Official statistics · 12 of 13 measures compare directly
Swansea and Wirral compared
Every measure Civometry publishes for both areas, side by side. Each figure is its publisher’s own for the period named beside it, and the difference between the two is stated in the middle. Neither area is called better: which direction counts as better depends on what you are asking, and the page does not decide that for you. Where the two figures are not comparable — a different period, or nothing published for one side — the row says so instead of showing a difference.
Swansea
W06000011 · South Wales Police
Wirral
E08000015 · Merseyside Police
Getting better or worse
0
Civometry calculation on Home Office, ONS, HM Land Registry and MHCLG figures
3 more in Swansea
−3
Civometry calculation on Home Office, ONS, HM Land Registry and MHCLG figures
Population
249,429
ONS: Population estimates for the UK and constituent countries: historical time series
80,467 more in Wirral
329,896
ONS: Population estimates for the UK and constituent countries: historical time series
Median annual pay, full-time employees
£36,586
ONS: ASHE Table 8.7a: annual gross pay by place of residence
£1,424 more in Wirral
£38,010
ONS: ASHE Table 8.7a: annual gross pay by place of residence
Average house price
£206,059
HM Land Registry: UK House Price Index: average prices
£9,516 more in Wirral
£215,575
HM Land Registry: UK House Price Index: average prices
All private rents
£848
ONS: Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics
£4 more in Wirral
£852
ONS: Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics
All claimants
3.4%
ONS: Claimant count by sex and age (Nomis)
0.1 percentage points higher in Wirral
3.5%
ONS: Claimant count by sex and age (Nomis)
Net international migration
+750
ONS: Components of population change by local authority (ONS mid-year estimates, sheet MYE3)
138 more in Wirral
+888
ONS: Components of population change by local authority (ONS mid-year estimates, sheet MYE3)
Recorded crime
85.6
Home Office: data.police.uk street-level crime, cumulative monthly archive
6.3 more in Swansea
79.3
Home Office: data.police.uk street-level crime, cumulative monthly archive
House price to pay ratio
5.6 years
HM Land Registry: UK House Price Index: average prices
0.1 years more in Wirral
5.7 years
HM Land Registry: UK House Price Index: average prices
Annual rent as a share of pay
27.8%
ONS: Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics
0.9 percentage points higher in Swansea
26.9%
ONS: Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics
Band D council tax as a share of pay
No published figure
MHCLG: Council tax levels set by local authorities in England 2026 to 2027
No published figure for Swansea.
6.58%
MHCLG: Council tax levels set by local authorities in England 2026 to 2027
Mean domestic gas use per meter
10,686
DESNZ: Regional and local authority gas consumption statistics
418 more in Wirral
11,104
DESNZ: Regional and local authority gas consumption statistics
Mean domestic electricity use per meter
2,896
DESNZ: Regional and local authority electricity consumption statistics
105 more in Wirral
3,001
DESNZ: Regional and local authority electricity consumption statistics
In one sentence
In the latest published figures, population was 249,429 in Swansea and 329,896 in Wirral (mid-2025); median annual pay, full-time employees was £36,586 in Swansea and £38,010 in Wirral (2025); and average house price was £206,059 in Swansea and £215,575 in Wirral (June 2026). (Civometry, from official statistics; each figure is the publisher's own.)
In the latest published figures, population was 249,429 in Swansea and 329,896 in Wirral (mid-2025); median annual pay, full-time employees was £36,586 in Swansea and £38,010 in Wirral (2025); and average house price was £206,059 in Swansea and £215,575 in Wirral (June 2026). (Civometry, from official statistics; each figure is the publisher's own.)
Recorded crime by category
Offences per 1,000 residents in the 12 months to June 2026, from the same archive and the same window for both areas.
| Category | Swansea per 1,000 | offences | Wirral per 1,000 | offences | E&W |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All recorded crime | 85.6 | 21,358 | 79.3 | 26,177 | 97.4 |
| Bicycle theft | 0.5 | 129 | 0.5 | 155 | 0.8 |
| Burglary | 1.7 | 430 | 2.1 | 698 | 3.6 |
| Criminal damage and arson | 6.5 | 1,627 | 7.2 | 2,384 | 6.9 |
| Drugs | 3.5 | 877 | 4.4 | 1,436 | 3.4 |
| Other crime | 2.3 | 581 | 2.0 | 659 | 2.2 |
| Other theft | 4.2 | 1,048 | 3.9 | 1,272 | 6.5 |
| Possession of weapons | 1.0 | 243 | 0.7 | 227 | 1.0 |
| Public disorder and weapons | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| Public order | 9.5 | 2,369 | 8.0 | 2,628 | 6.8 |
| Robbery | 0.5 | 129 | 0.7 | 218 | 1.4 |
| Shoplifting | 8.2 | 2,039 | 5.0 | 1,642 | 8.3 |
| Theft from the person | 0.5 | 130 | 0.2 | 64 | 1.7 |
| Vehicle crime | 3.3 | 834 | 2.0 | 676 | 5.0 |
| Violence and sexual offences | 33.9 | 8,458 | 33.5 | 11,047 | 34.7 |
| Violent crime | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 |
Police-recorded crime counts offences reported to and recorded by the police. It is affected by whether people report crime and by changes in police recording practice, so it does not measure all crime that happens. The Crime Survey for England and Wales is the better guide to long-term trends in the crimes it covers. Police recorded crime is not designated as National Statistics.
What this comparison rests on
Two figures are only subtracted when they are the same measure over the same period. Populations differ (249,429 and 329,896 residents on the latest estimates used here), so counts are shown alongside rates rather than instead of them. Nothing on this page is weighted, indexed or scored: every difference is one published number minus another, and the rows that cannot be compared say why.