Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town in Hertfordshire, East of England, home to 3,174 people.
The picture is mixed. Prices are high against local incomes (C): the median home sold for £405,000, 6.2 years of area income. It lags on walkability as well: on the way to work, 10% walk, cycle or take a bus or train. Its best grade is for health (A−): life expectancy 82.1 for men, 84.7 for women. Put together, the subjects come to a C+ overall, ranking #43 of 50 in Hertfordshire. On that grade it does better than 37% of UK towns.
Figures: life expectancy, ONS · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · commuting, Census 2021.
The 3 things Markyate does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Markyate is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 45 buildings inside Markyate’s built-up area, 2 of them Grade II*.
18% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Markyate.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 35% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Driving is how 88% of commuters got to work at the census. Households had £69K a year before tax, near Hertfordshire’s towns (£70K) and higher than England’s towns (£55K). 2.6% of people aged 16 to 64 were on unemployment benefits in 2026. About 6% of its commuters stay in Markyate for work.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Key Stage 2 results at the 6 primary schools within 3 km: 58% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). Its only school is listed below.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Markyate Village School and NurseryLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 211 | C+ |
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
18% of its homes were built before 1919, higher than both Hertfordshire’s towns (12%) and England’s towns (16%). Historic England’s list names 45 listed buildings in Markyate: 2 Grade II*.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
86% of Markyate’s residents described their health as good or very good at the census, near Hertfordshire’s towns (85%) and higher than England’s towns (82%). Seeing a GP means leaving Markyate: the nearest practice is 2 miles away. Disability touches 14% of the town’s population.
| Census 2021 | Markyate | Hertfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 86% | 85% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 3.3% | 3.8% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 14% | 14% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · A young population flatters these answers, which are not age-adjusted; the Health Grade instead uses measures that allow for age, such as life expectancy and early deaths.
Households that own their home make up 70%. Private rents average £1,594 a month across the Dacorum council area. The median sale, £405,000, comes from 138 standard sales inside Markyate’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £470,000 | 19 |
| Semi-detached | £438,750 | 40 |
| Terraced | £402,500 | 62 |
| Flat or maisonette | £200,000 | 17 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
There were 16.9 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), above Hertfordshire’s towns (14.2) and England’s towns (7.8) alike. Police figures for Markyate’s built-up area: 145 crimes and 76 anti-social behaviour reports in the 12 months to August 2026. Violence and sexual offences were 56% of the crimes.
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.
Degrees are held by 37% of adults, between Hertfordshire’s towns (39%) and England’s towns (34%). Under-15s account for 19% of the population. Residents of Markyate have a median age of 41.6.
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Markyate | Hertfordshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 19% | 19% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 9.2% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 27% | 27% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 29% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 16% | 17% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 13% | 15% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 4.9% | 4.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 16% | 17% |
| Degree level | 37% | 39% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Hertfordshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Markyate. Best known first.
Historic houseLuton Hoo4.1 km outside town, to the northeast
Historic houseBeechwood Park1.2 km outside town, to the southwest
MuseumStockwood Discovery Centre3.8 km outside town, to the northeast
MuseumMossman Collection3.9 km outside town, to the northeastZooZooWoodside Animal Farm & Leisure PArk1.5 km outside town, to the northeastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
45 listed buildings in Markyate.
Cheverells and Attached Stables: Photo: M J Richardson · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph · The White Hart: Photo: JThomas · CC BY-SA 2.0 · The Swan Inn: Photo: Robin Webster · CC BY-SA 2.0 · The Sun Inn: Photo: John Lord · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Markyate | 3,174 | — | C+ | C | C+ | A− |
| Flamstead | 1,055 | 1.6 | — | D | A | A− |
| Slip End | 1,410 | 1.7 | — | B | B | C+ |
| Caddington | 3,288 | 1.9 | B+ | B− | B+ | B− |
| Kensworth | 1,517 | 2 | — | C+ | C+ | B |
| Redbourn | 5,188 | 3.6 | A | C | B | A |
| Luton | 233,524 | 4.2 | C− | D | C− | C− |
| Dunstable | 34,498 | 4.3 | B− | A− | C | C+ |
Flamstead, Slip End and Kensworth have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 5.8 times the typical UK town for its size.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £405,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £200,000, terraced houses £402,500, semi-detached houses £438,750 and detached houses £470,000.
Primary results trail 69% of towns in England (Department for Education, Key Stage 2). One state school is inside the town; places are handled by Hertfordshire council.
Town in Hertfordshire, England
Markyate is a built-up area of 3,174 people, in the Dacorum 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) · Historic England, National Heritage List for England (listed buildings, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, battlefields, World Heritage Sites), 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.