Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
1,324 people call this town in Co. Offaly home.
Ferbane’s standout strength is cost of living — the median sale, €207,200, comes to 3.9 times what the median household here earns. Police record less crime here than in most towns: violent crime runs at 2.7 per 1,000 residents a year, burglary and criminal damage at 4. Few people walk, cycle or take the bus to work. 7% of commuters walk, cycle or take the bus or train (the typical Irish town: 23%). Jobs and pay trail most towns: 63% of people aged 15 to 64 are in work, and unemployment is 13%.
Figures: prices, Property Price Register, 2023 to 2025 · incomes, CSO · crime, CSO recorded crime, 2023 to 2025 · commuting and work, CSO Census 2022. With fewer than 2,500 residents, Ferbane gets subject grades but no overall one among Irish towns.
Rents for this town aren't published on their own, so its Cost Grade uses the county's average rent. 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 Ferbane does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Ferbane 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 →
5% of its homes were built before 1919, against 3% in the median of Irish towns.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Ferbane.
Under 1% of homes in Ferbane are estimated to have radon above the reference level. The ground under Ferbane carries no high landslide susceptibility. Only a handful of its homes, if any, sit low beside water.
| Share of homes | Ferbane | Co. Offaly | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In high-radon areas | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| On high landslide susceptibility | 0% | 0% | 0% |
EPA radon map, GSI landslide susceptibility and our low-lying homes estimate from OPW LiDAR.
Social housing holds 8% of households, below both Co. Offaly’s towns (17%) and Irish towns (13%). Just over one in ten households are private tenants.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Second-hand homes | €209,000 | 51 |
| Housing | Ferbane | Co. Offaly | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households owning their home | 77% | 61% | 61% |
| Households in social housing | 8% | 17% | 13% |
| Households renting privately | 12% | 23% | 22% |
| Median sale price | €207K | €233K | €350K |
Property Price Register · CSO residential prices by Eircode area · RTB rents · CSO, Census 2022 tenure
Damage to property topped the graded crimes in Ferbane (2023–2025). Theft, shown but not graded, ran at 3.1 per 1,000 a year, below both Co. Offaly’s towns (9.7) and Irish towns (15.3). Among the 156 Irish towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people, Ferbane has less crime per resident than 59% of them.
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 | Ferbane | Co. Offaly | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| All recorded crime | 19.5 | 51.7 | 54.3 |
| Burglary & damage | 4 | 6.8 | 6.4 |
| Violent crime | 2.7 | 6.3 | 5.7 |
| Theft | 3.1 | 9.7 | 15.3 |
CSO recorded crime by Garda station, 2023–2025, shared to towns by where residents live · Census 2022 populations
Workers spend 26.8 min getting to work, on average. 85% of commuters drove, above both Co. Offaly’s towns (73%) and Irish towns (66%). Of those in the labour force, 13% are unemployed.
| Census 2022 | Ferbane | Co. Offaly | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trips under 15 minutes | 43% | 50% | 31% |
| Unemployment rate | 13% | 12% | 9.2% |
| In work, 15 to 64 | 63% | 62% | 68% |
| Average trip | 26.8 min | 23.7 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.
The coldest nights come in January, when Ferbane averages a low of 2.2°C. The year’s mean temperature is 10.1°C, between Co. Offaly’s towns (9.9°C) and Irish towns (10.3°C). The nearest weather station is Gurteen, 29 km away.
| Climate, 1991–2020 | Ferbane | Co. Offaly | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 2.2°C | 2.1°C | 2.9°C |
| Average temperature over the year | 10.1°C | 9.9°C | 10.3°C |
| July high | 20.0°C | 20.0°C | 19.9°C |
Met Éireann, 1991–2020 averages.
Protected nature near Ferbane includes Ferbane Bog SAC. Woodland covers 5.1% of the land within 1 km, lower than Co. Offaly’s towns (8.7%) yet higher than Irish towns (2.7%). 7 waymarked trails and greenways begin within 5 km.
| Outdoors | Ferbane | Co. Offaly | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Near a park | 47% | 78% | 92% |
| Woodland within 1 km | 5.1% | 8.7% | 2.7% |
| Paths per km² of town | 0.4 km per km² | 0.6 km per km² | 2.1 km per km² |
| Protected nature within 5 km | 2.2% | 4.5% | 1.8% |
OpenStreetMap parks and paths, NPWS protected sites and the National Trails Register.
