Coolboy’s story
Coolboy: 19% of homes built before 1919
1 building on the National Inventory inside Coolboy.
- 1740Coolboy House
CoolboyCo. Wicklow
272 people live in this town in Co. Wicklow.
6 places within 19 kmMap →
Photo: Upsilona · CC BY-SA 3.0
Population
272
CSO, Census 2022 · Wicklow County Council
Median age
38.8
12% are 65+ · Co. Wicklow 14%
Degree level
23%
of residents 15+ · Irish towns 36%
Walk, cycle, transit
2%
of working residents · Irish towns 23%
Is Coolboy a good place to live?
The median home sold for €287,000, 5 times the town’s median household income. 2% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. 23% of adults have a degree.
Coolboy is too small to grade: Irish towns get subject grades from 1,000 residents.
What makes Coolboy stand out
The 2 things Coolboy does most differently from other towns.
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Coolboy.
Natural hazards
The ground is the thing to check in Coolboy: 8.2% of homes stand on high landslide susceptibility, more than Co. Wicklow’s towns or Irish towns
The EPA estimates that 37% of homes in Coolboy are above the radon reference level. 100% of its homes sit in high-radon areas, above both Co. Wicklow’s towns (0%) and Irish towns (0%). Few of its homes stand low beside water.
100%of homes in high-radon areas
Homes exposed · share of the town’s homes
In high-radon areas100%
On high landslide susceptibility8.2%
| Share of homes | Coolboy | Co. Wicklow | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In high-radon areas | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| On high landslide susceptibility | 8.2% | 0.4% | 0% |
37%
of homes over the radon level
98
homes mapped for these shares
EPA radon map, GSI landslide susceptibility and our low-lying homes estimate from OPW LiDAR.
Climate
Winter nights bite in Coolboy: January lows of 2.3°C, colder than Co. Wicklow’s towns or Irish towns
Over twelve months, Coolboy averages 10.0°C. 1,156 mm of rain falls in a year, higher than both Co. Wicklow’s towns (988 mm) and Irish towns (937 mm). The town sees July afternoons of 20.0°C on average.
20.0°CJuly afternoon high
Average afternoon highs by season · 1991–2020 averages
Winter8.7°C
Spring13.1°C
Summer19.4°C
Autumn14.2°C
| Climate, 1991–2020 | Coolboy | Co. Wicklow | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 2.3°C | 3.3°C | 2.9°C |
| Average temperature over the year | 10.0°C | 10.5°C | 10.3°C |
| Rain a year | 1,156 mm | 988 mm | 937 mm |
| July high | 20.0°C | 19.7°C | 19.9°C |
20.0°C
July high
2.3°C
January low
1,156 mm
Rain a year
136 mm
Wettest month
35
Air frosts
Met Éireann, 1991–2020 averages.
Health
Bad health runs high in Coolboy for a town of its ages, at 187 per 100 expected, more than in Co. Wicklow’s towns or Irish towns
Allowing for its ages, Coolboy has 99 residents with a disability per 100 expected, below both Co. Wicklow’s towns (111) and Irish towns (106). At the census, 3% of people here described their health as bad or very bad. Unpaid caring falls to 6.6% of the town’s residents.
90%good or very good health
Per 100 expected at the town’s ages · age-standardised
Bad health187
Disability99
Co. Wicklow111
Expected100
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 90%Fair 7%Bad or very bad 3%
| Census 2022 | Coolboy | Co. Wicklow | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bad or very bad health | 3% | 1.8% | 2% |
| Unpaid carers | 6.6% | 5.6% | 5.4% |
| With a disability | 20% | 24% | 22% |
| Good or very good health | 90% | 90% | 88% |
187
bad health per 100 expected · Co. Wicklow 111
99
disability per 100 expected · Co. Wicklow 111
84 · 80.3
life expectancy, women · men, the Mid-East region, 2016
27%
hold a medical card, HSE Dublin and South East
CSO, Census 2022 general health, disability and carers · CSO life expectancy by region, 2016 · HSE medical cards, 2024 · TownRatings age-standardised ratios
Housing
Most households in Coolboy own their home: 89%, more than in Co. Wicklow’s towns or across Irish towns
Social renters account for 6% of households. 3% rent privately, lower than both Co. Wicklow’s towns (16%) and Irish towns (22%).
€287Kmedian sale price
Median sale price · Eircode area, 2023–2025
Coolboy€287K
Co. Wicklow€440K
Irish towns€350K
| Housing | Coolboy | Co. Wicklow | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households owning their home | 89% | 71% | 61% |
| Households renting privately | 3% | 16% | 22% |
| Households in social housing | 6% | 14% | 13% |
| Median sale price | €287K | €440K | €350K |
89%
own their home · Irish towns 61%
3%
rent privately · Irish towns 22%
€1,730
a month on new tenancies, County Wicklow
Property Price Register · CSO residential prices by Eircode area · RTB rents · CSO, Census 2022 tenure · The price is for the postcode area Y14, not the town alone: too few sales inside the town carry a full address.
