United Kingdom · Local Authorities · Compare
Manchester vs Oldham
Manchester (North West, England · ~556k people) · Oldham (North West, England · ~238k people)
Of 7 strictly-comparable measures: Manchester leads on 3, Oldham on 4. 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
Manchester
£37,211/yr
Worse than 73% of UK LAs
Oldham
£35,417/yr
Worse than 89% of UK LAs
Manchester: 5% higher median pay.
House price
ONS HPSSA-9 median · Year ending Sep 2025
Manchester
£247,500
Better than 61% of UK LAs
Oldham
£207,875
Better than 77% of UK LAs
Oldham: 19% lower median price.
Monthly rent
ONS PIPR (newly-signed lets) · 2026-03
Manchester
£1,347/mo
Worse than 75% of UK LAs
Oldham
£910/mo
Better than 60% of UK LAs
Oldham: 48% lower median rent.
Council tax (Band D)
MHCLG · 2026-27
Manchester
£2,312/yr
Better than 77% of UK LAs
Oldham
£2,602/yr
Worse than 90% of UK LAs
Manchester: £290 less per year at Band D.
Recorded crime
ONS PFA Table C4 · Year ending Dec 2025
Manchester
143.2/1k
Worse than 98% of UK LAs
Oldham
106.7/1k
Worse than 88% of UK LAs
Oldham: 34% lower recorded-crime rate.
Deprivation (IMD)
MHCLG Indices of Deprivation · 2019
Manchester
40.0
Worse than 98% of UK LAs
Oldham
33.2
Worse than 94% of UK LAs
Oldham: lower average deprivation score (33.2 vs 40.0).
Schools (Ofsted)
Ofsted MI · Feb 2026 snapshot
Manchester
90.3%
Worse than 76% of UK LAs
Oldham
84.5%
Worse than 98% of UK LAs
Manchester: 5.8 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.
Manchester
Rent takes 43% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 6.7× median annual pay
Oldham
Rent takes 31% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 5.9× median annual pay
Full Manchester profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.
Full Oldham profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.