United Kingdom · North East · Local Authority
County Durham
Unitary authority · North East, England · population ~533k · 258 state-funded schools
Affordable housing comes at the cost of lower earnings and high council tax in County Durham. A median house costs 4.2 times annual gross pay, the lowest price in the region, while rent consumes a modest 22.1% of median earnings. These figures are offset by weekly pay of £661.30, which sits below the regional median and is higher than only 5% of England authorities. Residents also face a Band D council tax of £2,622, a figure higher than 93% of authorities across the country. While the area offers a low barrier to entry for property ownership, the combination of stagnant wages and significant tax burdens requires careful financial planning. It suits those prioritising immediate housing affordability over long-term income growth.
Written from the indicators on this page, 2026-10 data.
The signature
How County Durham ranks across 361 UK Local Authorities
Pay
£34,388/yr
Very low
Worse than 95% of UK LAs
House price
£143,000
Most affordable
Better than 97% of UK LAs
Rent
£632/mo
Most affordable
Better than 97% of UK LAs
Council tax
£2,622/yr
Most expensive
Worse than 93% of UK LAs
Crime
89.4/1k
High
Worse than 73% of UK LAs
Deprivation
26.8
High
Worse than 80% of UK LAs
Schools
92.6%
Mid
Around UK average
Colour shows quintile position against 361 UK Local Authorities. Green is the best position for someone moving here; red is the worst. Direction is set per indicator — higher pay, lower rent, less crime, less deprivation are all green.
Schools
296 state-funded schools · Ofsted Sep 2026
239 of 258 (92.6%) rated Good or Outstanding under Ofsted's legacy framework. 38 schools are on the post-2024 report-card framework and don't roll up into the legacy total. How we count →
The map
258 schools · pins coloured by Ofsted grade
Grades, phase and pupil numbers for all 258 schools, sortable and filterable.
Schools in County Durham →Places with similar signatures
Nearest by quintile position across pay · housing · tax · crime · IMD · schools
County Durham head-to-heads
What we don't know yet
Commute times · GP appointment availability · broadband speeds · air quality at LA level · green-space proximity · public transport coverage. These matter for a relocation decision. We'll add them when the source data is reliable nationally and consistent across LA boundaries.