United Kingdom · East of England · Local Authority
Luton
Unitary authority · East of England, England · population ~214k · 69 state-funded schools
Affordable to rent, but a struggle to earn a decent living. Luton's median monthly rent takes a high 39.4% of gross median pay, and while house prices are below the regional average at 8.5 times annual earnings, this is still a significant multiple. These costs are set against weekly earnings of £709, which are below the East of England median. Recorded crime is also high, at 82.9 per 1,000, and deprivation is among the worst in the region. The one clear strength is education, with 95% of pupils in Good or Outstanding schools, the best in the region. This may suit those prioritising school places and who can manage the high rent-to-income ratio, perhaps with remote work or a partner's higher salary.
Written from the indicators on this page, 2026-08 data.
The signature
How Luton ranks across 361 UK Local Authorities
Pay
£36,868/yr
Low
Worse than 76% of UK LAs
House price
£315,000
Mid-range
Worse than 59% of UK LAs
Rent
£1,211/mo
Expensive
Worse than 65% of UK LAs
Council tax
£2,440/yr
Mid
Around UK average
Crime
82.9/1k
High
Worse than 65% of UK LAs
Deprivation
25.9
High
Worse than 77% of UK LAs
Schools
94.2%
Strong
Better than 62% of UK LAs
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
69 state-funded schools · Ofsted Feb 2026
65 of 69 (94.2%) rated Good or Outstanding under Ofsted's legacy framework. How we count →
The map
69 schools · pins coloured by Ofsted grade
Grades, phase and pupil numbers for all 69 schools, sortable and filterable.
Schools in Luton →Places with similar signatures
Nearest by quintile position across pay · housing · tax · crime · IMD · schools
Luton 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.