Photo: Ian S · CC BY-SA 2.0Shared households of unrelated adults: 12%, a higher share than 99% of UK towns
Across England’s towns, the share of married adults and civil partners is 44%; Falmouth has 36%. 18% of households live in a detached house, fewer than in 79% of UK towns. The town is home to 24,066 residents in 10,040 households, by the 2021 Census. Here, nearly a quarter of households live in a flat or apartment.
What the Census says about Falmouth’s people
A student town
The 2021 Census counted 4,133 full-time students aged 16 and over, 20% of adults, against 7.9% across England’s towns: more than in 99% of UK towns. That shows in the ages: 22% of residents are 15 to 24. Students & newcomers ↓
A town people move to
17% of residents gave a different address a year before the 2021 Census, 1.6 times the share across England’s towns, and 5.3% gave a term-time address. Students & newcomers ↓
More with no religion than most
51% of residents answered “no religion” in 2021 and 39% Christian, against 37% and 46% across England’s towns. Ethnicity & religion ↓
Younger than most towns
Half of Falmouth’s residents are under 38.6 and half over, against 44.4 in the typical UK town. 22% are 15 to 24 and 21% are 65 or over. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area) and ONS mid-year population estimates.
Falmouth’s population changed by +9% since 2011, more than in 57% of UK towns
ONS mid-year estimates, each year indexed to mid-2011 = 100. Falmouth’s figure is the small areas (2021 LSOAs) that make up the town.
People, mid-2011 = 100
Change by age, 2011 to 2024
About 21,800 people in 2011; 23,800 in 2024.
The steepest year was mid-2015 to mid-2016, up 390 people. The 65 and over age group moved most (+23%); the 45 to 64 group moved least (−2%).
22% of residents are aged 15 to 24, a share 99% of UK towns don’t reach
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
Just over a fifth of residents are 65 or over, against 18% across England’s towns. For comparison, 12% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns. The median age in Falmouth is 38.6, lower than in 87% of UK towns.
Median age of UK towns of 2,500+
■ Falmouth, 38.6. The typical town is 44.4.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
About 88 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
More full-time students than 99% of UK towns: 20%
What adults did at the 2021 Census (the ONS’s NS-SEC classes), and where residents lived a year earlier.
Adults by occupation class · residents 16 and over
Address a year before the Census
Residents who lived somewhere else a year earlier. The bar runs to 25%.
The share of residents who moved in within the year tops 97% of UK towns: 17%. For full-time students, the comparison across England’s towns is 7.9%.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
Only 21% of households in Falmouth have dependent children
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Cornwall’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
30% of households are one person living alone across England’s towns, against 31% in Falmouth. On average, 29% of households have dependent children across England’s towns.
21% of households have no car or van, more than in 75% of UK towns
Accommodation type and cars or vans per household, Census 2021. Owning and renting are on Cost of living.
Type of home
Cars or vans · share of households
The figure for households in terraced houses is 26% in Falmouth and 24% across England’s towns. Every 5th household or so has no car or van.
More residents born abroad than 64% of UK towns: 8.1% in Falmouth
Country of birth, year of arrival and main language, Census 2021.
Born outside the UK, by region · share of all residents; the bar runs to 25%
When those born abroad arrived
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
The largest groups were born in EU countries (3.9%) and in the Middle East and Asia (1.5%). Typically, 18% of residents were born outside the UK across England’s towns. On residents whose main language is English, Falmouth sits lower than 61% of UK towns: 97%. 31% of the town’s residents born abroad came in 2017 or later, set against 21% across England’s towns.
A larger share of residents with no religion than 96% of UK towns: 51%
How residents described themselves at the 2021 Census. Lines join the lowest and highest of the three figures.
Ethnic groups other than White British · all residents
White British, not charted: 90% of Falmouth · Cornwall’s towns 93% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Compared with 46% across England’s towns, nearly two in five residents describe themselves as Christian here. Falmouth has fewer residents who describe themselves as White British than nearly two thirds of UK towns, at 90%. Measured more widely, 37% of residents said they have no religion across England’s towns. Next after White British come Other White (5.4%), Mixed or multiple (2.1%) and Chinese (0.3%).
Falmouth: 47% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership, above 97% of UK towns
Legal partnership status (residents 16 and over) and unpaid care (residents 5 and over), Census 2021.
