United Kingdom · Local Authorities · Compare
Buckinghamshire vs Somerset
Buckinghamshire (South East, England · ~547k people) · Somerset (South West, England · ~564k people)
Of 7 strictly-comparable measures: Buckinghamshire leads on 4, Somerset on 2, 1 effectively tied. 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
Buckinghamshire
£43,462/yr
Better than 76% of UK LAs
Somerset
£36,951/yr
Worse than 75% of UK LAs
Buckinghamshire: 18% higher median pay.
House price
ONS HPSSA-9 median · Year ending Sep 2025
Buckinghamshire
£455,000
Worse than 86% of UK LAs
Somerset
£285,000
Around UK average
Somerset: 60% lower median price.
Monthly rent
ONS PIPR (newly-signed lets) · 2026-03
Buckinghamshire
£1,467/mo
Worse than 80% of UK LAs
Somerset
£980/mo
Around UK average
Somerset: 50% lower median rent.
Council tax (Band D)
MHCLG · 2026-27
Buckinghamshire
£2,527/yr
Worse than 75% of UK LAs
Somerset
£2,561/yr
Worse than 83% of UK LAs
Effectively tied — under 2% apart.
Recorded crime
ONS PFA Table C4 · Year ending Dec 2025
Buckinghamshire
59.2/1k
Better than 73% of UK LAs
Somerset
83.1/1k
Worse than 66% of UK LAs
Buckinghamshire: 40% lower recorded-crime rate.
Deprivation (IMD)
MHCLG Indices of Deprivation · 2019 (predecessor avg)
Buckinghamshire
9.6
Better than 93% of UK LAs
Somerset
19.0
Around UK average
Buckinghamshire: lower average deprivation score (9.6 vs 19.0).
Schools (Ofsted)
Ofsted MI · Feb 2026 snapshot
Buckinghamshire
93.5%
Better than 64% of UK LAs
Somerset
81.3%
Worse than 99% of UK LAs
Buckinghamshire: 12.2 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.
Buckinghamshire
Rent takes 41% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 10.5× median annual pay
Somerset
Rent takes 32% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 7.7× median annual pay
Full Buckinghamshire profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.
Full Somerset profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.