Southport, #1 on this list · Photo: Stephen Craven · CC BY-SA 2.0

Merseyside rankings · History

Most historic towns in Merseyside

Southport ranks first on history among Merseyside’s 25 towns of 2,500+; 4 of the 25 grade A− or better against UK towns.

The History Grade, a character grade (not part of the overall): listed buildings, monuments and registered parks (Historic England, Cadw), per resident and as a count, and homes built before 1919. The rank across England and Wales sits beside each letter. How grades work

Southport

94,438 people

Better than 87% of UK towns·#217 of 2,156 in England and Wales

Liverpool

506,564 people

Better than 86% of UK towns·#252 of 2,156 in England and Wales

Birkenhead

109,854 people

A⁻

Better than 83% of UK towns·#306 of 2,156 in England and Wales

All 25 towns, ranked

History 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 and Wales links to the national list.

Every town in Merseyside →

Find a town

25 towns.

#TownGrade · UK rankCompared with UK towns

1Southport94,438 peopleA#217 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 87% of UK towns

2Liverpool506,564 peopleA#252 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 86% of UK towns

3Birkenhead109,854 peopleA⁻#306 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 83% of UK towns

4Crosby50,218 peopleA⁻#392 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 79% of UK towns

5Wallasey85,619 peopleB⁺#631 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 68% of UK towns

6Bebington57,607 peopleB#717 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 64% of UK towns

7Bootle53,722 peopleB⁻#1,056 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 49% of UK towns

8Hoylake5,311 peopleB⁻#1,119 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 46% of UK towns

9St Helens107,684 peopleB⁻#1,141 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 46% of UK towns

10West Kirby13,383 peopleC⁺#1,310 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 38% of UK towns

11Prescot39,227 peopleC⁺#1,346 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 36% of UK towns

12Newton-le-Willows24,651 peopleC#1,427 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 32% of UK towns

13Formby22,892 peopleC#1,515 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 28% of UK towns

14Rainford5,573 peopleC#1,557 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 26% of UK towns

15Meols5,023 peopleC⁻#1,720 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 19% of UK towns

16Heswall29,082 peopleC⁻#1,748 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 17% of UK towns

17Billinge4,963 peopleC⁻#1,770 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 17% of UK towns

18Huyton with Roby59,844 peopleC⁻#1,782 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 16% of UK towns

19Litherland18,752 peopleC⁻#1,800 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 15% of UK towns

20Kirkby45,559 peopleD#1,837 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 13% of UK towns

21Greasby9,175 peopleD#1,874 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 12% of UK towns

22Haydock16,143 peopleD#1,882 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 11% of UK towns

23Lydiate6,516 peopleD#1,921 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 10% of UK towns

24Maghull20,367 peopleD#1,940 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 9% of UK towns

25Aintree6,212 peopleD#2,027 of 2,156 nationallybetter than 6% of UK towns

Quick answers

Questions people ask

What is the most historic town in Merseyside?

Southport ranks first on history among 25 towns, with an A: better than 87% of UK towns. Liverpool and Birkenhead follow.

How are these towns ranked?

The History Grade, a character grade (not part of the overall): listed buildings, monuments and registered parks (Historic England, Cadw), per resident and as a count, and homes built before 1919. 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 Most affordable towns25 towns · #1 Birkenhead 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 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: 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 · Cadw listed buildings, scheduled monuments and registered historic parks and gardens via DataMapWales, 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.

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.