Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
It is a town of 3,148 residents in Co. Mayo. It grew by 9% between the 2016 and 2022 censuses.
A solid town with one catch. Its best grade is for cost of living (A) — set against the median household income, the median home, at €190,000, costs 3.8 times as much. It is hard to get around without a car: on the way to work, 16% walk, cycle or take the bus or train, where the typical Irish town has 23%. Hazard risk is higher than most: an estimated 20% of its homes exceed the radon reference level. All told, that adds up to a B+ overall and a rank of #4 of 6 in Co. Mayo. On that grade it does better than 70% of Irish towns. Its other grades sit near the middle: B for safety, B− for health and C+ for jobs & income.
Figures: prices, Property Price Register, 2023 to 2025 · incomes, CSO · commuting, health and work, CSO Census 2022 · radon, EPA · crime, CSO recorded crime, 2023 to 2025.
Health less sure: few enough residents report bad health that the town's figure could be well above or below its true level. 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 Ballinrobe does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Ballinrobe 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 21 archaeological sites.
Homes built before 1919: 5%, against 3% across Irish towns.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Ballinrobe.
54% of households own their home, near Co. Mayo’s towns (54%) and lower than Irish towns (61%). The private rented sector houses a third of households. Social renters account for 12% of households.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Second-hand homes | €193,000 | 159 |
| The last 12 months | €197,500 | 54 |
| Housing | Ballinrobe | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent on a new tenancy, a month | €1,030 | €1,063 | €1,606 |
| Median sale price | €190K | €190K | €350K |
| Households renting privately | 33% | 34% | 22% |
| Households owning their home | 54% | 54% | 61% |
Property Price Register · CSO residential prices by Eircode area · RTB rents · CSO, Census 2022 tenure
Landslides: none of Ballinrobe lies in a high-susceptibility zone. Only a handful of its homes, if any, sit low beside water.
| Share of homes | Ballinrobe | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In high-radon areas | 95% | 100% | 0% |
| On high landslide susceptibility | 0% | 0.2% | 0% |
EPA radon map, GSI landslide susceptibility and our low-lying homes estimate from OPW LiDAR.
3 schools lie within 3 km of Ballinrobe: 2 primary schools and 1 secondary school. Ballinrobe Community School is the nearest secondary school, 0.7 km away.
| School | Level | Pupils | Ethos |
|---|---|---|---|
| St. Josephs N.S. Special classesLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 451 | Catholic |
| Ballinrobe Community SchoolLargest post-primary schoolPost-primary · Community school | Post-primary · Community school | 865 | Inter-denominational |
| Schools within 3 km | Ballinrobe | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single-sex secondaries | 0% | 67% | 39% |
| In the DEIS scheme | 0% | 20% | 35% |
| Teach through Irish | 0% | 7% | 8% |
| Pupils since 2019/20 | +17% | +9% | +4% |
Department of Education school lists, 2025/26 (preliminary) · no results are published by school · Ireland publishes no school-by-school results, which is why these cards have no letters.
In 2023–2025, assaults and harassment led the graded crimes in Ballinrobe. Among the 201 Irish towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people, Ballinrobe has less crime per resident than 73% of them. Every kind together came to 34.2 per 1,000 residents a year, below both Co. Mayo’s towns (43) and Irish towns (54.3).
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 | Ballinrobe | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| All recorded crime | 34.2 | 43 | 54.3 |
| Burglary & damage | 4.4 | 4 | 6.4 |
| Violent crime | 4.1 | 4.7 | 5.7 |
| Theft | 6.2 | 6.7 | 15.3 |
CSO recorded crime by Garda station, 2023–2025, shared to towns by where residents live · Census 2022 populations
A year brings 1,344 mm of rain, above Co. Mayo’s towns (1,284 mm) and Irish towns (937 mm) alike. Ballinrobe’s year-round mean comes to 10.1°C. Also worth knowing: the nearest weather station is Claremorris, 18 km away.
| Climate, 1991–2020 | Ballinrobe | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 19.2°C | 18.7°C | 19.9°C |
| Rain a year | 1,344 mm | 1,284 mm | 937 mm |
| Average temperature over the year | 10.1°C | 9.9°C | 10.3°C |
| January low | 2.6°C | 2.6°C | 2.9°C |
Met Éireann, 1991–2020 averages.
Within 5 km, just over a tenth of the land is protected nature, higher than both Co. Mayo’s towns (3.3%) and Irish towns (1.8%). Ballinrobe offers 1.5 ha of green space per 1,000 residents.
| Outdoors | Ballinrobe | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Near a park | 55% | 87% | 92% |
| Protected nature within 5 km | 11% | 3.3% | 1.8% |
| Woodland within 1 km | 0.5% | 3.3% | 2.7% |
| Paths per km² of town | 0.3 km per km² | 0.8 km per km² | 2.1 km per km² |
OpenStreetMap parks and paths, NPWS protected sites and the National Trails Register.
