Wigan

Key figures

15 of 16 measures have a published figure for Wigan · no figure for recorded crime. Each figure is the publisher’s own, for the period named beside it.

Why the population is changing

The ONS breaks the year’s population change into its components (Year to mid-2025). These are its published figures for Wigan, not our estimates.

• 3,212 births and 3,535 deaths: natural change reduced the population by 323.
• Moves within the UK (net) added 2,678 people.
• International migration (net) added 484 people.
• The ONS’s balancing item (“Other”, mainly armed forces and prisoner adjustments) added 5.
• Altogether the population grew by 2,844 over the year (the sum of the components above — our addition of the ONS’s published figures).

Each component is a series in its own right: births, deaths, moves within the UK and international migration.

Population change, year by year

The same decomposition for every published year in Wigan: births and deaths, net moves within the UK, net international migration, and the ONS’s balancing item.

Years to mid-2024 are the ONS’s rebased back series, made consistent with Census 2021 — its figures deliberately differ from the estimates published at the time. Every cell is a published figure; the total is the sum of net moves, natural change and other, which is our addition. A dash is a year the source does not publish for this area, never a zero.

Rates per 1,000 residents

The same population flows, adjusted for Wigan’s size, so they can be compared with any other area’s: each year’s flow divided by the population that mid-year, times 1,000.

A Civometry calculation, not a published figure: ONS publishes these flows and the population, but not the rates. Net rates are signed — below zero means more left than arrived. Rates are crude, not age-standardised, so areas with very different age structures still differ for reasons size cannot remove. Each link shows the full recipe and every year.

Pay against housing costs

How pay in Wigan moved over its latest published year, beside how the cost of buying and renting moved over theirs. The three series come from different publishers on different timetables, so each row covers its own year, named in the row.

Pay rose faster than both the house price and the rent over these periods.

Levels are the publishers’ own (ONS ASHE median annual pay for full-time employees living in the area; HM Land Registry UK House Price Index; ONS Price Index of Private Rents). The percentage changes are Civometry arithmetic on the two published values in each row. Pay is a survey of employees and says nothing about a particular household; one year is weather, not climate.

Who runs the council

Labour (2026) — Labour 42, Reform UK 25, Other and independent 8 of 75 seats.

Not an official statistic. Compiled by Open Council Data UK, an independent project, not by any government department: no official body publishes council political control. Councils are matched to GSS codes by name here; county councils and districts abolished before the current boundaries are not included. This is the one dataset on the site that is not read from an official publication, and every page that shows it says so. Source: Open Council Data UK (CC0).

Between the censuses

How Wigan’s religion, ethnic-group and country-of-birth make-up changed between the 2011 and 2021 censuses, category by category. The two censuses compared.

Crime

96 recorded offences in the 12 months to August 2022. Full crime profile, by category and month.

