Living in Blackburn

In Blackburn (North West England), unemployment is 4.8% (2023).

Population density was 4,030.2 people per km² in 2021. Gigabit broadband availability was 95%. The city had 70 schools in 2026. Owner occupation accounted for 60.6% of homes in March 2021. The employment rate was 52.1% in March 2021. In 2025, annual NO₂ was 8.6 µg/m³. The population of Blackburn (Blackburn with Darwen), in the United Kingdom, was 124,955 in March 2021. The city covered 31 km² in December 2022.

Last checked 2026-09-2424 sources

Population124,955people21 Mar 2021Official source · Census 2021 usual resident population count for the exact Built Up Area (BUA), England excluding London or Wales.

Median gross salary (region)3,113EUR/month31 Dec 2024Official source · Office for National Statistics (ONS)

Average rent834.1EUR/month31 Aug 2026District figureOfficial source · ONS Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics, Table 1, Rental price

Unemployment rate4.8%country median 3.4% — 41% aboveOfficial source · www.ons.gov.uk

Recorded crime8,418incidents per 100,00031 Dec 2025District figureOfficial source · Police force area tables, year ending March 2026 (Table C4 or P3)

PM2.5, annual mean6.05µg/m³country median 6.5 — 7% belowOfficial source · official estimated total annual mean background concentration

Higher unemployment than 81% of United Kingdom cities that publish it, less recorded crime than 74% of United Kingdom cities that publish it and cleaner air than 73% of United Kingdom cities that publish it.

Which United Kingdom-wide rules apply when you move to Blackburn?

National rules stay on the country page instead of being relabelled as city data.

Visa and entry rulesPassport-specific entry and national residence context.BenefitsCountry-wide eligibility and official application routes.Taxes in United KingdomNational rates and thresholds that apply in Blackburn.Healthcare eligibilityCountry-wide insurance and residence conditions.

Housing and cost

No city-level rent figure is published for Blackburn. The available city-level cost figures remain below.

What recurs every month6 published recurring costs, € per month

€ / month

Private kindergarten€935

Utilities, 85 m² flat€298

Transport pass€65

Fitness club€45

Internet, 60 Mbps€26

Mobile plan, 10 GB€15

Supplemental estimate lane; these items are not official statistics.

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Fitness club membership, monthly	44.79 EUR/month	31 Jul 2026	Numbeo - Cost of Living in Blackburn (Blackburn with Darwen) (Wayback Machine capture 20260316234539)²³Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Internet, 60 Mbps unlimited	25.71 EUR/month	31 Jul 2026	Numbeo - Cost of Living in Blackburn (Blackburn with Darwen) (Wayback Machine capture 20260316234539)²³Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Private kindergarten, monthly	934.9 EUR/month	31 Jul 2026	Numbeo - Cost of Living in Blackburn (Blackburn with Darwen) (Wayback Machine capture 20260316234539)²³Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Mobile plan, 10 GB	14.9 EUR/month	31 Jul 2026	Numbeo - Cost of Living in Blackburn (Blackburn with Darwen) (Wayback Machine capture 20260316234539)²³Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Monthly transport pass	64.56 EUR/month	31 Jul 2026	Numbeo - Cost of Living in Blackburn (Blackburn with Darwen) (Wayback Machine capture 20260316234539)²³Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Basic utilities, 85 m² home	298.3 EUR/month	31 Jul 2026	Numbeo - Cost of Living in Blackburn (Blackburn with Darwen) (Wayback Machine capture 20260316234539)²³Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Dwellings	45,390 count	21 Mar 2021	ONS Census 2021 BUA row and ONS/OS BUA 2022 geometry for Abbots Langley and Kings Langley⁵Official source, approximated value · Supplemental context · built-up-area figure
Average monthly rent (whole dwelling)	834.1 EUR/month	31 Aug 2026	ONS Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics, Table 1, Rental price¹⁸Official · county

Is Blackburn a good place to live?

There is no universal answer. The profile scores below show who the available published evidence may suit; they are a decision aid, not a personal recommendation.

Try your profile

Remote worker59%strong on work, weak on safety · range 50–68%

Skilled employee65%strong on work, weak on safety · range 57–73%

Student51%strong on education, weak on work · range 42–60%

Family66%strong on family, weak on cost · range 57–75%

Retirement61%strong on air quality, weak on admin · range 50–72%

Work and income

What is the unemployment rate in Blackburn?

The unemployment rate is 4.8 % (January 2023). Source: www.ons.gov.uk²²

Unemployment across cities in United KingdomUnemployment in Blackburn is 4.8%. Of 999 cities with data, 652 have unemployment of 2 to under 4%.