No rain is due today, though a breeze picks up to 22 km/h; the low is 6°C. Rain peaks later in the week on Tuesday, at about 3 mm for the day. For Ballinrobe, a normal November afternoon peaks at 11°C, and a normal night bottoms out at 5°C.
| Season | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | 9°C | 3°C | 425 mm |
| Spring | 13°C | 5°C | 262 mm |
| Summer | 19°C | 11°C | 274 mm |
| Autumn | 14°C | 7°C | 383 mm |
Forecast: MET Norway (CC BY 4.0) · normals: Met Éireann, 1991–2020
13% of residents are 65 or over, below Co. Mayo’s towns (16%) and close to Irish towns (14%). Overseas births account for 30% of the people living here. Degrees are held by 29% of adults.
Women make up 49.9% of Ballinrobe
1,572 women and 1,576 men live here; across Ireland, women are 50.6%.
| Ballinrobe | Co. Mayo | Ireland | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 24% | 21% | 20% |
| 15–24 | 11% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 31% | 30% | 29% |
| 45–64 | 22% | 24% | 24% |
| 65+ | 13% | 16% | 14% |
| Primary or none | 9.6% | 9.4% | 9.7% |
| Lower secondary | 11% | 13% | 14% |
| Leaving Cert | 44% | 39% | 35% |
| Diploma or cert | 6.1% | 5.6% | 5.8% |
| Degree or higher | 29% | 32% | 36% |
CSO, Census 2022 · Co. Mayo and Ireland: the median of their towns of 2,500+
Turnout at the last local elections was 60%, close to Co. Mayo’s towns (60%) and above Irish towns (46%). One council serves Ballinrobe: Mayo County Council. 64% voted at the general election. No party holds a majority on Mayo County Council: Fine Gael lead with 10 of 30 seats, short of the 16 needed.
| Turnout | Ballinrobe | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local elections, June 2024 | 60% | 60% | 46% |
| General election, November 2024 | 64% | 64% | 59% |
Department of Housing count sheets, 2024
Homes from before 1919 make up 5.1% of the total, above both Co. Mayo’s towns (3.7%) and Irish towns (3.4%). The ground here holds 21 recorded archaeological sites. Ballinrobe’s built heritage counts 48 inventory entries; 2 carry national or international standing.
| Heritage | Ballinrobe | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inventory buildings per 10,000 residents | 152 | 72 | 48 |
| Homes built before 1919 | 5.1% | 3.7% | 3.4% |
NIAH, the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage · Sites and Monuments Record · CSO, Census 2022 homes by year built
Half of trips took under 15 minutes, below Co. Mayo’s towns (55%) but above Irish towns (31%). On average, the journey to work lasts 24.2 min. Home was the main workplace for 7.6% of workers at the census.
| Census 2022 | Ballinrobe | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trips under 15 minutes | 50% | 55% | 31% |
| Average trip | 24.2 min | 20.2 min | 27.6 min |
| Unemployment rate | 11% | 11% | 9.2% |
| Median household income | €50,125 | €49,731 | €57,760 |
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.
In the HSE West and North West health region, 34% of people hold a medical card. For its ages, Ballinrobe has 101 people with a disability for every 100 expected, close to Co. Mayo’s towns (99) and below Irish towns (106). Unpaid caring falls to 4.7% of the town’s residents.
| Census 2022 | Ballinrobe | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unpaid carers | 4.7% | 5.4% | 5.4% |
| Good or very good health | 87% | 87% | 88% |
| With a disability | 21% | 22% | 22% |
| Bad or very bad health | 2.4% | 2.4% | 2% |
CSO, Census 2022 general health, disability and carers · CSO life expectancy by region, 2016 · HSE medical cards, 2024 · TownRatings age-standardised ratios
2 places to visit are mapped within 5 km of Ballinrobe; with them, the best known within 40 km.
Abbey or prioryCong Abbey10 km southwest
CastleAughnanure Castle23 km south
CathedralCathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary28 km southeast
Abbey or prioryRoss Errilly Abbey17 km south
Abbey or prioryBallintubber Abbey15 km northPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Ballinrobe’s built heritage counts 48 inventory entries; 2 carry national or international standing. Archaeologists have recorded 21 sites here.
7 notable people were born in Ballinrobe.
Rory O'Neill: catherinecronin, CC BY-SA 2.0 · John King: US Naval History & Heritage Command, Public domain · Edward Jennings: no drawing credit; for the Newcastle Weekly Chronicle, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ballinrobe | 3,148 | — | B+ | A | B | B− |
| Claremorris | 3,857 | 19 | A+ | A− | B | A− |
| Headford Galway | 1,235 | 19 | — | B | A+ | B |
People: CSO, Census 2022. Distances: centre to centre.
Ballinrobe had 3,148 people at the 2022 census, up from 2,882 in 2016: 9.2% more, against 7.6% in the median of Irish towns.
The median age in Ballinrobe is 37.6, against 37.6 in the median of Irish towns.
76% of working residents drive to work and 16% walk, cycle or take the bus or train (the median of Irish towns: 23%). 8% mostly work from home, and 50% of journeys take under 15 minutes.
Urban area in Co. Mayo
3,148 people live in Ballinrobe, in the area of Mayo 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).