Published for this area

• Median annual pay, full-time employees, by area of residence2025 · up 8.5% on a year earlier · ONS, published 23 October 2025£37,377
• Births by local authorityYear to mid-2025 · ONS, published 29 July 20263,212people
• Census 2011 country of birthCensus 2011 · ONS, published 30 January 2013317,849people
• Census 2021 country of birthCensus 2021 · ONS, published 2 November 2022329,328people
• Census 2011 ethnic group (detailed)Census 2011 · ONS, published 2 September 2026317,849people
• Census 2021 ethnic group (detailed)Census 2021 · ONS, published 2 September 2026329,330people
• Census 2011 ethnic group (five broad groups)Census 2011 · ONS, published 2 September 2026317,849people
• Census 2021 ethnic group (five broad groups)Census 2021 · ONS, published 2 September 2026329,330people
• Census 2021 ethnic group by age bandCensus 2021 · ONS, published 2 September 2026329,322people
• Census 2011 usual residentsCensus 2011 · ONS, published 2 September 2026317,849people
• Census 2021 usual residentsCensus 2021 · ONS, published 2 September 2026329,330people
• Census 2011 religionCensus 2011 · ONS, published 2 September 2026317,849people
• Census 2021 religionCensus 2021 · ONS, published 2 September 2026329,330people
• People claiming unemployment-related benefitsJuly 2026 · up 1.4% on a year earlier · ONS, published 18 August 20267,650people
• Claimants as a proportion of residents aged 16 to 64July 2026 · up 0.1 points on a year earlier · ONS, published 18 August 20263.6%
• Band D council tax by billing authorityYear ending March 2027 · up 6.0% on a year earlier · MHCLG, published 25 March 2026£2,153
• Deaths by local authorityYear to mid-2025 · ONS, published 29 July 20263,535people
• Mean domestic electricity consumption per meter2024 · DESNZ, published 18 December 20252,939kWh a year
• Employment deprivation rate2025 · MHCLG, published 17 November 202516.3%
• Mean domestic gas consumption per meter2024 · DESNZ, published 5 May 202610,069kWh a year
• House price annual changeJune 2026 · up 3.9 points on a year earlier · HM Land Registry, published 20 August 20266.6%
• Average house priceJune 2026 · up 6.6% on a year earlier · HM Land Registry, published 20 August 2026£195,557
• Deprivation: IMD average score2025 · MHCLG, published 17 November 202525.2
• Deprivation: share of small areas in England's most deprived tenth2025 · MHCLG, published 17 November 202515.5%
• Income deprivation rate2025 · MHCLG, published 17 November 202523.9%
• Net internal migration by local authorityYear to mid-2025 · ONS, published 29 July 20262,678people
• International migration into a local authorityYear to mid-2025 · ONS, published 29 July 20261,859people
• Net international migration by local authorityYear to mid-2025 · ONS, published 29 July 2026484people
• International migration out of a local authorityYear to mid-2025 · ONS, published 29 July 20261,375people
• Births minus deaths by local authorityYear to mid-2025 · ONS, published 29 July 2026-323people
• Other population change by local authorityYear to mid-2025 · ONS, published 29 July 20265people
• Population by local authorityMid-2024 · up 1.4% on a year earlier · ONS, published 26 September 2025344,922people
• Private rent annual changeJuly 2026 · down 0.3 points on a year earlier · ONS, published 19 August 20266.9%
• Average private rent a monthJuly 2026 · up 6.9% on a year earlier · ONS, published 19 August 2026£745
• Median weekly pay, full-time employees, by area of residence2025 · up 7.3% on a year earlier · ONS, published 23 October 2025£727

National figures that apply here

These are not measured for Wigan; they are the figure for the nation or the UK, shown because they apply to everyone in it.

• Average Band D council tax (England average)Year ending March 2027 · up 4.9%£2,392
• Unemployment rate (UK)2026 Q2 · up 0.2 points4.9%
• Universal Credit caseload (Great Britain)Year ending March 2025 · up 16.3%5,473,000households
• Persistent absence (England)2024/25 academic year · down 1.8 points18.1%
• Average annual electricity bill (UK)2025 · down 1.3%£1,069

Then and now

The first and last years published for Wigan, and the difference between the two. Both figures are published for this area; the difference is those two numbers subtracted, which you can check by hand.

• £1,616Year ending March 2021→£2,153Year ending March 2027

  Band D council tax by billing authority

  In Wigan, band D council tax by billing authority rose from £1,616 in the year ending March 2021 to £2,153 in the year ending March 2027, a change of £537 or 33.2%, in cash terms, not adjusted for inflation (MHCLG).

  How this figure was worked out

  £2,153 in the year ending March 2027 − £1,616 in the year ending March 2021 = £537, which is 33.2% of the figure for the year ending March 2021.

  The two ends are rounded for display. The published figures are 2,152.68 and 1,615.94, and 2,152.68 − 1,615.94 = 536.74.

  7 published years spanning 6 years, from MHCLG. Years before the current series come from Band D council tax by billing authority, 2020-21 to 2024-25, held as a separate series so the two are never mixed inside one figure. Cash terms: these are the amounts as published, not adjusted for inflation.

  In Wigan, band D council tax by billing authority rose from £1,616 in the year ending March 2021 to £2,153 in the year ending March 2027, a change of £537 or 33.2%, in cash terms, not adjusted for inflation (MHCLG).

