Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
This town in Co. Mayo has a population of 362.
Half the homes sold for more than €275,000, a price of 4.8 times what the median household earns. The car is not the only way to work here: 6% of commuters walk, cycle or use public transport. 17% of residents are 65 or over.
There are no grades for Shrule: Irish towns need 1,000 residents for them.
The 2 things Shrule does most differently from other towns.
The record adds 3 archaeological sites.
Homes built before 1919: 8%, against 3% across Irish towns.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Shrule.
Within 3 km of Shrule there are 2 schools (2 primary schools).
| School | Level | Pupils | Ethos |
|---|---|---|---|
| S.N. Naomh SheosamhLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 99 | Catholic |
| Schools within 3 km | Shrule | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils since 2019/20 | −16% | +10% | +4% |
| In the DEIS scheme | 0% | 18% | 35% |
| Teach through Irish | 0% | 4% | 8% |
Department of Education school lists, 2025/26 (preliminary) · no results are published by school · Ireland publishes no results school by school, so these cards carry no letters or results.
7.9% of homes stand low near a river, above Co. Mayo’s towns (1.7%) and Irish towns (0.5%) alike. The ground under Shrule carries no high landslide susceptibility.
| Share of homes | Shrule | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In high-radon areas | 100% | 97% | 0% |
| Low-lying near a river | 7.9% | 1.7% | 0.5% |
EPA radon map, GSI landslide susceptibility and our low-lying homes estimate from OPW LiDAR.
A year brings 1,268 mm of rain, about level with Co. Mayo’s towns (1,314 mm) and above Irish towns (937 mm). Averaged across the seasons, Shrule sits at 10.1°C. The nearest weather station is Claremorris, 22 km away.
| Climate, 1991–2020 | Shrule | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 19.3°C | 18.7°C | 19.9°C |
| Rain a year | 1,268 mm | 1,314 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.
Disability, age-adjusted: 91 for every 100 expected in Shrule. At the census, 92% of people in Shrule called their health good or very good, above Co. Mayo’s towns (87%) and Irish towns (88%) alike. 0.9% of residents report bad or very bad health. In the HSE West and North West health region, 34% of people hold a medical card.
| Census 2022 | Shrule | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bad or very bad health | 0.9% | 2.4% | 2% |
| Good or very good health | 92% | 87% | 88% |
| Unpaid carers | 5.8% | 5.3% | 5.4% |
| With a disability | 21% | 21% | 22% |
CSO, Census 2022 general health, disability and carers · CSO life expectancy by region, 2016 · HSE medical cards, 2024 · TownRatings age-standardised ratios
17% rent privately, lower than both Co. Mayo’s towns (34%) and Irish towns (22%). Council and housing-body homes hold 4% of households.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Second-hand homes | €275,000 | 36 |
| Housing | Shrule | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households owning their home | 78% | 54% | 61% |
| Households in social housing | 4% | 12% | 13% |
| Households renting privately | 17% | 34% | 22% |
| Median sale price | €275K | €190K | €350K |
Property Price Register · CSO residential prices by Eircode area · RTB rents · CSO, Census 2022 tenure
Within 1 km, 0.3% of the land is woodland, below both Co. Mayo’s towns (3.2%) and Irish towns (2.7%). Protected nature near Shrule includes Lough Corrib SAC.
| Outdoors | Shrule | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Woodland within 1 km | 0.3% | 3.2% | 2.7% |
| Near a park | 100% | 85% | 92% |
| Paths per km² of town | 0.0 km per km² | 0.6 km per km² | 2.1 km per km² |
OpenStreetMap parks and paths, NPWS protected sites and the National Trails Register.
