Photo: Nigel Thompson · CC BY-SA 2.0More one-person households than 99% of UK towns: 42%
The average household has 2 people, against 2.1 across Scotland’s towns. Johnstone had 16,477 residents in 8,048 households at the 2022 Census. 8.7% of households live in a detached house. On married adults and civil partners, Johnstone sits lower than 96% of UK towns: 37%.
Half of Johnstone is under 42.5, younger than 66% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2022.
At 19%, the share of residents aged 65 and over is in line with the figure across Scotland’s towns. Locally, just over one in ten residents are aged 15 to 24.
Median age of UK towns of 2,500+
■ Johnstone, 42.5. 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.
Johnstone: 6.4% of adults are full-time students, above 88% of UK towns
What adults did at the 2022 Census (the NS-SEC classes).
Adults by occupation class · residents 16 and over
Across Scotland’s towns, 33% of adults are in managerial and professional jobs and 25% in routine or semi-routine work; Johnstone has 24% and 32%. As a yardstick, 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.
In Johnstone, 23% of households have dependent children, fewer than in 85% of UK towns
Household make-up at the 2022 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Renfrewshire’s towns and Scotland’s towns
People per household
Scotland’s towns.
Across Scotland’s towns, 3.5% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home; in Johnstone, 2.2%. For comparison, nearly a quarter of households have dependent children across Scotland’s towns.
Above 98% of UK towns: 36% of households have no car or van
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
The share of households in terraced houses is 27%, against 19% across Scotland’s towns. Across Johnstone, just over two in five households live in a flat or apartment. One household in 3 has no car or van, the 2nd highest share in Renfrewshire.
Fewer residents born outside the UK than 73% of UK towns: 4.3%
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
Born abroad and arrived since 2017: nearly a quarter of that group, against 34% across Scotland’s towns. At 98%, the share of residents whose main language is English is higher than in 69% of UK towns. Across Scotland’s towns, 11% of residents were born outside the UK. By birthplace, the largest groups from abroad were born in EU countries (2.2%) and in the Middle East and Asia (0.8%).
Johnstone: 46% of residents said they have no religion, above 81% of UK towns
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: 95% of Johnstone · Renfrewshire’s towns 90% · Scotland’s towns 86%.
Religion · all residents
Set against 39% across Scotland’s towns, 46% of residents describe themselves as Christian in Johnstone. Residents with no religion make up 51% across Scotland’s towns. Here, 95% of residents describe themselves as White British.
42% of adults have never married, more than in 93% 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
Students and young renters account for much of that. Higher than in 99% of UK towns: 13% of residents give unpaid care. Some 563 people give 50 hours or more of unpaid care a week.
Qualified to degree level: 20% of adults
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2022.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Across Scotland’s towns, 32% of adults have a degree-level qualification; in Johnstone, 20%, and 23% have none, against 17%. Many still at university: 10% list A levels as their highest qualification.
Of 323 UK towns its size (12,000 to 22,000 people), the 107th youngest
Median age, Census 2022. Hover a dot for its students and residents born abroad; click for its page.
Ages run from 25 in Aberystwyth to 60.4 in Sidmouth. Nearest to Johnstone in age: Gorseinon (42.5), Church Village (42.5), Newport Pagnell (42.6) and Calne (42.6).
Johnstone is younger than 6 of its 7 nearest neighbours
Nearby towns coloured by median age, Census 2022. Tap a town for its page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Homes with children |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Johnstone | 16,477 | — | 42.5 | 19% | 23% |
| Elderslie | 5,632 | 1.2 mi | 48.1 | 24% | 24% |
| Kilbarchan | 3,367 | 1.2 mi | 51.6 | 28% | 19% |
| Linwood | 8,408 | 1.4 mi | 43.5 | 19% | 25% |
| Houston | 6,206 | 2.3 mi | 48.5 | 23% | 30% |
| Bridge of Weir | 4,927 | 2.9 mi | 46.1 | 22% | 28% |
| Paisley | 79,351 | 3.4 mi | 42.3 | 18% | 22% |
| Neilston | 5,459 | 4.7 mi | 43.1 | 21% | 28% |
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.
- “Renfrewshire’s towns” and “Scotland’s towns” mean their towns. Census comparisons pool every locality in Renfrewshire (or Scotland), summed the same way as Johnstone’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 Johnstone’s residents
What is the population of Johnstone?
The 2022 Census counted 16,477 people in Johnstone’s locality.
What is the average age in Johnstone?
The median age was 42.5 at the 2022 Census, younger than 66% of UK towns. 11% of residents were 15 to 24 and 19% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Johnstone?
95% of residents described themselves as White British in 2022, against 86% across Scotland’s towns and 90% across Renfrewshire’s towns. 4.3% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Johnstone?
46% said they had no religion and 46% that they were Christian at the 2022 Census; 0.6% were Muslim and 6.4% didn’t answer.
Is Johnstone good for families?
23% of households had dependent children in 2022, against 24% across Scotland’s towns. Schools are on Johnstone’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.