United Kingdom · Local Authorities · Compare
Leeds vs Wakefield
Leeds (Yorkshire and The Humber, England · ~799k people) · Wakefield (Yorkshire and The Humber, England · ~352k people)
Of 7 strictly-comparable measures: Leeds leads on 2, Wakefield on 3, 2 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
Leeds
£37,596/yr
Worse than 70% of UK LAs
Wakefield
£35,833/yr
Worse than 86% of UK LAs
Leeds: 5% higher median pay.
House price
ONS HPSSA-9 median · Year ending Sep 2025
Leeds
£245,000
Better than 62% of UK LAs
Wakefield
£200,000
Better than 80% of UK LAs
Wakefield: 23% lower median price.
Monthly rent
ONS PIPR (newly-signed lets) · 2026-03
Leeds
£1,130/mo
Worse than 60% of UK LAs
Wakefield
£787/mo
Better than 76% of UK LAs
Wakefield: 44% lower median rent.
Council tax (Band D)
MHCLG · 2026-27
Leeds
£2,284/yr
Better than 83% of UK LAs
Wakefield
£2,297/yr
Better than 80% of UK LAs
Effectively tied — under 2% apart.
Recorded crime
ONS PFA Table C4 · Year ending Dec 2025
Leeds
116.1/1k
Worse than 94% of UK LAs
Wakefield
108.4/1k
Worse than 90% of UK LAs
Wakefield: 7% lower recorded-crime rate.
Deprivation (IMD)
MHCLG Indices of Deprivation · 2019
Leeds
27.3
Worse than 82% of UK LAs
Wakefield
27.3
Worse than 82% of UK LAs
Effectively tied — under 2% apart.
Schools (Ofsted)
Ofsted MI · Feb 2026 snapshot
Leeds
94.2%
Better than 65% of UK LAs
Wakefield
91.5%
Worse than 73% of UK LAs
Leeds: 2.7 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.
Leeds
Rent takes 36% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 6.5× median annual pay
Wakefield
Rent takes 26% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 5.6× median annual pay
Full Leeds profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.
Full Wakefield profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.