Photo: Richard Dorrell · CC BY-SA 2.0A larger share of residents aged 15 to 24 than 97% of UK towns: 15%
In Westhill, 53% of residents said they have no religion, beside 51% across Scotland’s towns. Locally, 8.7% of households live in a terraced house. Households in detached houses are more common here than in 91% of UK towns. Census day 2021: 5,681 residents and 2,244 households locally.
What the Census says about Westhill’s people
A student town
The 2022 Census counted 668 full-time students aged 16 and over, 14% of adults, against 9.4% across Scotland’s towns: more than in 98% of UK towns. That shows in the ages: 15% of residents are 15 to 24. Students & newcomers ↓
Written from the data on this page: Scotland’s Census 2022 (output areas summed to the 2022 locality).
A median age of 44.6: Westhill is older than 51% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2022.
No age band is larger than 15–19: 8.2% of residents, 1.4 times the share across Scotland’s towns. The share of residents aged 65 and over stands at 22%.
Median age of UK towns of 2,500+
■ Westhill, 44.6. The typical town is 44.4.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
54% women, 46% men
About 87 men for every 100 women. Across Scotland, 51% of residents are women.
A higher share of full-time students than 98% of UK towns, at 14%
What adults did at the 2022 Census (the NS-SEC classes).
Adults by occupation class · residents 16 and over
Leave the students aside and Westhill’s other adults look much like Scotland’s: 40% are in managerial and professional jobs, against 36%. As a yardstick, 9.4% of adults are full-time students across Scotland’s towns.
The Census was taken on 20 March 2022, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
Westhill sits below 78% of UK towns for shared households of unrelated adults (1.8%)
Household make-up at the 2022 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Highland’s towns and Scotland’s towns
People per household
Scotland’s towns.
Households in Westhill hold 2.2 people on average (Scotland’s towns: 2.1). As a reference point, 3.5% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home across Scotland’s towns. 31% of households are one person living alone.
Only 11% of households have no car or van in Westhill
Accommodation type and cars or vans per household, Census 2022. Owning and renting are on Cost of living.
Type of home
Cars or vans · share of households
The share of households in flats tops 64% of UK towns: 14%. As a yardstick, 29% of households have no car or van across Scotland’s towns.
Above 66% of UK towns: 8.3% of residents were born outside the UK
Country of birth, year of arrival and main language, Census 2022.
Born outside the UK, by region · share of all residents; the bar runs to 15%
When those born abroad arrived
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
Across Scotland’s towns, the share of residents whose main language is English is 94%; Westhill has 96%. Typically, 11% of residents were born outside the UK across Scotland’s towns. The largest groups were born in EU countries (5.1%) and in the Middle East and Asia (1.4%).
Only 38% of residents describe themselves as Christian in Westhill
How residents described themselves at the 2022 Census. Lines join the lowest and highest of the three figures.
Ethnic groups other than White British · all residents
White British, not charted: 91% of Westhill · Highland’s towns 90% · Scotland’s towns 86%.
Religion · all residents
Residents who describe themselves as White British: 91% here and 86% across Scotland’s towns. Behind White British, the largest groups are Other White (6%), Mixed or multiple (1%) and Indian (0.6%). Set beside that, 39% of residents describe themselves as Christian across Scotland’s towns.
37% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership, more than in 78% of UK towns
Legal partnership status (residents 16 and over) and unpaid care (residents 3 and over), Census 2022.
Partnership status · residents 16 and over
Unpaid care given · share of residents 3 and over
Across Scotland’s towns, 12% of residents give unpaid care; in Westhill, 11%. Adults who have never married: 40% across Scotland’s towns, for comparison. 46% of adults are married or in a civil partnership.
Adults with a degree-level qualification: 32%
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2022.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Across Scotland’s towns, 17% of adults have no qualification; in Westhill, 13%, while 32% hold one at degree level (32%). For 13%, Highers are the highest qualification so far, many of them students still working towards a degree.
625 UK towns of 4,000 to 8,000 people: this is the 253rd youngest
Median age, Census 2022. Hover a dot for its students and residents born abroad; click for its page.
At the ends of the range sit Bailrigg (18.9), the youngest, and Barton on Sea (65.3), the oldest. Nearest to Westhill in age: Malton (44.6), Great Glen (44.6), Willington (44.7) and Newent (44.7).
Westhill is younger than 1 of its 5 nearest neighbours
Nearby towns coloured by median age, Census 2022. Tap a town for its page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Homes with children |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Westhill | 5,681 | — | 44.6 | 22% | 27% |
| Smithton | 2,905 | 0.6 mi | 35.1 | 12% | 29% |
| Culloden | 3,699 | 1.3 mi | 44.8 | 20% | 22% |
| Milton of Leys | 3,168 | 1.6 mi | 33.7 | 7.3% | 37% |
| Inverness | 48,257 | 2.6 mi | 43 | 20% | 23% |
| Muir of Ord | 2,832 | 11.7 mi | 43.2 | 21% | 26% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The Census was taken in term time. 20 March 2022 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.
- “Highland’s towns” and “Scotland’s towns” mean their towns. Census comparisons pool every locality in Highland (or Scotland), summed the same way as Westhill’s figures, so households in open countryside are left out.
- Small counts are blurred. National Records of Scotland adjusts small 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 Westhill’s residents
What is the population of Westhill?
The 2022 Census counted 5,681 people in Westhill’s locality.
What is the average age in Westhill?
The median age was 44.6 at the 2022 Census, older than 51% of UK towns. 15% of residents were 15 to 24 and 22% were 65 or over.
Is Westhill a student town?
Yes: 14% of adults were full-time students at the 2022 Census (668 people), against 9.4% across Scotland’s towns.
How diverse is Westhill?
91% of residents described themselves as White British in 2022, against 86% across Scotland’s towns and 90% across Highland’s towns. 8.3% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Westhill?
53% said they had no religion and 38% that they were Christian at the 2022 Census; 0.3% were Muslim and 5.7% didn’t answer.
Is Westhill good for families?
27% of households had dependent children in 2022, against 24% across Scotland’s towns. Schools are on Westhill’s schools page.
Sources: Scotland’s Census 2022 (National Records of Scotland), output areas summed to the NRS 2022 locality (UV101b, UV103, UV104, UV113, UV201, UV204b, UV205, UV212, UV301, UV402, UV405, UV406, UV501, UV607, UV801). 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.