652

263

0–22–44–66–88–1010–1216–18

Blackburn 4.8%

Unemployment rate (%)

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Gigabit broadband availability	95.01 %	Not stated	www.ofcom.org.uk²⁴Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Employment rate	52.09 %	21 Mar 2021	ONS Census 2021 towns and cities dataset Figure 9 individual BUA employment row for Abbots Langley and Kings Langley¹⁷Official source, approximated value · Supplemental context · built-up-area figure
Superfast broadband availability	99.32 %	Not stated	www.ofcom.org.uk²⁴Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Median gross salary (regional)	3,113 EUR/month	31 Dec 2024	Office for National Statistics (ONS)¹¹Official · regional context
Unemployment rate	4.8 %country median 3.4%	31 Dec 2023	www.ons.gov.uk²²Official

What does a salary buy in Blackburn?

Take-home pay after tax, minus rent and the everyday bills this city publishes. Each line names its source.

Left over each month€1,344of €2,582 take-home

Rent
Utilities
Transport
Internet
Mobile
Left over

Line-by-line breakdown and sources

Each month	€
Take-home payOECD Taxing Wages 2025, single, no children. Includes central and local income tax and employee social contributions; euro amounts at the ECB average for 2026-08.	€2,582
Rentaverage rent of a whole dwelling · official · ONS Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics, Table 1, Rental price · 2026-08-31	− €834
Public transport pass€65 · market price · Numbeo - Cost of Living in Blackburn (Blackburn with Darwen) (Wayback Machine capture 20260316234539) · 2026-07-31	− €65
Utilities, 85 m²€298 · market price · Numbeo - Cost of Living in Blackburn (Blackburn with Darwen) (Wayback Machine capture 20260316234539) · 2026-07-31	− €298
Internet€26 · market price · Numbeo - Cost of Living in Blackburn (Blackburn with Darwen) (Wayback Machine capture 20260316234539) · 2026-07-31	− €26
Mobile plan€15 · market price · Numbeo - Cost of Living in Blackburn (Blackburn with Darwen) (Wayback Machine capture 20260316234539) · 2026-07-31	− €15
Left over	€1,344

Take-home pay for other salaries and households Compare with another city Check a job offer in Blackburn Salary needed to live in Blackburn

Public employment service

No exact public employment office is currently linked to Blackburn. The verified national service may still offer online registration, job search or an official office finder.

Country-level information

Jobcentre Plus — Public employment service

Department for Work and Pensions

Job SearchUnemployment Claim

Open official service

Open the United Kingdom service overview

Country-level service information is not treated as proof of a physical office in Blackburn. Sources checked through 10 Aug 2026.

Family and education

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Schools	70 count	7 Jul 2026	DfE Get Information About Schools all establishments extract³Official source, approximated value · Supplemental context · built-up-area figure
Primary schools	54 count	3 Aug 2026	Department for Education (GIAS)²Official
Schools	79 count	3 Aug 2026	Department for Education (GIAS)²Official

School for children who move here. School is compulsory from age 5 to 16, and public school is free.

A country-wide rule for United Kingdom; Blackburn's school authority applies it locally.

Sources: legislation.gov.uk · 1996–2026.

Healthcare

Metric	Value	Period	Source
GP practices	46 count	30 Sept 2026	ODS GP Practices report (epraccur)⁸Official
Pharmacies	41 count	30 Sept 2026	ODS Pharmacy/Dispensaries report (edispensary)⁹Official

Yes — migrants can receive medical care in Blackburn under the national coverage rules.

Healthcare access follows the country-wide insurance rules; local capacity facts remain city data and are not used as proof of eligibility.

Open the official coverage guide

Country rule verified 2026-08-03.

Safety

How safe is Blackburn?

Police recorded about 8,418 incidents per 100,000 (2025-26). This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source. Source: Police force area tables, year ending March 2026 (Table C4 or P3)²¹

Recorded crime across major citiesBlackburn highlighted among comparable cities

recorded incidents per 100k residents

Manchester14,267

Bristol13,099

Liverpool12,409

Leeds11,462

Birmingham11,416

Leicester11,001

Sheffield9,693

Cardiff9,379

Belfast9,156

Coventry8,836

Glasgow757

Edinburgh549

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents	8,418 incidents per 100,000	31 Dec 2025	Police force area tables, year ending March 2026 (Table C4 or P3)²¹Official · county
Violent crime per 100,000 residents	4,206 per 100,000	Apr 2026	data.police.uk all-crime polygon replay, filtered to Burglary¹Official source, approximated value · Supplemental context · built-up-area figure
Burglary per 100,000 residents	265.7 per 100,000	30 Apr 2026	data.police.uk all-crime polygon replay, filtered to Burglary¹Official source, approximated value · Supplemental context · built-up-area figure