Partnership status · residents 16 and over
Unpaid care given · share of residents 5 and over
Little separates the share of unpaid carers here, 8.2%, from the figure across England’s towns. Across England’s towns, adults who have never married come to 39%. 539 residents give 50 hours or more of unpaid care each week.
Degree-level qualifications: 36% of adults
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Against 34% across England’s towns, 36% of adults here have a degree-level qualification, while 12% hold no qualification (18%). Many of the 25% whose highest qualification is A levels are students working towards a degree.
From a median age of 34 in Falmouth North to 44 in Falmouth West & South
The town’s 3 neighbourhoods (ONS middle-layer areas with 500+ residents inside it, named by the House of Commons Library), youngest first. Census 2021.
Falmouth West & South is the oldest area, with 23% aged 65 or over; Falmouth North the youngest (median age 34). Students cluster in Falmouth East, where 30% of adults are full-time students. Families with children are most common in Falmouth West & South (27% of households).
Among 248 UK towns of 17,000 to 32,000 people, the 27th youngest
Median age, Census 2021. Hover a dot for its students and residents born abroad; click for its page.
Egham is the youngest (31.1); Brixham the oldest (55.6). Nearest to Falmouth in age: Thetford (38.5), Reddish (38.6), Heywood (38.7) and Ormskirk (38.7).
Falmouth is younger than 6 of its 7 nearest neighbours
Nearby built-up areas coloured by median age, Census 2021. Tap a town for its page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Homes with children |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falmouth | 24,066 | — | 38.6 | 21% | 21% |
| Penryn | 11,194 | 2 mi | 30.3 | 15% | 24% |
| Mylor Bridge | 1,534 | 2.3 mi | 61.1 | 44% | 15% |
| Mawnan Smith | 1,001 | 2.8 mi | 57.7 | 39% | 23% |
| Perranarworthal | 1,305 | 4.5 mi | 53.4 | 33% | 23% |
| Carnon Downs and Devoran | 2,129 | 4.7 mi | 55.7 | 36% | 20% |
| Stithians | 1,613 | 5 mi | 45.5 | 23% | 29% |
| Lanner | 2,164 | 7 mi | 46.8 | 22% | 27% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The Census was taken in a lockdown, in term time. 21 March 2021 fell in term time, and students were asked to give their term-time address, so most were counted where they study. Some may have been living with family that day.
- “Cornwall’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Cornwall (or England), summed the same way as Falmouth’s figures, so households in open countryside are left out. The population trend compares with the whole county and nation.
- Estimates since 2021 are modelled. The ONS builds mid-year estimates from the Census, births, deaths and migration records. Falmouth’s trend uses the small areas (2021 LSOAs) with most of their people inside it: 23,695 people in 2021, against 24,066 in the built-up area.
- Small counts are blurred. The ONS adds small random changes to Census counts to protect privacy, so the same total differs a little between tables, and the shares of a small town can move by a point or two.
Questions about Falmouth’s residents
What is the population of Falmouth?
The 2021 Census counted 24,066 people in Falmouth’s built-up area. The ONS estimates the same small areas held 23,800 people in mid-2024, 9% more than in 2011.
What is the average age in Falmouth?
The median age was 38.6 at the 2021 Census, younger than 87% of UK towns. 22% of residents were 15 to 24 and 21% were 65 or over.
Is Falmouth a student town?
Yes: 20% of adults were full-time students at the 2021 Census (4,133 people), against 7.9% across England’s towns. In Falmouth East, 30% of adults were students.
How diverse is Falmouth?
90% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 93% across Cornwall’s towns. 8.1% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Falmouth?
51% said they had no religion and 39% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.6% were Muslim and 7.6% didn’t answer.
Is Falmouth good for families?
21% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Families are most common in Falmouth West & South (27% of households). Schools are on Falmouth’s schools page.
Sources: ONS Census 2021, output areas summed to the ONS 2022 built-up area (TS002, TS003, TS004, TS007A, TS008, TS015, TS017, TS019, TS021, TS029, TS030, TS039, TS044, TS045, TS062, TS067) · ONS mid-year population estimates for 2021 LSOAs, mid-2011 to mid-2024 · House of Commons Library MSOA names. All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.