United Kingdom · Local Authorities · Compare
Bolton vs Trafford
Bolton (North West, England · ~288k people) · Trafford (North West, England · ~238k people)
Of 7 strictly-comparable measures: Bolton leads on 2, Trafford on 5. Which trade-offs matter is yours to weigh — the rows below show where each one wins.
Head to head
Median pay
ONS ASHE (residence) · 2025
Bolton
£35,074/yr
Worse than 92% of UK LAs
Trafford
£45,188/yr
Better than 83% of UK LAs
Trafford: 29% higher median pay.
House price
ONS HPSSA-9 median · Year ending Sep 2025
Bolton
£205,000
Better than 78% of UK LAs
Trafford
£372,500
Worse than 74% of UK LAs
Bolton: 82% lower median price.
Monthly rent
ONS PIPR (newly-signed lets) · 2026-03
Bolton
£878/mo
Better than 63% of UK LAs
Trafford
£1,358/mo
Worse than 76% of UK LAs
Bolton: 55% lower median rent.
Council tax (Band D)
MHCLG · 2026-27
Bolton
£2,400/yr
Better than 59% of UK LAs
Trafford
£2,292/yr
Better than 82% of UK LAs
Trafford: £108 less per year at Band D.
Recorded crime
ONS PFA Table C4 · Year ending Dec 2025
Bolton
98.4/1k
Worse than 84% of UK LAs
Trafford
73.9/1k
Around UK average
Trafford: 33% lower recorded-crime rate.
Deprivation (IMD)
MHCLG Indices of Deprivation · 2019
Bolton
30.7
Worse than 89% of UK LAs
Trafford
16.1
Better than 61% of UK LAs
Trafford: lower average deprivation score (16.1 vs 30.7).
Schools (Ofsted)
Ofsted MI · Feb 2026 snapshot
Bolton
91.2%
Worse than 75% of UK LAs
Trafford
93.5%
Better than 64% of UK LAs
Trafford: 2.3 percentage points more pupils in Good/Outstanding schools.
What local pay actually covers
Same-place ratios — each area's own median rent and house price against its own median gross pay. A cheap-looking area stops looking cheap when local pay is lower still.
Bolton
Rent takes 30% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 5.8× median annual pay
Trafford
Rent takes 36% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 8.2× median annual pay
Full Bolton profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.
Full Trafford profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.