#1Celbridge
Kildare · 20,601 peopleOverall A+·#3 of 320
Strongest: safety A, health A−·lowest: cost of living B−
Celbridge, #1 on this list · Photo: Eirian Evans (CC BY-SA 2.0)Ireland · 2026
Best big towns to live in Ireland
Celbridge, Kildare, tops the list at A+. Second and third places go to Douglas (A+) and Ballincollig (A). A grades go to 9 of the towns on the list. Furthest down the list is Jobstown, at D−. The list’s top ten come from 4 different counties.
Overall grade, the ranked towns of 20,000 or more How grades work
#1A+Overall
#2Douglas
Cork · 22,029 peopleOverall A+·#16 of 320
Strongest: jobs & income A+, safety A+·lowest: walkability C−
#3Ballincollig
Cork · 21,940 peopleOverall A·#26 of 320
Strongest: jobs & income A+, safety A·lowest: hazard risk D
The top 32 of 32
Ranked by its measure (Overall), best first; each town’s overall grade and national rank sit beside it.
32 towns
#TownOverallGrade · national rankWhat drives it
1CelbridgeKildare · 20,601 peopleA+A+#3 of 320 nationallyStrongest: safety A, health A−·lowest: cost of living B−
2DouglasCork · 22,029 peopleA+A+#16 of 320 nationallyStrongest: jobs & income A+, safety A+·lowest: walkability C−
3BallincolligCork · 21,940 peopleAA#26 of 320 nationallyStrongest: jobs & income A+, safety A·lowest: hazard risk D
4CarpenterstownDublin · 20,967 peopleAA#32 of 320 nationallyStrongest: health A+, jobs & income A·lowest: safety C+
5StepasideDublin · 22,796 peopleAA#41 of 320 nationallyStrongest: health A, jobs & income A·lowest: hazard risk D
6Rathmines WestDublin · 22,667 peopleAA#43 of 320 nationallyStrongest: walkability A+, health A·lowest: cost of living C
7SwordsDublin · 40,776 peopleA−A−#51 of 320 nationallyStrongest: hazard risk A+, jobs & income A−·lowest: cost of living C
8NaasKildare · 26,180 peopleA−A−#54 of 320 nationallyStrongest: health A, jobs & income A−·lowest: cost of living C+
9Greystones-DelganyWicklow · 22,009 peopleA−A−#73 of 320 nationallyStrongest: health A, safety A−·lowest: cost of living D−
10LucanDublin · 23,033 peopleB+B+#92 of 320 nationallyStrongest: health A, jobs & income A−·lowest: cost of living C−
11KilkennyKilkenny · 27,184 peopleB+B+#112 of 320 nationallyStrongest: cost of living B+, walkability B+·lowest: safety C
12NavanMeath · 33,886 peopleBB#121 of 320 nationallyStrongest: hazard risk A, cost of living A−·lowest: jobs & income C
13BlanchardstownDublin · 24,613 peopleBB#127 of 320 nationallyStrongest: walkability A−, health B+·lowest: safety C+
14SandymountDublin · 22,340 peopleBB#141 of 320 nationallyStrongest: jobs & income A+, health A−·lowest: cost of living D−
15ClonsillaDublin · 22,510 peopleB−B−#149 of 320 nationallyStrongest: health A−, jobs & income B·lowest: cost of living C−
16NewbridgeKildare · 24,366 peopleB−B−#150 of 320 nationallyStrongest: cost of living B+, walkability B−·lowest: safety C
17BrayWicklow · 33,512 peopleB−B−#159 of 320 nationallyStrongest: walkability A−, health B·lowest: cost of living C
18EnnisClare · 27,923 peopleB−B−#165 of 320 nationallyStrongest: cost of living B+, jobs & income B·lowest: hazard risk D
19ClondalkinDublin · 22,788 peopleB−B−#175 of 320 nationallyStrongest: jobs & income B+, health B·lowest: safety D
20MullingarWestmeath · 22,667 peopleC+C+#201 of 320 nationallyStrongest: hazard risk A−, cost of living B+·lowest: safety C−
21SligoSligo · 20,608 peopleCC#226 of 320 nationallyStrongest: cost of living B+, walkability B·lowest: hazard risk D
22WexfordWexford · 21,524 peopleCC#237 of 320 nationallyStrongest: hazard risk A−, cost of living B·lowest: safety D
23AthloneWestmeath · 22,869 peopleCC#240 of 320 nationallyStrongest: cost of living B+, hazard risk B−·lowest: safety D
24BallymunDublin · 22,321 peopleC−C−#245 of 320 nationallyStrongest: walkability A−, hazard risk A−·lowest: jobs & income D
25BalbrigganDublin · 24,322 peopleC−C−#256 of 320 nationallyStrongest: cost of living B+, walkability B·lowest: health D
26PortlaoiseLaois · 23,494 peopleC−C−#262 of 320 nationallyStrongest: hazard risk A, cost of living B+·lowest: safety D
27TraleeKerry · 26,079 peopleC−C−#263 of 320 nationallyStrongest: cost of living B, walkability C+·lowest: hazard risk D
28CarlowCarlow · 27,351 peopleC−C−#264 of 320 nationallyStrongest: cost of living B, walkability C+·lowest: health D
29DundalkLouth · 43,112 peopleC−C−#266 of 320 nationallyStrongest: walkability B−, cost of living B−·lowest: hazard risk D
30DroghedaLouth · 44,135 peopleC−C−#267 of 320 nationallyStrongest: hazard risk A−, walkability B−·lowest: cost of living C
31LetterkennyDonegal · 22,549 peopleDD#282 of 320 nationallyStrongest: cost of living B, jobs & income B−·lowest: hazard risk D
32JobstownDublin · 23,437 peopleD−D−#305 of 320 nationallyStrongest: hazard risk A−, walkability B+·lowest: health D
Method
How this list is made
Overall grade, the ranked towns of 20,000 or more. Towns of 2,500 or more in Ireland are listed by it, best first; a tie goes to the town with the better overall rank. How grades work
Rankings
More lists across Ireland
County by county
Best places to live, county by county
Photos: Celbridge, Eirian Evans (CC BY-SA 2.0) · Douglas, Hywel Williams (CC BY-SA 2.0) · Ballincollig, Ian Paterson (CC BY-SA 2.0), via Wikimedia Commons.
Sources: TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranking Irish towns against each other only, run #71 of 9 November 2026. 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).