Mobility and administration

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Direct destinations from the nearest major airport	146 count	3 Aug 2026	OpenFlights¹⁹Official
Distance to the nearest major airport	47 km	3 Aug 2026	OurAirports²⁰Official
Nearest major airport (IATA code)	MAN	3 Aug 2026	OurAirports²⁰Official

Climate and air quality

Annual PM2.5 was 6.05 µg/m³ in 2025. Annual PM10 was 10.1 µg/m³ in 2025.

Is the air quality good in Blackburn?

The annual PM2.5 mean is about 6 µg/m³ (2025) — above the WHO 2021 guideline of 5 µg/m³ but within the EU limit of 25 µg/m³.

Annual mean at the measuring site(s) serving the city; current-day readings differ.

PM2.5 — annual mean: 6.05 µg/m³ · official estimated total annual mean background concentration¹⁵

Air quality vs health guidelinesAnnual means against WHO 2021 guidelines and EU legal limits

Within WHO 2021 guidelineAbove WHO, within EU limitAbove EU legal limitCity annual mean · µg/m³

PM2.56WHO 5 · EU 25

PM1010.1WHO 15 · EU 40

NO₂8.6WHO 10 · EU 40

City values from the published air-quality observations. WHO 2021 guidelines and EU limit values are published constants.

PM2.5 across cities in United KingdomAnnual PM2.5 in Blackburn is 6.1 µg/m³. Of 941 cities with data, 487 have annual PM2.5 of 6 to under 7 µg/m³.

211

487

200

3–44–55–66–77–88–99–1013–14

Blackburn 6.1

Annual PM2.5 (µg/m³)

Metric	Value	Period	Source
NO₂ — annual mean	8.6 µg/m³country median 7.2	2025	official estimated total annual mean background concentration¹³Official
NO₂ — latest reading	5.08 µg/m³	14 Jul 2026	official hourly station observations exist only where a source station has an exact target relation¹⁶Official
PM10 — annual mean	10.14 µg/m³country median 11.3	2025	official estimated total annual mean background concentration¹⁴Official
PM2.5 — annual mean	6.05 µg/m³country median 6.5	2025	official estimated total annual mean background concentration¹⁵Official
Monthly extreme high temperature	Jan 11.69 · Feb 14.68 · Mar 17.4 · Apr 20.94 · May 24.37 · Jun 25.59 · Jul 27.45 · Aug 26.7 · Sep 23.24 · Oct 21.94 · Nov 15.73 · Dec 12.56 °C	31 Dec 2001	NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center⁶Official · coordinate grid
Monthly extreme low temperature	Jan -5.79 · Feb -6.56 · Mar -6.38 · Apr -2.96 · May -1.32 · Jun 3.13 · Jul 6.37 · Aug 5.07 · Sep 2.59 · Oct -1.43 · Nov -4.07 · Dec -7.75 °C	31 Dec 2001	NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center⁶Official · coordinate grid
Average temperature by month	Jan 3.35 · Feb 3.3 · Mar 4.69 · Apr 7.26 · May 10.34 · Jun 13.34 · Jul 14.93 · Aug 14.63 · Sep 12.55 · Oct 9.57 · Nov 6.25 · Dec 4.02 °C	31 Dec 2001	NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center⁶Official · coordinate grid

Population and city profile

How many people live in Blackburn?

The published population was 124,955 people in March 2021. Source: Census 2021 usual resident population count for the exact Built Up Area (BUA), England excluding London or Wales.⁵

Who lives hereResidents by nationality, % of population

By nationality

National passport79%
Foreign residents21%

Calculated from the population and foreign-resident facts on this page.