Between 7°C and 11°C: that is the range of daytime highs from here to the end of the week, with Thursday on top. Judged by the averages, Ferbane sees November days reach 11°C and nights fall to 4°C. It should stay dry today, with a fresh breeze of up to 23 km/h and a low near 5°C.
| Season | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | 9°C | 2°C | 247 mm |
| Spring | 14°C | 5°C | 183 mm |
| Summer | 20°C | 11°C | 229 mm |
| Autumn | 14°C | 7°C | 252 mm |
Forecast: MET Norway (CC BY 4.0) · normals: Met Éireann, 1991–2020
Among adults, 24% have a degree. Just over a fifth of residents are 65 or over, above Co. Offaly’s towns (15%) and Irish towns (14%) alike. Under 15: 18% of residents.
52.6% of Ferbane’s residents are women
696 women and 628 men live here; across Ireland, women are 50.6%.
| Ferbane | Co. Offaly | Ireland | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 21% | 20% |
| 15–24 | 12% | 13% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 23% | 28% | 29% |
| 45–64 | 25% | 24% | 24% |
| 65+ | 22% | 15% | 14% |
| Primary or none | 13% | 15% | 9.7% |
| Lower secondary | 18% | 17% | 14% |
| Leaving Cert | 38% | 38% | 35% |
| Diploma or cert | 6.8% | 6.3% | 5.8% |
| Degree or higher | 24% | 22% | 36% |
CSO, Census 2022 · Co. Offaly and Ireland: the median of their towns of 2,500+
With 8 of 19 seats, Fianna Fáil are the largest group on Offaly County Council, short of the 10 a majority needs. Offaly County Council is the one council for Ferbane; Ireland has no town or county councils between it and the government. In the Dáil, Ferbane is part of Offaly, which elects 3 TDs.
| Turnout | Ferbane | Co. Offaly | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local elections, June 2024 | 54% | 50% | 46% |
| General election, November 2024 | 60% | 60% | 59% |
Department of Housing count sheets, 2024
Homes from before 1919 make up 5.3% of the total, between Co. Offaly’s towns (6.5%) and Irish towns (3.4%). Ferbane’s built heritage counts 18 inventory entries, each of regional standing.
| Heritage | Ferbane | Co. Offaly | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inventory buildings per 10,000 residents | 136 | 119 | 48 |
| Archaeological sites on the record | 0 | 5 | 11 |
| Homes built before 1919 | 5.3% | 6.5% | 3.4% |
NIAH, the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage · Sites and Monuments Record · CSO, Census 2022 homes by year built
7.2% of residents in Ferbane care, unpaid, for a relative or friend. Allowing for its ages, Ferbane has 110 residents with a disability per 100 expected, between Co. Offaly’s towns (116) and Irish towns (106). Also worth knowing: a disability affects just over a quarter of people locally.
| Census 2022 | Ferbane | Co. Offaly | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unpaid carers | 7.2% | 5.9% | 5.4% |
| With a disability | 26% | 25% | 22% |
| Good or very good health | 85% | 86% | 88% |
| Bad or very bad health | 2.8% | 2.8% | 2% |
CSO, Census 2022 general health, disability and carers · CSO life expectancy by region, 2016 · HSE medical cards, 2024 · TownRatings age-standardised ratios
Half of the schools are in the DEIS scheme, between Co. Offaly’s towns (71%) and Irish towns (35%). For secondary school, the closest is Gallen Community School, 0.3 km from the town. Families in Ferbane have 2 schools within 3 km to choose from: 1 primary school and 1 secondary school.
| School | Level | Pupils | Ethos |
|---|---|---|---|
| St. Cynoc's National School DEISLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 189 | Catholic |
| Gallen Community SchoolLargest post-primary schoolPost-primary · Community school | Post-primary · Community school | 441 | Inter-denominational |
| Schools within 3 km | Ferbane | Co. Offaly | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teach through Irish | 0% | 11% | 8% |
| Pupils since 2019/20 | +10% | −1% | +4% |
| Single-sex secondaries | 0% | 0% | 39% |
| In the DEIS scheme | 50% | 71% | 35% |
Department of Education school lists, 2025/26 (preliminary) · no results are published by school · Without school-level results from Ireland, the cards show no letters.
2 places to visit are mapped within 5 km of Ferbane; with them, the best known within 40 km.
Abbey or prioryGallen Priory500 m outside town, to the southeast
Historic house · Office of Public WorksClonmacnoise12 km northwest
CastleBirr Castle20 km south
CathedralClonfert Cathedral15 km west
CastleLeap Castle27 km south
CastleRedwood Castle24 km southwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Ferbane’s built heritage counts 18 inventory entries, each of regional standing.
3 notable people were born in Ferbane.
The nearest places of 1,000 or more. Boundaries: Tailte Éireann, CSO Urban Areas 2022 and Electoral Divisions.
Ferbane had 1,324 people at the 2022 census, up from 1,269 in 2016: 4.3% more, against 7.6% in the median of Irish towns.
The median age in Ferbane is 42.6, against 37.6 in the median of Irish towns.
Urban area in Co. Offaly
Ferbane has 1,324 people, in the area of Offaly 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).