Photo: Breadandcheese · CC BY-SA 4.0Half of Kilmacolm is over 53.3, older than 94% of UK towns
Here just over a fifth of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership, where the figure across Scotland’s towns is 40%. 1.1% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home, a lower share than in 99% of UK towns. Kilmacolm is home to 3,876 residents in 1,808 households, by the 2022 Census. The share of households in flats stands at 28%.
What the Census says about Kilmacolm’s people
Older than most towns
Half of Kilmacolm’s residents are under 53.3 and half over, against 44.4 in the typical UK town. 31% are 65 or over, against 19% across Scotland’s towns. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: Scotland’s Census 2022 (output areas summed to the 2022 locality).
31% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 92% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2022.
Across Scotland’s towns, 12% of residents are aged 15 to 24; in Kilmacolm, 7.9%. For comparison, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Scotland’s towns.
Median age of UK towns of 2,500+
■ Kilmacolm, 53.3. The typical town is 44.4.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 91 men for every 100 women. Across Scotland, 51% of residents are women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
A higher share of full-time students than 74% of UK towns, at 5.5%
What adults did at the 2022 Census (the NS-SEC classes).
Adults by occupation class · residents 16 and over
By class, 54% of adults are in managerial and professional jobs and 11% in routine and semi-routine work (Scotland’s towns: 33% and 25%). The wider picture: 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.
A higher share of one-person households than 85% of UK towns, at 35%
Household make-up at the 2022 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Inverclyde’s towns and Scotland’s towns
People per household
Scotland’s towns.
At 2.2 people, the average household compares with 2.1 across Scotland’s towns. Across Kilmacolm, nearly a quarter of households have dependent children. Typically, 38% of households are one person living alone across Scotland’s towns.
Above 82% of UK towns: 43% of households live in a detached house
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
Compared with 19% across Scotland’s towns, 14% of households live in a terraced house here. Locally, 13% of households have no car or van. 28% of households live in a flat, more than in 94% of UK towns; 43% in a detached house, against 18% across Scotland’s towns.
4.8% of residents were born outside the UK, below 66% of UK towns
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
The newest arrivals, from 2017 or later, are 16% of those born abroad (against 34% across Scotland’s towns). At 98%, the share of residents whose main language is English is higher than in 62% of UK towns. Residents born outside the UK: 11% across Scotland’s towns, for comparison. Most residents from abroad were born in EU countries (1.6%) or in the Middle East and Asia (1.5%).
94% of residents describe themselves as White British, a share 66% of UK towns don’t reach
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: 94% of Kilmacolm · Inverclyde’s towns 96% · Scotland’s towns 86%.
Religion · all residents
Residents who describe themselves as Christian make up 51%, against 39% across Scotland’s towns. The wider picture: 86% of residents describe themselves as White British across Scotland’s towns. Beyond White British, the biggest groups are Other White (2.6%), Mixed or multiple (1%) and Indian (0.5%).
Married adults and civil partners make up 59% in Kilmacolm, more than in 97% 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
114 people give 50 hours or more of unpaid care a week. Higher than in 99% of UK towns: 13% of residents give unpaid care. The share of married adults and civil partners across Scotland’s towns is 42%.
Adults qualified to degree level or above: 52%
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2022.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Kilmacolm’s adults: 52% with a degree-level qualification and 10% with none, against 32% and 17% across Scotland’s towns.
531 UK towns of 3,000 to 5,000 people: this is the 49th oldest
Median age, Census 2022. Hover a dot for its students and residents born abroad; click for its page.
The youngest is Bailrigg (18.9) and the oldest Milford on Sea (64.6). Nearest to Kilmacolm in age: Billinge (53.3), Carbis Bay (53.3), Dunnington (53.4) and South Petherton (53.5).
Kilmacolm is older than every town around it
Nearby towns coloured by median age, Census 2022. Tap a town for its page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Homes with children |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kilmacolm | 3,876 | — | 53.3 | 31% | 23% |
| Port Glasgow | 14,260 | 2.9 mi | 45.1 | 22% | 24% |
| Bridge of Weir | 4,927 | 3.4 mi | 46.1 | 22% | 28% |
| Houston | 6,206 | 4.3 mi | 48.5 | 23% | 30% |
| Dumbarton | 21,027 | 4.6 mi | 43.4 | 20% | 24% |
| Bishopton | 10,048 | 4.8 mi | 38.2 | 16% | 35% |
| Kilbarchan | 3,367 | 5.2 mi | 51.6 | 28% | 19% |
| Linwood | 8,408 | 5.8 mi | 43.5 | 19% | 25% |
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.
- “Inverclyde’s towns” and “Scotland’s towns” mean their towns. Census comparisons pool every locality in Inverclyde (or Scotland), summed the same way as Kilmacolm’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 Kilmacolm’s residents
What is the population of Kilmacolm?
The 2022 Census counted 3,876 people in Kilmacolm’s locality.
What is the average age in Kilmacolm?
The median age was 53.3 at the 2022 Census, older than 94% of UK towns. 7.9% of residents were 15 to 24 and 31% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Kilmacolm?
94% of residents described themselves as White British in 2022, against 86% across Scotland’s towns and 96% across Inverclyde’s towns. 4.8% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Kilmacolm?
41% said they had no religion and 51% that they were Christian at the 2022 Census; 0.2% were Muslim and 7.4% didn’t answer.
Is Kilmacolm good for families?
23% of households had dependent children in 2022, against 24% across Scotland’s towns. Schools are on Kilmacolm’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.