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• £22,9732008→£37,3772025

  Median annual pay, full-time employees, by area of residence

  In Wigan, median annual pay, full-time employees, by area of residence rose from £22,973 in 2008 to £37,377 in 2025, a change of £14,404 or 62.7%, in cash terms, not adjusted for inflation (ONS).

  How this figure was worked out

  £37,377 in 2025 − £22,973 in 2008 = £14,404, which is 62.7% of the figure for 2008.

  18 published years spanning 17 years, from ONS. Years before the current series come from Median annual pay, full-time employees, by area of residence, 2002 to 2023, held as a separate series so the two are never mixed inside one figure. Cash terms: these are the amounts as published, not adjusted for inflation.

  In Wigan, median annual pay, full-time employees, by area of residence rose from £22,973 in 2008 to £37,377 in 2025, a change of £14,404 or 62.7%, in cash terms, not adjusted for inflation (ONS).

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• £4432008→£7272025

  Median weekly pay, full-time employees, by area of residence

  In Wigan, median weekly pay, full-time employees, by area of residence rose from £443 in 2008 to £727 in 2025, a change of £284 or 64.1%, in cash terms, not adjusted for inflation (ONS).

  How this figure was worked out

  £727 in 2025 − £443 in 2008 = £284, which is 64.1% of the figure for 2008.

  The two ends are rounded for display. The published figures are 726.80 and 442.90, and 726.80 − 442.90 = 283.90.

  18 published years spanning 17 years, from ONS. Years before the current series come from Median weekly pay, full-time employees, by area of residence, 2002 to 2023, held as a separate series so the two are never mixed inside one figure. Cash terms: these are the amounts as published, not adjusted for inflation.

  In Wigan, median weekly pay, full-time employees, by area of residence rose from £443 in 2008 to £727 in 2025, a change of £284 or 64.1%, in cash terms, not adjusted for inflation (ONS).

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• -754Year to mid-2012→2,678Year to mid-2025

  Net internal migration by local authority

  In Wigan, net internal migration by local authority rose from -754 in Year to mid-2012 to 2,678 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 3,432 or 455.2% (ONS).

  How this figure was worked out

  2,678 in Year to mid-2025 − -754 in Year to mid-2012 = 3,432, which is 455.2% of the figure for Year to mid-2012.

  14 published years spanning 13 years, from ONS. Years before the current series come from Internal migration net by local authority, 2012 to 2024, held as a separate series so the two are never mixed inside one figure.

  In Wigan, net internal migration by local authority rose from -754 in Year to mid-2012 to 2,678 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 3,432 or 455.2% (ONS).

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• 647Year to mid-2012→1,859Year to mid-2025

  International migration into a local authority

  In Wigan, international migration into a local authority rose from 647 in Year to mid-2012 to 1,859 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 1,212 or 187.3% (ONS).

  How this figure was worked out

  1,859 in Year to mid-2025 − 647 in Year to mid-2012 = 1,212, which is 187.3% of the figure for Year to mid-2012.

  14 published years spanning 13 years, from ONS. Years before the current series come from International migration in by local authority, 2012 to 2024, held as a separate series so the two are never mixed inside one figure.

  In Wigan, international migration into a local authority rose from 647 in Year to mid-2012 to 1,859 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 1,212 or 187.3% (ONS).

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• 640Year to mid-2012→1,375Year to mid-2025

  International migration out of a local authority

  In Wigan, international migration out of a local authority rose from 640 in Year to mid-2012 to 1,375 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 735 or 114.8% (ONS).

  How this figure was worked out

  1,375 in Year to mid-2025 − 640 in Year to mid-2012 = 735, which is 114.8% of the figure for Year to mid-2012.

  14 published years spanning 13 years, from ONS. Years before the current series come from International migration out by local authority, 2012 to 2024, held as a separate series so the two are never mixed inside one figure.

  In Wigan, international migration out of a local authority rose from 640 in Year to mid-2012 to 1,375 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 735 or 114.8% (ONS).

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• 7Year to mid-2012→484Year to mid-2025

  Net international migration by local authority

  In Wigan, net international migration by local authority rose from 7 in Year to mid-2012 to 484 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 477 or 6814.3% (ONS).

