United Kingdom · Local Authorities · Compare
Manchester vs Trafford
Manchester (North West, England · ~556k people) · Trafford (North West, England · ~238k people)
Of 7 strictly-comparable measures: Manchester leads on 1, Trafford on 4, 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
Manchester
£37,211/yr
Worse than 73% of UK LAs
Trafford
£45,188/yr
Better than 83% of UK LAs
Trafford: 21% higher median pay.
House price
ONS HPSSA-9 median · Year ending Sep 2025
Manchester
£247,500
Better than 61% of UK LAs
Trafford
£372,500
Worse than 74% of UK LAs
Manchester: 51% lower median price.
Monthly rent
ONS PIPR (newly-signed lets) · 2026-03
Manchester
£1,347/mo
Worse than 75% of UK LAs
Trafford
£1,358/mo
Worse than 76% of UK LAs
Effectively tied — under 2% apart.
Council tax (Band D)
MHCLG · 2026-27
Manchester
£2,312/yr
Better than 77% of UK LAs
Trafford
£2,292/yr
Better than 82% of UK LAs
Effectively tied — under 2% apart.
Recorded crime
ONS PFA Table C4 · Year ending Dec 2025
Manchester
143.2/1k
Worse than 98% of UK LAs
Trafford
73.9/1k
Around UK average
Trafford: 94% lower recorded-crime rate.
Deprivation (IMD)
MHCLG Indices of Deprivation · 2019
Manchester
40.0
Worse than 98% of UK LAs
Trafford
16.1
Better than 61% of UK LAs
Trafford: lower average deprivation score (16.1 vs 40.0).
Schools (Ofsted)
Ofsted MI · Feb 2026 snapshot
Manchester
90.3%
Worse than 76% of UK LAs
Trafford
93.5%
Better than 64% of UK LAs
Trafford: 3.2 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.
Manchester
Rent takes 43% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 6.7× median annual pay
Trafford
Rent takes 36% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 8.2× median annual pay
Full Manchester 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.