Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
3,754 people call this town in Hertfordshire, East of England home. It has 49 listed buildings, 0 of them Grade I.
A town of contrasts. The local economy does well (A): mean household income £67,375; 1.8% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits. Stanstead Abbotts’s overall grade of A− puts it better than four in five UK towns, #21 of 50 in Hertfordshire. Fewer journeys need a car (A): nearly a quarter of commuters get to work on foot, by bike or by public transport. Hazard risk is higher than most (D−): 24.7% of homes face a high or medium risk of river or sea flooding. Homes sell for a median £400,000, about 5.7 years of what households in the East Hertfordshire council area earn. The rest of its grades are middling: B− for safety and B− for schools.
Figures: income, ONS · claimants, DWP · commuting, Census 2021 · flood risk, Environment Agency · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Stanstead Abbotts is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The 3 things Stanstead Abbotts does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists 49 buildings inside Stanstead Abbotts’s built-up area, 6 of them Grade II*.
16% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
The archive holds 1 old photo or postcard.
Explore the history →49 listed buildings in Stanstead Abbotts.
Parish Church of St Andrew (Church of England): Photo: Colin · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Red Lion Public House: Photo: The wub · CC BY-SA 4.0 · The Clock House: Photo: Colin · CC BY-SA 4.0 · The Mill: Photo: The wub · CC BY-SA 4.0
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Stanstead Abbotts.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 37% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
37% of commuters travelled under 5 km, lower than both Hertfordshire’s towns (41%) and England’s towns (45%). About 7% of its commuters stay in Stanstead Abbotts for work. For every resident in work, Stanstead Abbotts has 0.9 jobs.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
GCSE results at the 2 secondary schools within 3 km: 54% of pupils get a strong pass (grade 5+) in English and maths, and the Attainment 8 average is 50.2. Below is its only school. 56% of pupils at the 13 primary schools within 3 km met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Andrew's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 193 | C+ |
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Grade II* covers 6 of them. For its size, Stanstead Abbotts has 131 listed buildings per 10,000 residents, above Hertfordshire’s towns (53) and England’s towns (39) alike. Historic England’s list names 49 listed buildings here: 6 Grade II*.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Stanstead Abbotts has no GP practice of its own; the nearest is 1 miles away. At the census, 4.6% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, between Hertfordshire’s towns (3.8%) and England’s towns (5.2%). 84% of people in Stanstead Abbotts rate their own health good or very good.
| Census 2021 | Stanstead Abbotts | Hertfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 84% | 85% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.6% | 3.8% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 16% | 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.
16% rent privately, below Hertfordshire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (21%) alike. Private rents average £1,533 a month across the East Hertfordshire council area. Home ownership stands at 65% of households.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £655,000 | 27 |
| Semi-detached | £567,500 | 25 |
| Terraced | £407,500 | 50 |
| Flat or maisonette | £247,500 | 50 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
There were 15.2 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), above Hertfordshire’s towns (14.2) and England’s towns (7.8) alike. Stanstead Abbotts logged 174 reported offences in a year (to August 2026), plus 48 complaints of anti-social conduct. Of all the crimes, 46% 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.
The middle age in Stanstead Abbotts is 44.4. The 15-to-24 age group: 9.8%, below both Hertfordshire’s towns (11%) and England’s towns (12%). People 65 and over make up 20% of the town.
53% women, 47% men
About 90 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Stanstead Abbotts | Hertfordshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 16% | 19% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 9.8% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 25% | 27% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 29% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 20% | 17% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 17% | 15% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.3% | 4.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 17% | 16% | 17% |
| Degree level | 32% | 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 Stanstead Abbotts. Best known first.
CastleRye House Gatehouse1.2 km outside town, to the south
Historic houseFanhams Hall3.4 km outside town, to the north
MuseumHertford Museum5 km outside town, to the west
MuseumLowewood Museum3.2 km outside town, to the south
MuseumWare Museum3 km outside town, to the northwestGardenGardenScott's Grotto2.6 km outside town, to the northwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Town in Hertfordshire, England
Stanstead Abbotts is a built-up area of 3,754 people, in the East Hertfordshire 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
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stanstead Abbotts | 3,754 | — | A− | B− | B− | A− |
| Great Amwell | 1,017 | 1.2 | — | C− | A− | A |
| Hertford Heath | 2,830 | 2 | A+ | C+ | A− | A− |
| Roydon | 1,587 | 2 | — | C− | C | B+ |
| Hoddesdon | 40,615 | 2.3 | B− | D | C | B |
| Ware | 19,631 | 2.4 | B+ | C+ | C+ | B |
| Lower Nazeing | 3,631 | 3.5 | B− | D | B− | B+ |
| Hertford | 28,807 | 3.5 | A− | C+ | C | A− |
Great Amwell and Roydon have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
That is 5.4 times the typical UK town for its size.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £400,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £247,500, terraced houses £407,500, semi-detached houses £567,500 and detached houses £655,000. Household incomes are higher than in 84% of UK towns, so cost of living still grades B−.
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.