Highest and lowest council tax in England
The chart shows the ten English billing authorities with the highest and the ten with the lowest average Band D council tax in 2026/27. Band D is the standard comparison point; every other band is a fixed share of it. Each figure includes the county, police and fire charges and the average parish charge for the area.
| Group | Council | Band D a year | A month (10 payments) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Highest | Dorset | £2,765.02 | £276.50 |
| Highest | Lewes | £2,756.17 | £275.62 |
| Highest | Nottingham | £2,755.39 | £275.54 |
| Highest | Rutland | £2,737.58 | £273.76 |
| Highest | Wealden | £2,728.43 | £272.84 |
| Highest | Gateshead | £2,715.81 | £271.58 |
| Highest | Bristol | £2,713.68 | £271.37 |
| Highest | West Devon | £2,705.33 | £270.53 |
| Highest | Rother | £2,700.95 | £270.10 |
| Highest | Newark and Sherwood | £2,682.10 | £268.21 |
| Lowest | Wandsworth | £1,028.21 | £102.82 |
| Lowest | Westminster | £1,049.55 | £104.96 |
| Lowest | City of London | £1,329.56 | £132.96 |
| Lowest | Hammersmith and Fulham | £1,519.51 | £151.95 |
| Lowest | Kensington and Chelsea | £1,666.65 | £166.67 |
| Lowest | Tower Hamlets | £1,837.78 | £183.78 |
| Lowest | Newham | £1,944.23 | £194.42 |
| Lowest | Windsor and Maidenhead | £1,952.62 | £195.26 |
| Lowest | Southwark | £1,967.26 | £196.73 |
| Lowest | Hillingdon | £2,045.46 | £204.55 |
Eight of the ten lowest charges are in London boroughs. The City of London has very few homes and its own funding, so it is not a typical area. Your own bill can differ from the average because of parish charges and discounts. The council tax hub has the figures for every council in England, Scotland and Wales.
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<img src="https://moneyworkedout.co.uk/assets/charts/council-tax-highest-lowest.svg" width="1000" height="820" alt="Horizontal bars compare the ten lowest and ten highest average Band D council tax charges among English billing authorities in 2026/27.">
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</figure>Sources and chart notes
- Band D figures: Council Tax levels set by local authorities in England 2026/27, Table 9.
- The chart covers English billing authorities only, because Scotland and Wales use different valuation dates and bands.
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