Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A village of 2,423 in Suffolk, East of England.
Aldeburgh has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Its strongest subject is walkability (A): 24% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. Its weakest is schools (D−): primary results beat 5% of towns in England; secondary results beat 2% of towns in England. The median home sold for £545,000 in the last three years, 10.5 times what households in the East Suffolk council area earn in a year.
The 3 things Aldeburgh does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Aldeburgh is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 63 buildings inside Aldeburgh’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade I.
32% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
The archive holds 1 old photo or postcard going back to 1932.
Explore the history →Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Aldeburgh.
That puts Aldeburgh above both Suffolk’s towns (23%) and England’s towns (18%). Children are 9.8% of the town. The median resident of Aldeburgh is 61.9 years old.
55% women, 45% men
About 83 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
| Aldeburgh | Suffolk | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 9.8% | 16% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 5.7% | 10% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 15% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 26% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 44% | 23% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 18% | 20% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 4.8% | 6.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 14% | 17% | 17% |
| Degree level | 37% | 27% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Suffolk and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aldeburgh Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 78 | C |
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
On this, Aldeburgh is above both Suffolk’s towns (88) and England’s towns (39). Aldeburgh’s listed buildings include Moot Hall, Grade I. Aldeburgh has 63 listed buildings on Historic England’s list: 1 Grade I, 1 Grade II*.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 33% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
In the comparison, Aldeburgh comes below both Suffolk’s towns (£58K) and England’s towns (£55K). For 35% of commuters, work was under 5 km away.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
For Aldeburgh, that is below both Suffolk’s towns (19.2) and England’s towns (22). Police recorded 59 crimes inside Aldeburgh’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 7 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violence and sexual offences were 49% of the crimes; the police category includes harassment and stalking.
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.
data.police.uk street-level crime · points inside the ONS built-up-area boundary · OGL
Aldeburgh sits above both Suffolk’s towns (64%) and England’s towns (61%) on this measure. Private renters make up 14% of households.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £714,815 | 79 |
| Semi-detached | £415,000 | 27 |
| Terraced | £450,000 | 36 |
| Flat or maisonette | £360,000 | 15 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
80% of Aldeburgh’s residents described their health as good or very good at the census, below both Suffolk’s towns (81%) and England’s towns (82%). Aldeburgh has no GP practice of its own; the nearest is 3.5 miles away. These answers aren’t adjusted for age, so young towns look healthier; the Health Grade uses age-adjusted measures, including life expectancy and early deaths.
| Census 2021 | Aldeburgh | Suffolk | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 80% | 81% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 5.7% | 5% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 20% | 18% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Aldeburgh. Best known first.
Abbey or priory · English HeritageLeiston Abbey3.4 km outside town, to the northArt galleryArt galleryMuseum of Beyond1.9 km outside town, to the northeastWater parkWater parkChapel Barn Lodges300 m outside town, to the northwestMuseumMuseumThorpeness & Aldringham Heritage Centre1.6 km outside town, to the northeastAttractionAttractionThorpeness Windmill1.6 km outside town, to the northPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
9 notable people were born in Aldeburgh.
Millicent Garrett Fawcett: Adam Cuerden, Public domain · George Crabbe: Henry William Pickersgill, Public domain · Louisa Garrett Anderson: Unknown photographer, Public domain
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aldeburgh | 2,423 | — | — | C+ | A− | C+ |
| Leiston | 5,919 | 3.3 | C+ | A | C | C+ |
| Saxmundham | 4,778 | 6.2 | C+ | B+ | C | C+ |
| Rendlesham | 3,185 | 7.9 | B+ | B+ | A− | B+ |
| Wickham Market | 2,231 | 9.8 | — | A− | B+ | A |
| Sutton Common | 1,262 | 10 | — | A | A+ | B+ |
| Framlingham | 3,831 | 12 | A | B | A− | A |
| Melton | 1,608 | 12 | — | B+ | B− | A |
Wickham Market, Sutton Common and Melton have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
One state school is inside the town; places are handled by Suffolk council.
That is 10.7 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is Moot Hall.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £545,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £360,000, terraced houses £450,000, semi-detached houses £415,000 and detached houses £714,815.
Village in Suffolk, England
Aldeburgh is a built-up area of 2,423 people, in the East Suffolk 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
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.
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.