United Kingdom · Local Authorities · Compare
Southwark vs Tower Hamlets
Southwark (London, England · ~320k people) · Tower Hamlets (London, England · ~332k people)
Of 7 strictly-comparable measures: Southwark leads on 1, Tower Hamlets 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
Southwark
£48,875/yr
Better than 94% of UK LAs
Tower Hamlets
£51,823/yr
Better than 98% of UK LAs
Tower Hamlets: 6% higher median pay.
House price
ONS HPSSA-9 median · Year ending Sep 2025
Southwark
£540,000
Worse than 94% of UK LAs
Tower Hamlets
£500,000
Worse than 91% of UK LAs
Tower Hamlets: 8% lower median price.
Monthly rent
ONS PIPR (newly-signed lets) · 2026-03
Southwark
£2,388/mo
Worse than 97% of UK LAs
Tower Hamlets
£2,396/mo
Worse than 98% of UK LAs
Effectively tied — under 2% apart.
Council tax (Band D)
MHCLG · 2026-27
Southwark
£1,967/yr
Better than 97% of UK LAs
Tower Hamlets
£1,838/yr
Better than 98% of UK LAs
Tower Hamlets: £129 less per year at Band D.
Recorded crime
ONS PFA Table C4 · Year ending Dec 2025
Southwark
121.5/1k
Worse than 97% of UK LAs
Tower Hamlets
106.4/1k
Worse than 88% of UK LAs
Tower Hamlets: 14% lower recorded-crime rate.
Deprivation (IMD)
MHCLG Indices of Deprivation · 2019
Southwark
25.8
Worse than 77% of UK LAs
Tower Hamlets
27.9
Worse than 84% of UK LAs
Southwark: lower average deprivation score (25.8 vs 27.9).
Schools (Ofsted)
Ofsted MI · Feb 2026 snapshot
Southwark
98.7%
Better than 94% of UK LAs
Tower Hamlets
98.1%
Better than 91% of UK LAs
Effectively tied — under 2% apart.
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.
Southwark
Rent takes 59% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 11.0× median annual pay
Tower Hamlets
Rent takes 55% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 9.6× median annual pay
Full Southwark profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.
Full Tower Hamlets profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.