  How this figure was worked out

  484 in Year to mid-2025 − 7 in Year to mid-2012 = 477, which is 6814.3% of the figure for Year to mid-2012.

  14 published years spanning 13 years, from ONS. Years before the current series come from International migration net by local authority, 2012 to 2024, held as a separate series so the two are never mixed inside one figure.

  In Wigan, net international migration by local authority rose from 7 in Year to mid-2012 to 484 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 477 or 6814.3% (ONS).

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• 3,852Year to mid-2012→3,212Year to mid-2025

  Births by local authority

  In Wigan, births by local authority fell from 3,852 in Year to mid-2012 to 3,212 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 640 or 16.6% (ONS).

  How this figure was worked out

  3,212 in Year to mid-2025 − 3,852 in Year to mid-2012 = −640, which is 16.6% of the figure for Year to mid-2012.

  14 published years spanning 13 years, from ONS. Years before the current series come from Births by local authority, 2012 to 2024, held as a separate series so the two are never mixed inside one figure.

  In Wigan, births by local authority fell from 3,852 in Year to mid-2012 to 3,212 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 640 or 16.6% (ONS).

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• 2,988Year to mid-2012→3,535Year to mid-2025

  Deaths by local authority

  In Wigan, deaths by local authority rose from 2,988 in Year to mid-2012 to 3,535 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 547 or 18.3% (ONS).

  How this figure was worked out

  3,535 in Year to mid-2025 − 2,988 in Year to mid-2012 = 547, which is 18.3% of the figure for Year to mid-2012.

  14 published years spanning 13 years, from ONS. Years before the current series come from Deaths by local authority, 2012 to 2024, held as a separate series so the two are never mixed inside one figure.

  In Wigan, deaths by local authority rose from 2,988 in Year to mid-2012 to 3,535 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 547 or 18.3% (ONS).

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• 864Year to mid-2012→-323Year to mid-2025

  Births minus deaths by local authority

  In Wigan, births minus deaths by local authority fell from 864 in Year to mid-2012 to -323 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 1,187 or 137.4% (ONS).

  How this figure was worked out

  -323 in Year to mid-2025 − 864 in Year to mid-2012 = −1,187, which is 137.4% of the figure for Year to mid-2012.

  14 published years spanning 13 years, from ONS. Years before the current series come from Natural change by local authority, 2012 to 2024, held as a separate series so the two are never mixed inside one figure.

  In Wigan, births minus deaths by local authority fell from 864 in Year to mid-2012 to -323 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 1,187 or 137.4% (ONS).

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• -130Year to mid-2012→5Year to mid-2025

  Other population change by local authority

  In Wigan, other population change by local authority rose from -130 in Year to mid-2012 to 5 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 135 or 103.8% (ONS).

  How this figure was worked out

  5 in Year to mid-2025 − -130 in Year to mid-2012 = 135, which is 103.8% of the figure for Year to mid-2012.

  14 published years spanning 13 years, from ONS. Years before the current series come from Other population change by local authority, 2012 to 2024, held as a separate series so the two are never mixed inside one figure.

  In Wigan, other population change by local authority rose from -130 in Year to mid-2012 to 5 in Year to mid-2025, a change of 135 or 103.8% (ONS).

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Compare Wigan with another place

Every figure both areas publish, side by side, from its own publisher with the period named:

• Wigan and Birmingham
• Wigan and Leeds
• Wigan and North Yorkshire
• Wigan and Somerset
• Wigan and Cornwall
• Wigan and Buckinghamshire

Or open any two areas as /compare/places/<area>/<area> — the address carries the whole comparison.

Since you moved here

Pick the year you arrived, and see what every series published for Wigan said then and says now, with the periods named. Wigan since you moved here, or read the whole run year by year.

Where these figures come from

Every figure above is published by the body named here, for the release named here. Figures marked as a Civometry calculation are arithmetic on those published figures and are not official statistics.

Not yet published here

Income, employment, benefits by area, health, education and religion for Wigan are on the way where an open official source exists; where one does not, the data gaps register says why. Local claimant counts are behind a login.