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Area	31.01 km²	Dec 2022	ONS Census 2021 BUA row and ONS/OS BUA 2022 geometry for Abbots Langley and Kings Langley⁵Official source, approximated value · Supplemental context · built-up-area figure
City area	31.01 km²	Dec 2022	Exact 2022 Built Up Area polygon area for BUA22CD in EPSG:27700, converted from square metres to km2.⁴Official
Foreign-resident share	21.04 %	21 Mar 2021	Exact BUA non-UK-born population derived as the sum of the published Europe: EU countries and Non-EU countries (including British Overseas) counts.⁵Official
Foreign residents	26,290 people	21 Mar 2021	Exact BUA non-UK-born population derived as the sum of the published Europe: EU countries and Non-EU countries (including British Overseas) counts.⁵Official
GP practices per 10,000 residents	1.44 per 10,000 people	7 Jul 2026	NHS ODS GP Practices report + ONSPD Live postcode coordinates⁷Official source, approximated value · Supplemental context · built-up-area figure
Schools per 10,000 residents	5.6 per 10,000 people	7 Jul 2026	DfE Get Information About Schools all establishments extract³Official source, approximated value · Supplemental context · built-up-area figure
Population density	4,030 people/km²	21 Mar 2021	www.ons.gov.uk⁵Official · built-up-area figure
Population	124,955 people	21 Mar 2021	Census 2021 usual resident population count for the exact Built Up Area (BUA), England excluding London or Wales.⁵Official

International community in Blackburn

Named groups from exact city-grain official distributions. Citizenship, birthplace, language and ancestry answer different questions and stay separate.

Country of birth

Usual residents living in the individual ONS Built-up Area on Census Day 21 March 2021 · 2021 Census

Published group	People	Share
Europe: United Kingdom	98,660	79.0%
Non-EU countries (including British Overseas)	20,835	16.7%
Europe: EU countries	5,455	4.4%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source⁵

Additional context

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Owner-occupied homes	60.58 %	21 Mar 2021	ONS Census 2021 BUA row and ONS/OS BUA 2022 geometry for Abbots Langley and Kings Langley⁵Official source, approximated value · Supplemental context · built-up-area figure
Residents born abroad	21 %	21 Mar 2021	ONS Census 2021 BUA row and ONS/OS BUA 2022 geometry for Abbots Langley and Kings Langley⁵Official source, approximated value · Supplemental context · built-up-area figure
Residents with a bachelor's degree or higher	26.4 %	31 Dec 2021	Office for National Statistics¹⁰Official
Workers aged 16 and over	49,565 workers	31 Dec 2021	Office for National Statistics¹⁰Official
Median age	35 years	21 Mar 2021	ONS Census 2021 BUA row and ONS/OS BUA 2022 geometry for Abbots Langley and Kings Langley⁵Official source, approximated value · Supplemental context · built-up-area figure
Universities	0 count	3 Aug 2026	Office for Students¹²Official

Alternatives for people set on Blackburn

Three places for the three reasons people leave a city on the shortlist: stay in the region, stay in the country, or keep the budget and change the country. A percentage appears only where both cities publish that metric from the same source, period and grain. Distances are straight lines — travel times are not collected yet.

Watford as a Blackburn alternative in the same country

Better on 2 of 3 metrics measured the same way, worse on 1. Recorded crime, per 100k cannot be compared like for like.

Foreign residents: 31.8% Watford vs 21.0% Blackburn+51%
Annual PM2.5: 7.9 µg/m³ Watford vs 6.0 µg/m³ Blackburn+31%
Recorded crime, per 100k: 8,672 (2026) Watford vs 8,418 (2025) Blackburnno percentage
Median gross pay, region: €3,422 Watford vs €3,113 Blackburn+10%

Full comparison More about Watford

Alternative cities in United Kingdom

Other cities in United Kingdom to compare with Blackburn, nearest in population first.

All United Kingdom cities

Exeter126,175 residents Crawley120,550 residents Colchester130,245 residents Newport130,890 residents Watford131,325 residents Gloucester118,555 residents

How does Blackburn compare?

Pick a city. The answer appears here and the address bar keeps it, so the comparison can be shared; the page stays Blackburn's.

Open the full comparison

Blackburn in rankings

#13 of 21 in Most international cities in United Kingdom #15 of 30 in Cities with cleanest air in United Kingdom

Put Blackburn's key facts on your site — a card with this page's figures and a link back, free under CC BY 4.0.

Common questions

Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.

How many people live in Blackburn?

The published population was 124,955 people in March 2021. Source: Census 2021 usual resident population count for the exact Built Up Area (BUA), England excluding London or Wales..

Is the air quality good in Blackburn?

The annual PM2.5 mean is about 6 µg/m³ (2025) — above the WHO 2021 guideline of 5 µg/m³ but within the EU limit of 25 µg/m³. Source: official estimated total annual mean background concentration.

How safe is Blackburn?

What is the unemployment rate in Blackburn?

The unemployment rate is 4.8 % (January 2023). Source: www.ons.gov.uk.

