people were born in Mountmellick.
Charles Flanagan: Department of Children and Youth Affairs, CC BY 2.0 · James Jeffrey Roche: uncredited, Public domain
The nearest places of 1,000 or more. Boundaries: Tailte Éireann, CSO Urban Areas 2022 and Electoral Divisions.
| Town | People | km | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mountmellick | 4,905 | — | C+ | A | B− | D− |
| Portlaoise | 23,494 | 8.8 | C− | B+ | D | C− |
| Portarlington | 9,288 | 10 | C | A | C+ | D |
| Mountrath | 2,070 | 16 | — | A | B− | C− |
| Stradbally | 1,404 | 17 | — | A− | B− | D |
| Monasterevin Kildare | 5,307 | 18 | B+ | A− | B | C |
People: CSO, Census 2022. Distances: centre to centre.
7% mostly work from home, and 37% of journeys take under 15 minutes.
Mountmellick had 4,905 people at the 2022 census, up from 4,798 in 2016: 2.2% more, against 7.6% in the median of Irish towns.
The median age in Mountmellick is 37.6, against 37.6 in the median of Irish towns. 21% of residents are under 15 and 14% are 65 or over.
Urban area in Co. Laois
4,905 people live in Mountmellick, in the area of Laois County Council. TownRatings uses the CSO’s 2022 Urban Areas as Ireland’s towns: the physical town, as people mean the word, rather than a county or a council area, so its figures cover the town itself.
Built from Tailte Éireann’s boundaries and the CSO’s Census 2022 (CC BY 4.0)
Sources: CSO, Census 2022 Small Area Population Statistics (CC BY 4.0) · Tailte Éireann, Urban Areas and Electoral Divisions 2022 (CC BY 4.0) · TownRatings grades, run #544 (Irish towns only). Under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).
Contains Central Statistics Office (CSO) data, Census 2022, and Tailte Éireann boundaries (CSO Urban Areas, Small Areas, local electoral areas, constituencies), under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).