United Kingdom · Scotland · Local Authority
Orkney Islands
Local Authority · Scotland · population ~22k
Expensive to buy into, but relatively affordable to rent. Orkney’s mean house price is 5.2 times median annual pay, and is higher than 71% of Scottish authorities, ranking 23 of 32 for cost. However, advertised rents take a manageable 21% of gross median earnings, below the Scottish median. Weekly pay is strong, ranking 11 of 32 in Scotland, and higher than 68% of authorities. This suits those prioritising a higher income and a lower rent burden over cheaper property, or those who already own their home.
Written from the indicators on this page, 2026-08 data.
The signature
How Orkney Islands ranks across 361 UK Local Authorities
Pay
£40,872/yr
High
Better than 62% of UK LAs
House price
£210,705
Affordable
Better than 76% of UK LAs
Rent
£715/mo
Most affordable
Better than 88% of UK LAs
Council tax
—
no data
Crime
—
no data
Deprivation
—
no data
Schools
—
no data
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 data
School quality is published by the Education Scotland regulator, which uses a methodology distinct from England's Ofsted. We don't synthesise a Scotland schools list here — for current ratings of schools in Orkney Islands, see the official Education Scotland.
Places with similar signatures
Nearest by quintile position across pay · housing · tax · crime · IMD · schools
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.