Liverpool grades D− overall against UK towns: better than 2% of UK towns. Its strongest subject is walkability (A+): 34% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. Its weakest is health (D−): life expectancy 75.7 for men, 79.6 for women. The median home sold for £178,500 in the last three years, 4.2 times what households in the Liverpool council area earn in a year.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Liverpool is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Liverpool.
Work & commuteJobs & income grade C−
More people aged 16 to 64 in Liverpool claim unemployment benefits than in Merseyside’s towns or England’s towns: 5.7%
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 26% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Jobs per working resident: 1.4. About 70% of its commuters stay in Liverpool for work. Households take home £42K a year before tax, on average. 61% of commuters drove, below both Merseyside’s towns (71%) and England’s towns (70%).
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
SchoolsC
Liverpool’s schools fall behind 75% of towns in England on results
Below are three of its 177 schools, each with why it was picked. The Blue Coat School’s results beat nearly every one of schools in England like it. Between them, 120 primaries and 32 secondaries teach 75,020 pupils in Liverpool.
Liverpool’s life expectancy trails 95% of UK towns
Just over a fifth of residents have a disability, close to Merseyside’s towns (22%) and above England’s towns (17%). At the census, 7.9% of people here described their health as bad or very bad. 90 GP practices serve the town; 77% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey.
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.
Safety
Violence is recorded more often in Liverpool than in Merseyside’s towns or across England’s towns: 54 per 1,000 residents a year
Town centres with shops, stations and nightlife record more crime per resident: police.uk counts crimes where they happen, not where victims live.
The 12 months to August 2026 brought 64,105 recorded crimes inside Liverpool’s built-up area, and 6,623 reports of anti-social behaviour. Each year, 20.2 burglaries and acts of damage are recorded per 1,000 residents. Also worth knowing: for its size, Liverpool records more crime per resident than nearly four fifths of the 207 UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more. There were 13.2 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), above Merseyside’s towns (8.2) and England’s towns (7.8) alike.
54violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a yearDSafety Grade
Compared with UK towns its sizeLess crime per resident than 21% 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 & sexual26,254
Drugs7,759
Public order6,466
Shoplifting5,492
Damage & arson5,133
Other theft4,046
Vehicle crime2,689
Burglary1,796
Anti-social6,623
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.
54
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
20.2
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
13.2
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
data.police.uk street-level crime · points inside the ONS built-up-area boundary · OGL
History
A town of 1,525 listed buildings, 30 of them Grade I
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
At the top of the list, 30 are Grade I and 105 Grade II*. Liverpool’s listed buildings include Anglican Cathedral Church of Christ, Grade I. Only one town in Merseyside has more listed buildings for its size than Liverpool. Conservation areas cover 15% of the town’s land, higher than both Merseyside’s towns (5%) and England’s towns (7%).
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
HousingCost of living grade C−
Home ownership in Liverpool, 48%, runs below Merseyside’s towns and England’s towns
Social renters account for just over a quarter of households. 25% rent privately, higher than both Merseyside’s towns (20%) and England’s towns (21%). Private rents average £911 a month across the Liverpool council area.
£179Kmedian sale
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Liverpool£179K
Typical UK town£277K
By type
Median
Sales
Detached
£345,000
1,134
Semi-detached
£230,000
3,971
Terraced
£153,000
5,923
Flat or maisonette
£140,000
3,279
48%
of households own their home · England 61%
25%
rent privately · England 21%
£911
average private rent a month, Liverpool council area
John Lennon: Tony Barnard, Los Angeles Times, CC BY 4.0 · Paul McCartney: Raph_PH, CC BY 2.0 · George Harrison: David Hume Kennerly, Public domain · Ringo Starr: Raph_PH, CC BY 2.0 · Wayne Rooney: Дмитрий Голубович, CC BY-SA 3.0 · William Ewart Gladstone: Samuel Alexander Walker, Public domain
Knowsley has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Liverpool
Is Liverpool safe?
Police recorded 64,105 crimes inside Liverpool’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, 41% of them violence and sexual offences, a police category that includes harassment and stalking.
How many listed buildings are there in Liverpool?
That is 1.2 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I buildings include Anglican Cathedral Church of Christ. It also has 5 scheduled monuments.
How much is council tax in Liverpool?
Band D council tax in Liverpool is £2,668 for 2026–27, more than in 93% of UK towns (council, county, police and fire, plus the parish or town council). Your own bill depends on your home’s band; check it on GOV.UK.
Is Liverpool expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £178,500, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £140,000, terraced houses £153,000, semi-detached houses £230,000 and detached houses £345,000. Household incomes are lower than in 88% of UK towns, so cost of living grades C−.
About Liverpool
City in Merseyside, England
Liverpool is a built-up area of 506,564 people, in the Liverpool 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
Population
506,564 (Census 2021)
Council
Liverpool (mostly)
County
Merseyside
Region
North West
Area
42.6 sq mi (110.4 km²)
ONS code
E63001374
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.