In Shrule, the November norm is a high of 11°C and a low of 5°C. The rain holds off today, but the wind gets up to 23 km/h, and the low is 5°C. Rain peaks later in the week on Tuesday, at about 4 mm for the day.
| Season | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | 9°C | 3°C | 389 mm |
| Spring | 13°C | 5°C | 249 mm |
| Summer | 19°C | 11°C | 272 mm |
| Autumn | 14°C | 7°C | 358 mm |
Forecast: MET Norway (CC BY 4.0) · normals: Met Éireann, 1991–2020
At the census, 84% of commuters went by car. Working mainly from home: just over one in ten workers, above Co. Mayo’s towns (7.2%) and close to Irish towns (11%). The average trip to work takes 30.4 min.
| Census 2022 | Shrule | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip | 30.4 min | 20.8 min | 27.6 min |
| Trips under 15 minutes | 29% | 55% | 31% |
| Unemployment rate | 6.4% | 11% | 9.2% |
| In work, 15 to 64 | 69% | 67% | 68% |
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.
Children under 15 make up 19%, lower than Co. Mayo’s towns (21%) and near Irish towns (20%). People aged 15 to 24 make up 13% of the town. Graduates make up 35% of adults.
Women make up 49.7% of Shrule
180 women and 182 men live here; across Ireland, women are 50.6%.
| Shrule | Co. Mayo | Ireland | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 19% | 21% | 20% |
| 15–24 | 13% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 21% | 30% | 29% |
| 45–64 | 29% | 24% | 24% |
| 65+ | 17% | 14% | 14% |
| Primary or none | 7.6% | 9.5% | 9.7% |
| Lower secondary | 13% | 13% | 14% |
| Leaving Cert | 38% | 40% | 35% |
| Diploma or cert | 6.7% | 5.8% | 5.8% |
| Degree or higher | 35% | 31% | 36% |
CSO, Census 2022 · Co. Mayo and Ireland: the median of their towns of 2,500+
With 10 of 30 seats, Fine Gael are the largest group on Mayo County Council, short of the 16 a majority needs. Mayo County Council runs Shrule: Ireland has one tier of local government, with no town council below it. 60% of voters turned out at the last local elections, close to Co. Mayo’s towns (60%) and above Irish towns (46%). General election turnout was 64%.
| Turnout | Shrule | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local elections, June 2024 | 60% | 60% | 46% |
| General election, November 2024 | 64% | 64% | 59% |
Department of Housing count sheets, 2024
3 archaeological sites are on the record, below Co. Mayo’s towns (21) and Irish towns (11) alike. Homes from before 1919 make up 8.1% of the total. Surveyors for the national inventory recorded 6 buildings in Shrule, each of regional importance.
| Heritage | Shrule | Co. Mayo | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inventory buildings per 10,000 residents | 166 | 85 | 48 |
| Homes built before 1919 | 8.1% | 4.4% | 3.4% |
| Archaeological sites on the record | 3 | 21 | 11 |
NIAH, the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage · Sites and Monuments Record · CSO, Census 2022 homes by year built
Castles, abbeys, gardens, museums and days out in and near Shrule. Best known first.
CastleShrule Castlein town
Abbey or prioryRoss Errilly Abbey5 km outside town, to the southwest
CastleKinlough Castle2.7 km outside town, to the southwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Surveyors for the national inventory recorded 6 buildings in Shrule, each of regional importance. Archaeologists have recorded 3 sites here.
One notable person was born in Shrule; with them, the best known born in the towns around it.
Ruaidrí Ua Conchobair: ClintMalpaso, Public domain · Rory O'Neill: catherinecronin, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Rory Gaffney: Mattythewhite, CC BY-SA 4.0 · John King: US Naval History & Heritage Command, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shrule | 362 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Headford Galway | 1,235 | 6.3 | — | B | A+ | B |
| Ballinrobe | 3,148 | 14 | B+ | A | B | B− |
| Tuam Galway | 9,647 | 16 | C | A− | C+ | C |
| Oughterard Galway | 1,846 | 19 | — | B+ | A+ | B− |
People: CSO, Census 2022. Distances: centre to centre.
The median age in Shrule is 43.3, against 37.6 in the median of Irish towns.
Shrule had 362 people at the 2022 census, up from 346 in 2016: 4.6% more, against 7.6% in the median of Irish towns.
Urban area in Co. Mayo
362 people live in Shrule, 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). 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).