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See where every council ranks. Grouped by council type, so you compare like with like.
Cheapest to most expensive Band D bill for 2026-27. County councils show their own 2025-26 share — the latest published.
Unitary, metropolitan, and London boroughs · 132 councils · 2026-27 figures
Two-tier lower (shares services with a county council) · 164 councils · 2026-27 figures
Two-tier upper (shares services with district councils) · 21 councils · 2025-26 figures
| # | Council | Value |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Essex County Council | £1,580.00 |
| 2 | Hampshire County Council | £1,610.00 |
| 3 | Worcestershire County Council | £1,616.00 |
| 4 | Staffordshire County Council | £1,622.00 |
| 5 | Lincolnshire County Council | £1,626.00 |
| 6 | Derbyshire County Council | £1,629.00 |
| 7 | Suffolk County Council | £1,649.00 |
| 8 | Gloucestershire County Council | £1,680.00 |
| 9 | Leicestershire County Council | £1,682.00 |
| 10 | Kent County Council | £1,691.19 |
| 11 | Cambridgeshire County Council | £1,701.00 |
| 12 | Lancashire County Council | £1,736.00 |
| 13 | Norfolk County Council | £1,756.00 |
| 14 | Hertfordshire County Council | £1,770.00 |
| 15 | Devon County Council | £1,801.00 |
| 16 | West Sussex County Council | £1,801.00 |
| 17 | Warwickshire County Council | £1,823.00 |
| 18 | Surrey County Council | £1,846.00 |
| 19 | East Sussex County Council | £1,867.00 |
| 20 | Nottinghamshire County Council | £1,895.00 |
| 21 | Oxfordshire County Council | £1,911.00 |
Total service budget divided by the local population
Unitary, metropolitan, and London boroughs · 122 councils
Two-tier lower (shares services with a county council) · 164 councils
Two-tier upper (shares services with district councils) · 21 councils
| # | Council | Value |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leicestershire County Council | £1,273 |
| 2 | Cambridgeshire County Council | £1,334 |
| 3 | Staffordshire County Council | £1,369 |
| 4 | Suffolk County Council | £1,372 |
| 5 | Worcestershire County Council | £1,373 |
| 6 | Essex County Council | £1,412 |
| 7 | Lincolnshire County Council | £1,416 |
| 8 | Oxfordshire County Council | £1,421 |
| 9 | Warwickshire County Council | £1,500 |
| 10 | Derbyshire County Council | £1,512 |
| 11 | Gloucestershire County Council | £1,515 |
| 12 | Norfolk County Council | £1,530 |
| 13 | Devon County Council | £1,550 |
| 14 | Surrey County Council | £1,553 |
| 15 | Nottinghamshire County Council | £1,557 |
| 16 | East Sussex County Council | £1,635 |
| 17 | West Sussex County Council | £1,684 |
| 18 | Hertfordshire County Council | £1,702 |
| 19 | Kent County Council | £1,714 |
| 20 | Hampshire County Council | £1,805 |
| 21 | Lancashire County Council | £1,940 |
Chief executive salary, from each council’s published pay policy
Unitary, metropolitan, and London boroughs · 104 councils
Two-tier lower (shares services with a county council) · 155 councils
Two-tier upper (shares services with district councils) · 11 councils
| # | Council | Value |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cambridgeshire County Council | £192,850 |
| 2 | Suffolk County Council | £192,906 |
| 3 | Worcestershire County Council | £196,633 |
| 4 | Warwickshire County Council | £200,000 |
| 5 | Nottinghamshire County Council | £201,664 |
| 6 | Norfolk County Council | £201,800 |
| 7 | Staffordshire County Council | £202,542 |
| 8 | Lincolnshire County Council | £203,485 |
| 9 | Oxfordshire County Council | £232,875 |
| 10 | Hertfordshire County Council | £251,808 |
| 11 | Hampshire County Council | £252,318 |
Change in the Band D bill from 2025-26 to 2026-27, as a percentage. County councils show 2024-25 to 2025-26.
Unitary, metropolitan, and London boroughs · 132 councils · 2025-26 → 2026-27
Two-tier lower (shares services with a county council) · 164 councils · 2025-26 → 2026-27
Two-tier upper (shares services with district councils) · 21 councils · 2024-25 → 2025-26
| # | Council | Value |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lincolnshire County Council | +3.0% |
| 2 | Essex County Council | +3.7% |
| 3 | Nottinghamshire County Council | +4.9% |
| 4 | Oxfordshire County Council | +4.9% |
| 5 | Surrey County Council | +4.9% |
| 6 | Devon County Council | +5.0% |
| 7 | Derbyshire County Council | +5.0% |
| 8 | Suffolk County Council | +5.0% |
| 9 | Kent County Council | +5.0% |
| 10 | Hertfordshire County Council | +5.0% |
| 11 | Staffordshire County Council | +5.0% |
| 12 | Leicestershire County Council | +5.0% |
| 13 | Cambridgeshire County Council | +5.0% |
| 14 | Gloucestershire County Council | +5.0% |
| 15 | Worcestershire County Council | +5.0% |
| 16 | East Sussex County Council | +5.0% |
| 17 | Warwickshire County Council | +5.0% |
| 18 | West Sussex County Council | +5.0% |
| 19 | Lancashire County Council | +5.0% |
| 20 | Hampshire County Council | +5.0% |
| 21 | Norfolk County Council | +5.0% |
Councils are ranked inside groups of councils that do the same jobs. All-in-one councils (unitary, metropolitan, London boroughs) run all services, so they are ranked together. District and county councils are ranked on their own, because they share services between them.
The total service budget divided by the number of people the council looks after. This evens things out for council size, so you can fairly compare a large city council with a smaller rural one.