Outdoors
More woodland lies at the edge of Coolboy than Co. Wicklow’s towns or Irish towns: 16% of the land within 1 km
Protected sites cover 1.3% of the land within 5 km, below both Co. Wicklow’s towns (3.9%) and Irish towns (1.8%). 4 waymarked trails and greenways begin within 5 km.
0%of homes near green space
Green space per 1,000 residents · per 1,000 residents
Coolboy0.0 ha
Co. Wicklow1.5 ha
Irish towns4.1 ha
| Outdoors | Coolboy | Co. Wicklow | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Near a park | 0% | 75% | 92% |
| Woodland within 1 km | 16% | 5.7% | 2.7% |
| Sea within 5 km | 0% | 34% | 0% |
| Paths per km² of town | 0.0 km per km² | 1.2 km per km² | 2.1 km per km² |
1.3%
Protected for nature
16%
Woodland
OpenStreetMap parks and paths, NPWS protected sites and the National Trails Register.
Weather
Coolboy’s weather today: partly cloudy, with a high of 10 degrees
Rain peaks later in the week on Tuesday, at about 8 mm for the day. Set beside Coolboy’s forecast, a normal November runs from 4°C at night to 11°C by day. A dry day with a stiff breeze lies ahead today: wind building to 27 km/h, then a low of 8°C.
10°C / 8°CToday
This month and the next three, normal highs · 1991–2020 averages
November11°C
December9°C
January8°C
February9°C
| Season | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | 9°C | 2°C | 316 mm |
| Spring | 13°C | 5°C | 239 mm |
| Summer | 19°C | 11°C | 250 mm |
| Autumn | 14°C | 7°C | 350 mm |
10°C / 8°C
Today
None
Rain, next 24 hours
19 km/h
Wind
89%
Humidity
9 h 21 min
Daylight
Forecast: MET Norway (CC BY 4.0) · normals: Met Éireann, 1991–2020
Work & commute
Walking, cycling and public transport carry fewer commuters in Coolboy than in Co. Wicklow’s towns or Irish towns: 1.8%
5.4% of workers worked mainly from home, lower than both Co. Wicklow’s towns (11%) and Irish towns (11%). The car carried 92% of commuters at the census. Employment among 15- to 64-year-olds stood at 65% at the census.
2%walk, cycle or take transit
How working residents got to work · census 2022
Car or van92%
Walk1%
Bicycle1%
| Census 2022 | Coolboy | Co. Wicklow | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trips under 15 minutes | 44% | 36% | 31% |
| In work, 15 to 64 | 65% | 69% | 68% |
| Unemployment rate | 11% | 8.9% | 9.2% |
| Average trip | 29.5 min | 31.6 min | 27.6 min |
€57,970
household income, 2022 estimate · Co. Wicklow €64,077
5%
worked mainly from home, 2022
15%
trips of an hour or more
4,688
on the Live Register, County Wicklow, September 2026
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.
Who lives here
Most of Coolboy was born here: only 12% come from abroad, fewer than in Co. Wicklow’s towns and Irish towns
14% of residents are aged 15 to 24. People 65 and over make up just over a tenth of the town.
38.8median age
CoolboyCo. WicklowIreland
Ages · share of residents
14%
Highest education · residents 15 and older who have finished education
Primary or none13%
Lower secondary17%
Leaving Cert43%
Diploma or cert4%
Degree or higher23%
Women and men · all residents
Women make up 49.3% of Coolboy
134 women and 138 men live here; across Ireland, women are 50.6%.
| Coolboy | Co. Wicklow | Ireland | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 24% | 24% | 20% |
| 15–24 | 14% | 13% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 25% | 26% | 29% |
| 45–64 | 26% | 26% | 24% |
| 65+ | 12% | 14% | 14% |
| Primary or none | 13% | 10% | 9.7% |
| Lower secondary | 17% | 15% | 14% |
| Leaving Cert | 43% | 36% | 35% |
| Diploma or cert | 4.1% | 6.5% | 5.8% |
| Degree or higher | 23% | 32% | 36% |
CSO, Census 2022 · Co. Wicklow and Ireland: the median of their towns of 2,500+
Town hall
Wicklow County Council runs on one of the smallest budgets per resident of any council
General election turnout: 61%, between Co. Wicklow’s towns (68%) and Irish towns (59%). Coolboy answers to one council, Wicklow County Council; Ireland has no town tier. Local election turnout came to 55%. No party holds a majority on Wicklow County Council: Independent lead with 10 of 32 seats, short of the 17 needed.
