Leicester’s overall grade is D, better than 5% of UK towns. Its lowest grade is for cost of living: a typical home costs £249,950 and rent runs £1,020 a month. Safety is weaker too: 49 violent and sexual offences and 23.2 home and vehicle crimes per 1,000 residents a year. Against UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more, it has more crime per resident than 77%. It is easy to get around without a car (A): on the way to work, 29% walk, cycle or take a bus or train.
Figures: commuting, Census 2021 · 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 Leicester is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Named after: each U.S. town’s Wikipedia article. Grades compare each town with towns in its own country, so they aren’t a head-to-head.
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Leicester.
HousingCost of living grade D−
More households rent privately in Leicester than in Leicestershire’s towns or across England’s towns: 28%
£250Kmedian sale
21% live in social housing, higher than both Leicestershire’s towns (15%) and England’s towns (18%). Households that own their home make up 50%. Behind the median of £249,950: 7,719 standard sales inside the town’s built-up area, September 2023 to August 2026.
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Leicester£250K
Typical UK town£277K
By type
Median
Sales
Detached
£360,000
1,256
Semi-detached
£263,500
2,964
Terraced
£220,000
2,752
Flat or maisonette
£126,000
747
50%
of households own their home · England 61%
28%
rent privately · England 21%
£1,020
average private rent a month, Leicester council area
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
SchoolsB−
School results in Leicester are better than in 51% of towns in England
B−School Grade
Just over three in five pupils at the town’s 79 primary schools met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). Of its 120 schools, three are shown below, each with the reason. GCSE results at the town’s 21 secondary schools: 45% of pupils get a strong pass (grade 5+) in English and maths, and the Attainment 8 average is 46.3.
Benefit claims run higher in Leicester, 5.4% of 16 to 64s, than in Leicestershire’s towns or across England’s towns
29%walk, cycle or ride
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 20% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Working from home was the norm for a fifth of workers at the census. Short trips to work, under 5 km: 60%, above Leicestershire’s towns (46%) and England’s towns (45%) alike. This Leicestershire town counts 1.1 jobs per working resident.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Safety
Leicester records more crime per resident than 94% of UK towns
49violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a yearDSafety Grade
Town centres with shops, stations and nightlife record more crime per resident: police.uk counts crimes where they happen, not where victims live.
Police recorded 44,274 crimes inside Leicester’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 6,629 reports of anti-social behaviour. There were 15.3 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), higher than both Leicestershire’s towns (6.7) and England’s towns (7.8). Violence and sexual offences accounted for 41% of recorded crime.
Compared with UK towns its sizeLess crime per resident than 23% of the 207 UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more: more crime than most for its size. Context only, not part of the grade.
More crimeLess crime
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Violence & sexual18,083
Public order5,090
Damage & arson4,629
Shoplifting4,202
Other theft3,163
Vehicle crime2,413
Drugs1,918
Burglary1,697
Anti-social6,629
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.
49
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
23.2
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
15.3
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
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.
Health
Lifespans in Leicester run shorter than in 86% of UK towns
82%good or very good healthC−Health Grade
57 GP practices serve the town; 66% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. A disability affects 16% of people in Leicester. The nearest A&E to Leicester is Leicester Royal Infirmary, 0.6 miles away.
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Young towns look healthier on these answers, which aren’t adjusted for age; the Health Grade uses measures that are, such as life expectancy and early deaths.
Who lives here
A young town: 17% of people in Leicester are 15 to 24, more than in Leicestershire’s towns and across England’s towns
34.3median age
Degrees are held by 27% of adults, lower than both Leicestershire’s towns (30%) and England’s towns (34%). Retirement age and beyond: 13% of residents are 65 or older. 20% of residents are children under 15.
LeicesterLeicestershireEngland
Ages · share of residents
17%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications26%
Apprenticeship4%
A levels or similar16%
Degree level27%
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
WomenEnglandMen
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
ONS Census 2021 · Leicestershire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
History
424 listed buildings, 13 of them Grade I
424listed buildingsB+History Grade
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Leicester’s listed buildings include the Church of All Saints, Grade I. Conservation areas cover 83% of the town’s land, higher than both Leicestershire’s towns (6%) and England’s towns (7%). The pre-1919 share of homes is 24%. Also worth knowing: at the top of the list, 13 are Grade I and 38 Grade II*.
Gary Lineker: Liton Ali, CC BY 2.0 · Julian Barnes: WanderingTrad, CC BY-SA 4.0 · John Deacon: Eddie, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Jon Lord: Menerbes, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Peter Shilton: Joebloggsy, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Emile Heskey: Ilya Khokhlov, CC BY-SA 3.0
About Leicester
City in Leicestershire, England
Leicester is a built-up area of 406,612 people, in the Leicester 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.
Thurcaston has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Leicester
How many listed buildings are there in Leicester?
Its Grade I buildings include Church of All Saints. It also has 7 scheduled monuments.
Does Leicester flood?
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
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.
