Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 16,448 in Dyfed, Wales.
Carmarthen grades C− overall against UK towns: better than 21% of UK towns, and #6 of 23 in Dyfed. Its strongest subject is walkability (A−): 22% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. Its weakest is safety (D−): 71.2 violent and sexual offences and 18.9 home and vehicle crimes per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026. Among UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people, it has less crime per resident than 3%. The median home sold for £205,000 in the last three years, 4.8 times what households in the Carmarthenshire council area earn in a year.
Dyfed Powys Police published 32 of the 36 months; rates are per year over the months published. This town's Health Grade uses ONS's small-area life expectancy and healthy life expectancy for 2019 to 2023, and two Census 2021 measures, bad health and disability, adjusted for age. English towns' grades also use OHID's small-area early deaths, hospital admissions and child obesity, which OHID publishes for England only.
The 3 things Carmarthen does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within Wales), ordered by how far Carmarthen is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Cadw lists 304 buildings inside Carmarthen’s built-up area, 3 of them Grade I, and 7 scheduled monuments.
23% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
The archive holds 8 old photos and postcards going back to 1830 and a map from 1876.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Carmarthen.
In the 12 months to August 2026, police logged 2,380 crimes and 261 reports of anti-social behaviour inside Carmarthen’s built-up area. For its size, Carmarthen records more crime per resident than 97% of the 645 UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people. There were 14.4 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), above both Dyfed’s towns (6.7) and Wales’s towns (10.4). Also worth knowing: of all the crimes, 50% were violence and sexual offences.
Not gradedAnti-social behaviour, shoplifting and other theft are shown but left out of the Safety Grade, which counts violence and crimes against homes and vehicles per resident.
data.police.uk street-level crime · points inside the ONS built-up-area boundary · OGL · The police category of violence and sexual offences includes harassment and stalking.
Three of them are below, each with the reason it’s listed. Carmarthen’s seven primaries and two secondaries have 3,250 pupils between them.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Model C.I.W. SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 491 | – |
| Queen Elizabeth HighLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 1,289 | – |
| Ysgol y DderwenLargest Welsh-medium schoolPrimary | Primary | 358 | – |
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Per 10,000 residents, Carmarthen counts 185 listed buildings, above both Dyfed’s towns (32) and Wales’s towns (18). The town’s listed buildings include Carmarthen Castle, Grade I. Nearly a quarter of homes were built before 1919.
Cadw list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 19% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Just over three quarters of commuters drove, below Dyfed’s towns (83%) and Wales’s towns (81%) alike. Work in town: three fifths of resident commuters. There are 2.6 jobs in Carmarthen for each resident in work.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
At the census, 6.2% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, below Dyfed’s towns (7.4%) and Wales’s towns (7.1%) alike. 21% of residents in Carmarthen live with a disability. 3 GP practices serve the town.
| Census 2021 | Carmarthen | Dyfed | Wales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 79% | 77% | 78% |
| Bad or very bad health | 6.2% | 7.4% | 7.1% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 21% | 23% | 22% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · ONS, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Self-reported health favours young towns, since these answers ignore age; the Health Grade leans on age-adjusted measures such as life expectancy.
Households that own their home make up 58%. Half of the 605 standard sales inside Carmarthen’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 went for more than £205,000. Private rents average £687 a month across the Carmarthenshire council area.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £300,000 | 195 |
| Semi-detached | £212,500 | 186 |
| Terraced | £142,500 | 197 |
| Flat or maisonette | £125,000 | 27 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
18% are under 15, higher than both Dyfed’s towns (16%) and Wales’s towns (17%). Typical age in Carmarthen: 40.3, the median. People aged 15 to 24 are 12% of the population.
52% women, 48% men
About 93 men for every 100 women. Across Wales, 51% of residents are women.
| Carmarthen | Dyfed | Wales | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 16% | 17% |
| 15–24 | 12% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 26% | 22% | 25% |
| 45–64 | 24% | 26% | 26% |
| 65+ | 21% | 24% | 21% |
| No qualifications | 18% | 19% | 20% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.1% | 6.1% | 5.6% |
| A levels or similar | 15% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 36% | 30% | 31% |
ONS Census 2021 · Dyfed and Wales: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Carmarthen. Best known first.
CastleCarmarthen Castlein town
MuseumAmgueddfa Sir Gâr - Carmarthenshire Museum700 m outside town, to the east · 13K visitors a year
Heritage railwayGwili Railway2 km outside town, to the northArt galleryArt galleryOriel Myrddin Galleryin townMuseumMuseumPenuel Baptist Chapelin townWildlife parkWildlife parkThe British Bird of Prey Centre3 km outside town, to the southPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
304 listed buildings in Carmarthen, 3 of them Grade I.
Carmarthen Castle: Photo: Llywelyn2000 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Parish Church of St Peter: Photo: Nigel Davies · CC BY-SA 2.0 · The Guildhall: Photo: Ham · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Towy Works: Photo: Sionk · CC BY-SA 4.0
119 notable people were born in Carmarthen.
Joe Allen: Steindy 16:13, 10 November 2016 (UTC), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Iwan Rheon: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Matthew Stevens: Benutzer:Bill da Flute, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Mark Drakeford: Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Dave Evans: Sandra K, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Emma Finucane: Nicola, CC BY-SA 4.0
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carmarthen | 16,448 | — | C− | B+ | D− | C− |
| Pontyberem | 1,484 | 7.9 | — | A | C+ | C |
| Pontyates | 1,475 | 7.9 | — | A− | C− | C |
| St Clears | 1,787 | 8.3 | — | B+ | C− | C+ |
| Kidwelly | 2,761 | 8.4 | C− | A− | C− | C− |
| Carway | 1,401 | 9.4 | — | B+ | C | C |
| Tumble | 4,040 | 9.4 | C− | A− | C− | D |
| Pencader | 1,061 | 9.9 | — | A | D | C |
Pontyberem, Pontyates, St Clears, Carway and Pencader have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
304 on Cadw’s list, 3 of them Grade I and 6 Grade II*. That is 7.6 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I buildings include Carmarthen Castle. It also has 7 scheduled monuments.
Homes cost less than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £205,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £125,000, terraced houses £142,500, semi-detached houses £212,500 and detached houses £300,000.
Town in Dyfed, Wales
Carmarthen is a built-up area of 16,448 people, in the Carmarthenshire council area. TownRatings uses ONS’s 2022 built-up areas as towns: the physical town, as people mean the word, rather than a council district, so its figures cover the town itself.
Built from ONS geography and Census 2021
Sources: ONS Census 2021, output areas summed to the ONS 2022 built-up area · 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) · data.police.uk street-level crime, 36 months to August 2026, points inside the built-up-area boundary · ONS small-area life expectancy and healthy life expectancy, 2019 to 2023 (England and Wales), OHID Fingertips small-area indicators (England) and Census 2021 health, adjusted for age · ONS small-area income estimates (financial year ending 2023) · DWP claimant count via Nomis (January to August 2026) · Cadw listed buildings, scheduled monuments and registered historic parks and gardens via DataMapWales, October 2026, inside the ONS 2022 built-up-area boundary · Valuation Office Agency, Council Tax: stock of properties by build period (31 March 2025) · 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.