10/32seats held by Independent
Seats on Wicklow County · June 2024
Independent10
Fine Gael9
Fianna Fáil4
Social Democrats3
Sinn Féin2
Green Party2
Labour Party1
Independent Ireland1
| Turnout | Coolboy | Co. Wicklow | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| General election, November 2024 | 61% | 68% | 59% |
| Local elections, June 2024 | 55% | 54% | 46% |
6
Councillors
10/32
Independent seats on Wicklow County, the largest party
55%
turnout, June 2024
3
TDs elected for Wicklow-Wexford
Department of Housing count sheets, 2024
History
Coolboy keeps more of its old housing than Co. Wicklow’s towns or Irish towns: 19.1% built before 1919
Scaled to its population, Coolboy has 37 inventory buildings per 10,000 people, below Co. Wicklow’s towns (54) and Irish towns (48) alike. Surveyors for the national inventory recorded one building in Coolboy, of regional importance.
1inventory buildings
Buildings by NIAH rating · NIAH
International0
National0
Regional1
Among them
- Coolboy House 1740
0
sites on the Sites and Monuments Record
1740
earliest dated inventory building
19%
homes built before 1919 · Irish towns 3%
| Heritage | Coolboy | Co. Wicklow | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1919 | 19.1% | 5.5% | 3.4% |
| Inventory buildings per 10,000 residents | 37 | 54 | 48 |
| Archaeological sites on the record | 0 | 14 | 11 |
NIAH, the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage · Sites and Monuments Record · CSO, Census 2022 homes by year built
Schools
No secondary school in or near Coolboy: the nearest is 6.4 km away
One school lies within 3 km of Coolboy. Pupils at the school within 3 km of the town: 68.
1schools within 3 km
| School | Level | Pupils | Ethos |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coolfancy N.S.Largest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 68 | Catholic |
| Schools within 3 km | Coolboy | Co. Wicklow | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teach through Irish | 0% | 9% | 8% |
| In the DEIS scheme | 0% | 20% | 35% |
68
pupils at schools within 3 km, 2025/26
2.2 km
to the nearest primary school
6.4 km
to the nearest secondary school
Department of Education school lists, 2025/26 (preliminary) · no results are published by school · There are no letters or results on these cards, because Ireland publishes none school by school.
Nearby attractions
All attractions →Glendalough and 11 more within 40 km
Nothing to visit is mapped within 5 km of Coolboy; these are the best known within 40 km.
Abbey or prioryGlendalough29 km north
National parkWicklow Mountains National Park29 km north
CastleBallyloughan Castle22 km west
CastleHuntington Castle and Gardens15 km southwest
CastleCarlow Castle33 km west
CastleBallymoon Castle31 km westPlaces: Fáilte Ireland open data (CC BY 4.0) · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata
Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (6)
- Glendalough: Schcambo at English Wikipedia, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Wicklow Mountains National Park: Joe King, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Ballyloughan Castle: VisionsofthePast, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Huntington Castle and Gardens: Liam Hughes from Milwaukee, WI, USA, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Carlow Castle: Age Bosma, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Ballymoon Castle: Poleary91, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Coolboy
15pages on Coolboy
Famous people from around Coolboy
No notable person born in Coolboy is on our list; these were born in the towns around it.
P
Paudge BrennanIrish politician (1922–1998) · born in CarnewS
Shane ByrneIrish rugby union player · born in Aughrim · born 1971
Photo credits
Michael W. D'Arcy: Houses of the Oireachtas, CC BY 2.0 · Frederick Keppel: Frederick Keppel, photographer unknown., Public domain · Malcolm Byrne: Houses of the Oireachtas, CC BY 4.0 · Bernard Jackman: Fanny Schertzer, CC BY 3.0
Coolboy’s neighbours
The nearest places of 1,000 or more. Boundaries: Tailte Éireann, CSO Urban Areas 2022 and Electoral Divisions.
TinahelyCarnewAughrimGoreyBunclodyTullowCoolboy
Questions about Coolboy
How do people in Coolboy get to work?
5% mostly work from home, and 44% of journeys take under 15 minutes.
Is Coolboy growing?
Coolboy had 272 people at the 2022 census, up from 265 in 2016: 2.6% more, against 7.6% in the median of Irish towns.
Is Coolboy a young town or an old one?
The median age in Coolboy is 38.8, against 37.6 in the median of Irish towns. 24% of residents are under 15 and 12% are 65 or over.
About Coolboy
Urban area in Co. Wicklow
272 people live in Coolboy, in the area of Wicklow 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)
- Population
- 272 (CSO, Census 2022)
- County
- Wicklow
- Council
- Wicklow County Council
- Local electoral area
- Baltinglass
- Dáil constituency
- Wicklow-Wexford
- Name in Irish
- An Cúl Buí
- Area
- 0.1 sq mi (0.2 km²)
- CSO code
- UA:15388
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).