What is the typical salary around Blackburn?

The median gross salary is 3,113 EUR/month. Source: Office for National Statistics (ONS).

How many foreign residents live in Blackburn?

26,290 residents hold a foreign nationality. Source: Exact BUA non-UK-born population derived as the sum of the published Europe: EU countries and Non-EU countries (including British Overseas) counts..

Is Blackburn a good place to live?

Blackburn may suit different people for different reasons. The page's profile scores compare published cost, work, housing, safety, healthcare and other available factors; they are a decision aid, not a universal recommendation.

How many people born in Europe: United Kingdom live in Blackburn?

The official country of birth distribution records 98,660 people (79.0%) in the source-defined population for 2021 Census. This is a country of birth measure, not a general estimate of ethnicity or migration status.

Cite this page

Open a format to select or copy this ImmigrationDB compilation citation. The native disclosure and text fallback work without JavaScript.

APA citation

ImmigrationDB. (2026, October 16). Blackburn (North West England), United Kingdom: population [ImmigrationDB compilation; version a6d34ab6a4412639c2e0222c2f1784ac]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/cities/uk/blackburn-eng-a8/ Retrieved 2026-10-16. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

BibTeX citation

@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_blackburn-north-west-england-united-kingdom-population_d21a43ced002,
  author = {ImmigrationDB},
  title = {Blackburn (North West England), United Kingdom: population},
  publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
  year = {2026},
  date = {2026-10-16},
  version = {a6d34ab6a4412639c2e0222c2f1784ac},
  url = {https://immigrationdb.com/cities/uk/blackburn-eng-a8/},
  note = {Retrieved 2026-10-16. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}

Markdown citation

[Blackburn (North West England), United Kingdom: population](https://immigrationdb.com/cities/uk/blackburn-eng-a8/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; version a6d34ab6a4412639c2e0222c2f1784ac; retrieved 2026-10-16; built 2026-10-16.

This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.

Sources

JSON Markdown

data.police.uk all-crime polygon replay, filtered to Burglary data.police.uk · checked 2026-07-07
Department for Education (GIAS) get-information-schools.service.gov.uk · checked 2026-08-03
DfE Get Information About Schools all establishments extract get-information-schools.service.gov.uk · checked 2026-07-07
Exact 2022 Built Up Area polygon area for BUA22CD in EPSG:27700, converted from square metres to km2. services1.arcgis.com · checked 2026-07-15
Exact BUA non-UK-born population derived as the sum of the published Europe: EU countries and Non-EU countries (including British Overseas) counts. ons.gov.uk · checked 2021-03-21
NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center power.larc.nasa.gov · checked 2026-08-05
NHS ODS GP Practices report + ONSPD Live postcode coordinates digital.nhs.uk · checked 2026-07-07
ODS GP Practices report (epraccur) odsdatasearchandexport.nhs.uk · checked 2026-09-15
ODS Pharmacy/Dispensaries report (edispensary) odsdatasearchandexport.nhs.uk · checked 2026-09-15
Office for National Statistics ons.gov.uk · checked 2026-08-07

Show 14 more sources

Office for National Statistics (ONS) ons.gov.uk · checked 2026-08-06
Office for Students officeforstudents.org.uk · checked 2026-08-03
official estimated total annual mean background concentration uk-air.defra.gov.uk · checked 2026-07-15
official estimated total annual mean background concentration uk-air.defra.gov.uk · checked 2026-07-15
official estimated total annual mean background concentration uk-air.defra.gov.uk · checked 2026-07-15
official hourly station observations exist only where a source station has an exact target relation uk-air.defra.gov.uk · checked 2026-07-15
ONS Census 2021 towns and cities dataset Figure 9 individual BUA employment row for Abbots Langley and Kings Langley ons.gov.uk · checked 2026-07-05
ONS Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics, Table 1, Rental price ons.gov.uk · checked 2026-09-24
OpenFlights raw.githubusercontent.com · checked 2026-08-03
OurAirports davidmegginson.github.io · checked 2026-08-03
Police force area tables, year ending March 2026 (Table C4 or P3) ons.gov.uk · checked 2026-09-24
www.ons.gov.uk ons.gov.uk · checked 2026-08-26
Numbeo - Cost of Living in Blackburn (Blackburn with Darwen) (Wayback Machine capture 20260316234539) numbeo.com · checked 2026-07-31
www.ofcom.org.uk ofcom.org.uk · checked 2026-07-15

Spotted a number that looks wrong? Every value here carries its source and date — tell us what you found and we will re-check it against the source.