St. Mary's church, Capel St. Mary, Suffolk

Capel St Mary, #1 on this list · Photo: Robert Edwards · CC BY-SA 2.0

Suffolk rankings · Small towns

Best small towns in Suffolk

Capel St Mary ranks first of 24 small towns of 2,500 to 9,999 residents in Suffolk, with an A. 9 of the 24 grade A− or better.

The overall score, among towns of 2,500 to 9,999; the letter is the same UK grade every town gets. The rank across England, Wales and Northern Ireland sits beside each letter. How grades work

Capel St Mary

2,992 people

Score 69.9·#99 of 1,289 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland

Strongest: health A⁺, hazard risk A·lowest: walkability C⁻

Worlingham

3,618 people

Score 69.0·#114 of 1,289 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland

Strongest: safety A, cost of living A⁻·lowest: walkability C⁺

Glemsford

3,693 people

Score 68.8·#118 of 1,289 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland

Strongest: schools A⁺, cost of living A·lowest: walkability D⁻

All 24 towns, ranked

By overall score; the letter is the same UK grade as on each town’s page. Each rank across England, Wales and Northern Ireland links to the national list. The score (0–100) blends the seven livability grades and sets the order; the letter places that score among UK towns of 2,500+, and A+ is the top 5%, so neighbours on the list often share a letter.

Every town in Suffolk →

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24 towns.

#TownScoreGrade · UK rankWhat drives it

1Capel St Mary2,992 people69.9top 6.4%A#99 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: health A⁺, hazard risk A·lowest: walkability C⁻

2Worlingham3,618 people69.0top 7.6%A#114 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: safety A, cost of living A⁻·lowest: walkability C⁺

3Glemsford3,693 people68.8top 7.9%A#118 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: schools A⁺, cost of living A·lowest: walkability D⁻

4Framlingham3,831 people68.6top 8.0%A#119 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: health A, walkability A⁻·lowest: hazard risk C

5Needham Market5,055 people62.4top 17.1%A⁻#258 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: cost of living A, schools B⁺·lowest: hazard risk D

6Trimley St Mary3,736 people62.3top 17.4%A⁻#263 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: safety A, cost of living A·lowest: schools D

7Elmswell4,446 people61.0top 20.7%A⁻#311 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: cost of living A⁻, health A⁻·lowest: walkability C⁻

8Claydon3,140 people60.8top 21.0%A⁻#314 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: cost of living A, jobs & income A⁻·lowest: schools D

9Hadleigh8,638 people59.3top 23.8%A⁻#353 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: walkability A⁻, cost of living B⁺·lowest: jobs & income C⁺

10Martlesham Heath2,730 people58.6top 25.4%B⁺#377 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: jobs & income A, hazard risk A·lowest: safety D

11Thurston3,009 people58.4top 25.8%B⁺#382 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: health A, cost of living B⁺·lowest: walkability C⁻

12Rendlesham3,185 people55.8top 30.9%B⁺#455 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: hazard risk A, safety A⁻·lowest: schools D

13Long Melford3,895 people55.5top 32.0%B⁺#476 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: safety A⁻, health B⁺·lowest: hazard risk C

14Kessingland4,242 people51.3top 40.2%B#596 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: cost of living A, hazard risk B⁺·lowest: jobs & income D

15Beccles9,807 people49.9top 43.4%B#638 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: cost of living A, walkability A·lowest: hazard risk D

16Halesworth4,924 people45.0bottom 45.6%B⁻#779 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: cost of living A⁻, walkability A⁻·lowest: schools D⁻

17Lakenheath4,567 people44.5bottom 44.1%C⁺#799 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: hazard risk B⁺, safety B·lowest: walkability D⁻

18Saxmundham4,778 people43.4bottom 41.5%C⁺#828 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: cost of living B⁺, walkability B·lowest: jobs & income C⁻

19Bungay5,012 people43.3bottom 41.0%C⁺#835 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: cost of living A, walkability B⁺·lowest: schools D⁻

20Leiston5,919 people43.3bottom 40.9%C⁺#837 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: cost of living A, hazard risk A·lowest: schools D⁻

21Red Lodge5,771 people42.3bottom 39.0%C⁺#859 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: health A⁻, jobs & income B⁺·lowest: walkability D⁻

22Beck Row4,129 people39.4bottom 32.4%C#938 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: health B, cost of living B⁻·lowest: schools D⁻

23Mildenhall9,684 people33.2bottom 16.5%C⁻#1,115 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: hazard risk B⁺, walkability B⁺·lowest: schools D⁻

24Brandon9,218 people32.6bottom 15.4%C⁻#1,128 of 1,289 nationallyStrongest: hazard risk B, cost of living B·lowest: schools D

Not ranked

Not on this list

1 military garrison town or university campus keeps its grade but isn’t ranked: most residents serve in the forces or are students.

Little Eriswell 4,120 people. Garrison town.

Quick answers

Questions people ask

What is the best small town to live in Suffolk?

Capel St Mary ranks first of 24 (A): health (A+) and hazard risk (A) are its strongest grades; walkability (C−) is its lowest. Worlingham and Glemsford follow.

How are these towns ranked?

By the overall grade, which blends seven livability grades (cost of living, safety, schools, health, jobs & income, walkability, flood risk) from public data, each comparing a town with every UK town. How grades work.

Why isn’t my town on this list?

The list covers towns of 2,500 to 9,999 residents with an overall grade. Towns without one are counted above with the reason.

Go deeper

More Suffolk lists

Every list ranks the same 2,500+ towns, so a town’s rank means the same thing on each.

All Suffolk rankings →

Best places to live34 towns · #1 Kesgrave Most affordable towns34 towns · #1 Kessingland Safest towns34 towns · #1 Worlingham Towns with the best schools34 towns · #1 Glemsford Healthiest towns34 towns · #1 Capel St Mary Best towns for jobs & income34 towns · #1 Martlesham Heath Most walkable towns34 towns · #1 Bury St Edmunds Towns with the lowest flood risk34 towns · #1 Capel St Mary and 6 more Best towns for the outdoors34 towns · #1 Trimley St Mary Most historic towns34 towns · #1 Long Melford Towns with the most civic life34 towns · #1 Framlingham Towns with the highest household incomes35 towns · #1 ThurstonDescribed, no letters Towns with the lowest council tax35 towns · #1 WorlinghamDescribed, no letters Towns with the mildest winters35 towns · #1 Trimley St MaryDescribed, no letters Towns with the warmest summers35 towns · #1 Beck RowDescribed, no letters Towns with the coolest summers35 towns · #1 KessinglandDescribed, no letters Towns with the fewest frosts35 towns · #1 Trimley St MaryDescribed, no letters Driest towns35 towns · #1 FelixstoweDescribed, no letters Wettest towns35 towns · #1 SaxmundhamDescribed, no letters

Sources: 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.