Real strengths, and real weak spots. Overall, Taunton earns a C−: better than 24% of UK towns, and #32 of 49 in Somerset. Safety is its weak spot: 56.2 violent or sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, plus 15.1 home and vehicle crimes. Against UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more, it has more crime per resident than 74%. Getting around on foot or by bus is easy (A+): on the way to work, 29% walk, cycle or take a bus or train. Buying the median home, at £258,000, takes 5.1 years of household income in the Somerset West and Taunton council area. Its remaining grades are unremarkable: B− for schools and C+ for jobs & income.
Figures: commuting, Census 2021 · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · incomes, ONS · claimants, DWP.
ONS publishes one rent for all of Somerset, so this town's Cost Grade uses house prices and council tax only.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Taunton is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Taunton.
Work & commuteJobs & income grade C+
More commuters in Taunton work nearby than in Somerset’s towns or England’s towns: 63% travel under 5 km
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 23% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Average household income comes to £51K a year before tax. The car took just over two thirds of commuters, below Somerset’s towns (76%) and close to England’s towns (70%). 23% of workers did their job mainly from home at the census. Of the commuters living in Taunton, 56% work in the town itself.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
SchoolsB−
Results at Taunton’s schools trail 54% of towns in England
At the town’s 16 primary schools, 53% of pupils reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). The Castle School’s results beat 78% of schools in England like it. Below are two of its 23 schools, each with why it was picked. Taunton’s 16 primaries and three secondaries have 7,104 pupils between them.
Department for Education · GIAS, Key Stage 2 and GCSE resultsSee all 23 schools →
Safety
More crimes per resident in Taunton than in 93% of UK towns
Town centres with shops, stations and nightlife record more crime per resident: police.uk counts crimes where they happen, not where victims live.
Of all the crimes, 47% were violence and sexual offences. In the 12 months to August 2026, police logged 7,040 crimes and 1,220 reports of anti-social behaviour inside Taunton’s built-up area. There were 18.6 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), above both Somerset’s towns (7.2) and England’s towns (7.8).
56.2violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a yearDSafety Grade
Compared with UK towns its sizeLess crime per resident than 26% 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 & sexual3,319
Shoplifting1,097
Public order725
Damage & arson534
Other theft426
Burglary237
Vehicle crime196
Other crime140
Anti-social1,220
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.
56.2
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
15.1
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
18.6
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.
History
Taunton’s heritage list runs to 375 buildings, 6 of them Grade I
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Taunton’s listed buildings include the Castle Bow, Grade I. Grade II* covers 31 of them, Grade I 6. Homes from before 1919 make up 15% of the total, lower than both Somerset’s towns (19%) and England’s towns (16%).
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Health
81% of residents say their health is good or very good
7 GP practices serve the town; 86% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. Men in Taunton can expect to live to 78.8, women to 83.9 (2019–23). The nearest A&E to Taunton is Musgrove Park Hospital, 0.9 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.
HousingCost of living grade C
For cost of living grade, Taunton gets a C
19% live in social housing, higher than both Somerset’s towns (14%) and England’s towns (18%). Households that own their home make up 58%. The median sale, £258,000, comes from 2,568 standard sales inside Taunton’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026.
£258Kmedian sale
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Taunton£258K
Typical UK town£277K
By type
Median
Sales
Detached
£392,500
583
Semi-detached
£280,000
678
Terraced
£230,000
868
Flat or maisonette
£150,000
439
58%
of households own their home · England 61%
22%
rent privately · England 21%
£1,016
average private rent a month, Somerset council area
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Who lives here
A typical mix of ages for England
Young adults of 15 to 24 are just over one in ten residents, below both Somerset’s towns (11%) and England’s towns (12%). Taunton has a median age of 41.9 years. Over-65s are 21% of the population.
41.9median age
TauntonSomersetEngland
Ages · share of residents
21%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications17%
Apprenticeship6%
A levels or similar17%
Degree level32%
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
WomenEnglandMen
About 95 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
Jenny Agutter: See Li from London, UK, CC BY 2.0 · James Purefoy: gdcgraphics at https://www.flickr.com/photos/gdcgraphics/, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Pattie Boyd: Eddie Janssens, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Frederick Copleston: Grentidez, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Lee Martin: joshjdss, CC BY 2.0 · Jos Buttler: Harrias, CC BY-SA 3.0
Trull, Ruishton, Creech St Michael, Cotford St Luke and Bishops Lydeard have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Taunton
How many listed buildings are there in Taunton?
That is 2.5 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I buildings include Castle Bow. It also has 2 scheduled monuments.
How much is council tax in Taunton?
Band D council tax in Taunton is £2,688 for 2026–27, more than in 95% 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.
About Taunton
Large town in Somerset, England
Taunton is a built-up area of 61,667 people, in the Somerset West and Taunton 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
61,667 (Census 2021)
Council
Somerset West and Taunton
County
Somerset
Region
South West
Area
6.5 sq mi (16.7 km²)
ONS code
E63006154
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.
