A town of contrasts. Safety lags: police record 42.4 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, and 23.7 home and vehicle crimes. Only a third of UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more have more crime per resident. Health is weaker too: life expectancy 77.7 for men, 81.7 for women. It takes 4.5 years of household income in the Sheffield council area to buy the median home, at £215,000. Walking, cycling and public transport work well here (A): on the way to work, 28% walk, cycle or take a bus or train. The overall grade comes out at C−, better than just over a fifth of UK towns. That places it #47 of 63 in South Yorkshire.
Figures: commuting, Census 2021 · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · life expectancy and incomes, ONS · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Sheffield is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Sheffield.
Work & commuteJobs & income grade C
More people aged 16 to 64 in Sheffield claim unemployment benefits than in South Yorkshire’s towns or England’s towns: 4.8%
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 29% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
52% of commuters travelled under 5 km to work. Work in town: three quarters of resident commuters. There are 1.2 jobs in Sheffield for each resident in work. The car took 68% of commuters, below South Yorkshire’s towns (77%) and close to England’s towns (70%).
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
SchoolsC+
School results in Sheffield are weaker than in 55% of towns in England
Below are three of its 156 schools, each with why it was picked. Totley Primary School’s results beat 97% of schools in England like it. GCSE results at the town’s 23 secondary schools: 49% of pupils get a strong pass (grade 5+) in English and maths, and the Attainment 8 average is 46.5.
Per resident, Sheffield sees more crime than 91% 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.
Police recorded 51,058 crimes inside Sheffield’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 10,106 reports of anti-social behaviour. There were 19.3 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), above South Yorkshire’s towns (13.4) and England’s towns (7.8) alike. Violence and sexual offences were 40% of the crimes.
42.4violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a yearDSafety Grade
Compared with UK towns its sizeLess crime per resident than 33% 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 & sexual20,488
Shoplifting6,271
Damage & arson4,951
Public order4,496
Other theft3,200
Vehicle crime3,188
Burglary2,559
Drugs1,958
Anti-social10,106
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.
42.4
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
23.7
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
19.3
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.
Health
People in Sheffield live shorter lives than in 82% of UK towns
65 GP practices serve the town; 78% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. 20% of residents have a disability, near South Yorkshire’s towns (21%) and higher than England’s towns (17%). Poor health, by residents’ own account, affects 6% of the town.
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · A young population flatters these answers, which are not age-adjusted; the Health Grade instead uses measures that allow for age, such as life expectancy and early deaths.
Who lives here
Sheffield skews young, with 17% of residents aged 15 to 24, more than South Yorkshire’s towns or England’s towns
Sheffield has a median age of 36.2 years. People 65 and over make up 16% of the town.
36.2median age
SheffieldSouth YorkshireEngland
Ages · share of residents
17%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications19%
Apprenticeship5%
A levels or similar19%
Degree level34%
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
WomenEnglandMen
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
ONS Census 2021 · South Yorkshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
History
Listed buildings in Sheffield: 926, with 3 at Grade I
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Grade II* covers 55 of them, Grade I 3. Sheffield’s listed buildings include Abbeydale Works Museum, Grade I. A fifth of its homes were built before 1919, above both South Yorkshire’s towns (14%) and England’s towns (16%).
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
HousingCost of living grade B−
Social housing is more common in Sheffield than in South Yorkshire’s towns or across England’s towns, at 24% of households
Owners make up 56% of households, below both South Yorkshire’s towns (61%) and England’s towns (61%). Private rents average £931 a month across the Sheffield council area. From September 2023 to August 2026, 15,559 homes sold inside the town’s built-up area at standard prices; the middle one went for £215,000.
£215Kmedian sale
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Sheffield£215K
Typical UK town£277K
By type
Median
Sales
Detached
£389,247
2,198
Semi-detached
£225,000
5,895
Terraced
£197,500
5,144
Flat or maisonette
£147,000
2,322
56%
of households own their home · England 61%
20%
rent privately · England 21%
£931
average private rent a month, Sheffield council area
Joe Cocker: Thesupermat, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Harry Maguire: UK Prime Minister, CC BY 2.0 · Sean Bean: 9EkieraM1, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Jamie Vardy: Кирилл Венедиктов, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Michael Palin: The National Churches Trust from London, CC BY 2.0 · Kyle Walker: Кирилл Венедиктов, CC BY-SA 3.0
Worrall has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Sheffield
Is Sheffield safe?
It has more crime per resident than most places its size: 67% of the 207 UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more report less.
How many listed buildings are there in Sheffield?
Its Grade I buildings include Cathedral Church of St Peter and St Paul and Attached Wall and Gates. It also has 13 scheduled monuments.
Does Sheffield flood?
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
About Sheffield
City in South Yorkshire, England
Sheffield is a built-up area of 500,520 people, in the Sheffield 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
500,520 (Census 2021)
Council
Sheffield (mostly)
County
South Yorkshire
Region
Yorkshire and The Humber
Area
44.3 sq mi (114.6 km²)
ONS code
E63001424
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.
