Birkenhead, #1 on this list · Photo: Marathon · CC BY-SA 2.0

Merseyside rankings · Cost of living

Most affordable towns in Merseyside

Birkenhead ranks first on cost of living among Merseyside’s 25 towns of 2,500+; none grades A− or better against UK towns; the best here is a B−.

The Cost of living Grade: the median sale price (Land Registry), a year’s private rent (ONS) and Band D council tax with the parish precept, each against the mean household income of the town’s council area. The rank across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland sits beside each letter. How grades work

Birkenhead

109,854 people

B⁻

Homes cost 3.8 years of area income·#1,346 of 2,515 in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

Wallasey

85,619 people

B⁻

Homes cost 4.0 years of area income·#1,392 of 2,515 in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

Haydock

16,143 people

C⁺

Homes cost 4.0 years of area income·#1,643 of 2,515 in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

All 25 towns, ranked

Cost of living grade, best first; ranks are the county ranks on each town’s page (T = tied). Military garrison towns and university campuses keep their grades but aren’t ranked. Each rank across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland links to the national list.

Every town in Merseyside →

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25 towns.

#TownGrade · UK rankCompared with UK towns

1Birkenhead109,854 peopleB⁻#1,346 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 3.8 years of area income

2Wallasey85,619 peopleB⁻#1,392 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 4.0 years of area income

3Haydock16,143 peopleC⁺#1,643 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 4.0 years of area income

4St Helens107,684 peopleC⁺#1,679 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 4.1 years of area income

5Bootle53,722 peopleC⁺#1,709 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 3.2 years of area income

6Bebington57,607 peopleC#1,769 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 5.0 years of area income

7Litherland18,752 peopleC#1,826 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 3.9 years of area income

8Newton-le-Willows24,651 peopleC#1,909 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 4.8 years of area income

9Kirkby45,559 peopleC⁻#2,089 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 4.0 years of area income

10Southport94,438 peopleC⁻#2,115 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 4.8 years of area income

T11Greasby9,175 peopleC⁻#2,148 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 6.0 years of area income

T11Hoylake5,311 peopleC⁻#2,148 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 6.0 years of area income

13Liverpool506,564 peopleC⁻#2,181 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 4.2 years of area income

14Billinge4,963 peopleC⁻#2,202 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 5.6 years of area income

15Aintree6,212 peopleD#2,219 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 5.0 years of area income

16Huyton with Roby59,844 peopleD#2,228 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 4.6 years of area income

17Heswall29,082 peopleD#2,275 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 6.6 years of area income

18Crosby50,218 peopleD#2,308 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 5.5 years of area income

19Lydiate6,516 peopleD#2,325 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 5.4 years of area income

20Maghull20,367 peopleD#2,332 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 5.4 years of area income

21Rainford5,573 peopleD#2,343 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 6.2 years of area income

22West Kirby13,383 peopleD#2,346 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 7.2 years of area income

23Prescot39,227 peopleD#2,387 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 5.5 years of area income

24Meols5,023 peopleD#2,417 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 8.7 years of area income

25Formby22,892 peopleD⁻#2,480 of 2,515 nationallyhomes cost 7.2 years of area income

Quick answers

Questions people ask

What is the most affordable town in Merseyside?

Birkenhead ranks first on cost of living among 25 towns, with a B−: homes cost 3.8 years of area income. Wallasey and Haydock follow.

How are these towns ranked?

The Cost of living Grade: the median sale price (Land Registry), a year’s private rent (ONS) and Band D council tax with the parish precept, each against the mean household income of the town’s council area. The letter and rank are the same as on each town’s page. How grades work.

Why isn’t my town on this list?

Garrison towns and university campuses aren’t ranked, and towns without the figures this grade needs are counted above. The list covers Merseyside’s towns of 2,500+ with the figure. Smaller places show it on their own pages; every town in Merseyside is on the county page.

Go deeper

More Merseyside lists

Every list ranks the same 2,500+ towns, so a town’s rank means the same thing on each.

All Merseyside rankings →

Best places to live25 towns · #1 Greasby Safest towns25 towns · #1 Greasby Towns with the best schools25 towns · #1 Hoylake Healthiest towns25 towns · #1 West Kirby Best towns for jobs & income25 towns · #1 Meols Most walkable towns25 towns · #1 Liverpool Towns with the lowest flood risk25 towns · #1 Aintree and 4 more Best towns for the outdoors25 towns · #1 Litherland Most historic towns25 towns · #1 Southport Towns with the most civic life25 towns · #1 Rainford Towns with the highest household incomes25 towns · #1 FormbyDescribed, no letters Towns with the lowest council tax25 towns · #1 Haydock and Newton-le-WillowsDescribed, no letters Towns with the mildest winters25 towns · #1 HoylakeDescribed, no letters Towns with the warmest summers25 towns · #1 St HelensDescribed, no letters Towns with the coolest summers25 towns · #1 FormbyDescribed, no letters Towns with the fewest frosts25 towns · #1 MeolsDescribed, no letters Driest towns25 towns · #1 Hoylake and MeolsDescribed, no letters Wettest towns25 towns · #1 BillingeDescribed, no letters

Sources: 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) · ONS small-area income estimates (financial year ending 2023) · 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.