Cleator Moor, #1 on this list · Photo: David Medcalf · CC BY-SA 2.0

Cumbria rankings · Cost of living

Most affordable towns in Cumbria

Cleator Moor ranks first on cost of living among Cumbria’s 23 towns of 2,500+; none grades A− or better against UK towns; the best here is a B.

The Cost of living Grade: the median sale price (Land Registry), a year’s private rent (ONS) and Band D council tax with the parish precept, each against the mean household income of the town’s council area. The rank across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland sits beside each letter. How grades work

Cleator Moor

6,671 people

Homes cost 2.8 years of area income·#1,111 of 2,515 in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

Millom

5,690 people

Homes cost 2.5 years of area income·#1,188 of 2,515 in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

Egremont

5,791 people

Homes cost 2.7 years of area income·#1,198 of 2,515 in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

All 23 towns, ranked

Cost of living grade, best first; ranks are the county ranks on each town’s page (T = tied). Military garrison towns and university campuses keep their grades but aren’t ranked. Each rank across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland links to the national list.

Every town in Cumbria →

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23 towns.

#TownGrade · UK rankCompared with UK towns

1Cleator Moor6,671 peopleB#1,111 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 2.8 years of area income

2Millom5,690 peopleB#1,188 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 2.5 years of area income

3Egremont5,791 peopleB#1,198 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 2.7 years of area income

4Whitehaven22,952 peopleB⁻#1,346 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 3.6 years of area income

5Workington21,276 peopleB⁻#1,513 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 3.2 years of area income

6Maryport8,526 peopleB⁻#1,525 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 3.3 years of area income

7Carlisle77,729 peopleC⁺#1,579 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 3.7 years of area income

8Barrow-in-Furness55,260 peopleC⁺#1,625 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 3.8 years of area income

9Dalton-in-Furness7,551 peopleC⁺#1,656 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 3.8 years of area income

10Silloth2,542 peopleC#1,800 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 4.0 years of area income

11Brampton4,187 peopleC⁻#1,987 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 4.5 years of area income

12Appleby-in-Westmorland3,233 peopleC⁻#2,005 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 4.7 years of area income

13Seaton5,051 peopleC⁻#2,120 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 4.9 years of area income

14Wigton5,396 peopleC⁻#2,177 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 4.8 years of area income

15Penrith16,705 peopleD#2,213 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 5.2 years of area income

16Ulverston11,219 peopleD#2,242 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 5.5 years of area income

17Kendal28,939 peopleD#2,319 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 5.7 years of area income

18Grange-over-Sands4,047 peopleD⁻#2,448 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 6.1 years of area income

19Askam in Furness3,172 peopleD⁻#2,458 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 5.9 years of area income

20Windermere4,819 peopleD⁻#2,486 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 7.3 years of area income

21Cockermouth8,859 peopleD⁻#2,489 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 6.3 years of area income

22Ambleside2,624 peopleD⁻#2,510 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 8.7 years of area income

23Keswick4,465 peopleD⁻#2,515 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 8.5 years of area income

Quick answers

Questions people ask

What is the most affordable town in Cumbria?

Cleator Moor ranks first on cost of living among 23 towns, with a B: homes cost 2.8 years of area income. Millom and Egremont follow.

How are these towns ranked?

The Cost of living Grade: the median sale price (Land Registry), a year’s private rent (ONS) and Band D council tax with the parish precept, each against the mean household income of the town’s council area. The letter and rank are the same as on each town’s page. How grades work.

Why isn’t my town on this list?

Garrison towns and university campuses aren’t ranked, and towns without the figures this grade needs are counted above. The list covers Cumbria’s towns of 2,500+ with the figure. Smaller places show it on their own pages; every town in Cumbria is on the county page.

Go deeper

More Cumbria lists

Every list ranks the same 2,500+ towns, so a town’s rank means the same thing on each.

All Cumbria rankings →

Best places to live23 towns · #1 Grange-over-Sands Best small towns16 towns · #1 Grange-over-Sands Safest towns23 towns · #1 Seaton Towns with the best schools23 towns · #1 Kendal Healthiest towns23 towns · #1 Keswick Best towns for jobs & income23 towns · #1 Windermere Most walkable towns23 towns · #1 Ambleside Towns with the lowest flood risk23 towns · #1 Millom Best towns for the outdoors23 towns · #1 Keswick Most historic towns23 towns · #1 Appleby-in-Westmorland Towns with the most civic life23 towns · #1 Grange-over-Sands Towns with the highest household incomes23 towns · #1 CockermouthDescribed, no letters Towns with the lowest council tax23 towns · #1 CarlisleDescribed, no letters Towns with the mildest winters23 towns · #1 WorkingtonDescribed, no letters Towns with the warmest summers23 towns · #1 CarlisleDescribed, no letters Towns with the coolest summers23 towns · #1 Cleator MoorDescribed, no letters Towns with the fewest frosts23 towns · #1 Barrow-in-FurnessDescribed, no letters Driest towns23 towns · #1 CarlisleDescribed, no letters Wettest towns23 towns · #1 AmblesideDescribed, no letters

Sources: HM Land Registry Price Paid (standard sales, September 2023 to August 2026) · ONS Price Index of Private Rents (August 2026, by council) · MHCLG and Welsh Government council tax, Band D 2026–27 (with parish precepts in England) · ONS small-area income estimates (financial year ending 2023) · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only. 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.