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Council tax rankings for England, 2026/27

Area Band D council tax for a dwelling occupied by two adults, ranked across all 296 billing authorities. The England average is £2,392 and the median council £2,441; the average rise on 2025/26 is 4.9%.

Rankings use the area Band D including the average parish precept, as published by MHCLG on 25 March 2026. Four councils created by reorganisation (Cumberland, North Yorkshire, Somerset, Westmorland and Furness) have no comparable 2025/26 figure in the live table and are excluded from the rise rankings only where no change is published.

Highest Band D

  1. Dorset£2,765+5.1%
  2. Lewes£2,756+4.9%
  3. Nottingham£2,755+3.7%
  4. Rutland£2,738+2.5%
  5. Wealden£2,728+4.6%
  6. Gateshead£2,716+5.3%
  7. Bristol£2,714+5.0%
  8. West Devon£2,705+5.1%
  9. Rother£2,701+5.5%
  10. Newark and Sherwood£2,682+3.9%
  11. Oxford£2,678+4.7%
  12. Hastings£2,677+4.8%
  13. Liverpool£2,674+5.0%
  14. Mid Devon£2,656+5.4%
  15. Eastbourne£2,654+4.8%
  16. Bassetlaw£2,645+4.2%
  17. Rushcliffe£2,643+4.4%
  18. Teignbridge£2,643+5.2%
  19. North Devon£2,642+5.1%
  20. Pendle£2,640+4.1%

Lowest Band D

  1. Wandsworth£1,028+3.1%
  2. Westminster£1,050+3.0%
  3. City of London£1,330+4.4%
  4. Hammersmith and Fulham£1,520+4.7%
  5. Kensington and Chelsea£1,667+4.7%
  6. Tower Hamlets£1,838+4.7%
  7. Newham£1,944+4.8%
  8. Windsor and Maidenhead£1,953+7.1%
  9. Southwark£1,967+4.8%
  10. Hillingdon£2,045+4.8%
  11. Lambeth£2,047+4.8%
  12. Isles of Scilly£2,048+5.0%
  13. Hackney£2,060+4.8%
  14. Greenwich£2,108+4.8%
  15. Islington£2,108+4.8%
  16. Barnet£2,133+4.8%
  17. Ealing£2,139+4.8%
  18. Bromley£2,140+4.8%
  19. Dudley£2,145+5.2%
  20. Merton£2,147+2.5%

Biggest rise on 2025/26

  1. Shropshire+£209+9.0%
  2. North Somerset+£196+8.6%
  3. Trafford+£169+8.0%
  4. Wyre Forest+£185+8.0%
  5. Wychavon+£172+7.8%
  6. Worcester+£172+7.7%
  7. Bromsgrove+£176+7.6%
  8. Redditch+£174+7.6%
  9. Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole+£171+7.5%
  10. Malvern Hills+£170+7.5%
  11. Warrington+£166+7.3%
  12. Windsor and Maidenhead+£129+7.1%
  13. Wigan+£121+6.0%
  14. Manchester+£129+5.9%
  15. Bolton+£133+5.9%
  16. Tameside+£135+5.9%
  17. Bury+£141+5.8%
  18. Oldham+£143+5.8%
  19. Rochdale+£143+5.8%
  20. Salford+£142+5.8%

Smallest rise on 2025/26

  1. Hartlepool+£62+2.5%
  2. Middlesbrough+£62+2.5%
  3. Rutland+£67+2.5%
  4. Merton+£52+2.5%
  5. Doncaster+£57+2.7%
  6. Lincoln+£62+2.8%
  7. Durham+£71+2.8%
  8. Harborough+£65+2.8%
  9. Westminster+£31+3.0%
  10. Wandsworth+£30+3.1%
  11. Boston+£72+3.2%
  12. West Lindsey+£74+3.3%
  13. Oadby and Wigston+£77+3.3%
  14. South Holland+£73+3.3%
  15. South Kesteven+£73+3.3%
  16. Charnwood+£78+3.4%
  17. Melton+£79+3.4%
  18. East Lindsey+£74+3.4%
  19. North Kesteven+£77+3.4%
  20. Hinckley and Bosworth+£78+3.4%

Largest average parish precept

The parish element is the average across a district; in a town with its own council the precept can be several times this average, while unparished areas pay none.

  1. Bolsover£22816 parishes
  2. Cornwall£201205 parishes
  3. Wiltshire£195240 parishes
  4. Somerset£192285 parishes
  5. Swindon£17619 parishes
  6. Central Bedfordshire£16474 parishes
  7. Huntingdonshire£15874 parishes
  8. Lewes£15423 parishes
  9. Blaby£15120 parishes
  10. Wealden£14840 parishes
  11. Dorset£140190 parishes
  12. Isle of Wight£13933 parishes
  13. Eastleigh£13711 parishes
  14. Stroud£13752 parishes
  15. Milton Keynes£13745 parishes
  16. Uttlesford£13754 parishes
  17. South Oxfordshire£13681 parishes
  18. Pendle£13517 parishes
  19. New Forest£13436 parishes
  20. North Somerset£13339 parishes

By type of council

TypeCouncilsAverage Band DLowestHighest
Unitary authoritys63£2,460Windsor and Maidenhead £1,953Dorset £2,765
Shire districts164£2,453Basingstoke and Deane £2,255Lewes £2,756
Metropolitan districts36£2,428Dudley £2,145Gateshead £2,716
Outer London boroughs20£2,290Newham £1,944Kingston upon Thames £2,609
Inner London boroughs13£1,782Wandsworth £1,028Lewisham £2,237

Simple averages of the councils in each class, not weighted by number of dwellings; MHCLG's weighted class averages are in Table 2 of the release.

Red-brick terraced houses on a quiet street in Leicester
Photo: Dave Bevis, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Questions

Which council has the highest council tax in England in 2026/27?

Dorset, where a Band D home pays £2,765 a year, followed by Lewes (£2,756) and Nottingham (£2,755).

Which council has the lowest council tax in England?

Wandsworth, at £1,028 for Band D in 2026/27, then Westminster (£1,050) and City of London (£1,330). The lowest bills are all in London, where the borough element is small and the Greater London Authority precept is shared by all 33 boroughs.

Where did council tax rise most in 2026/27?

Shropshire saw the largest percentage rise in area Band D, +9.0% (+£209). The England average rose 4.9%.

Sources

  1. Council Tax levels set by local authorities in England 2026 to 2027 (MHCLG statistical release, 25 March 2026) (accessed 2026-09-12) ✓ checked
  2. Council Tax levels 2026 to 2027: Tables 1 to 9 (Table 9: area council tax for a dwelling occupied by two adults by band) (accessed 2026-09-12) ✓ checked
  3. Live tables on Council Tax: Band D council tax figures 1993-94 onwards (revised 22 April 2026) (accessed 2026-09-12) ✓ checked

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Council Tax Ledger shows the average area council tax for 2026/27 for a dwelling occupied by two adults with no discounts, as published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Parish precepts vary within a district, so your bill may differ. Not financial advice.