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Living in Folkestone

Folkestone is a city in the United Kingdom. Folkestone numbered 51,995 residents at the end of 2021. For Folkestone, the regional median gross salary was €3,163 per month at the end of 2024. Folkestone's unemployment stood at 4.5% at the end of 2023.

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

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 Folkestone.Healthcare eligibilityCountry-wide insurance and residence conditions.

Housing and cost

No city-level rent or cost figure is published for Folkestone yet. United Kingdom has country-level context; it is not substituted for this city.

Work and income

Folkestone's employment rate reached 55.7% at the end of 2021. Folkestone's working population was 23,620 at the end of 2021.

Unemployment across cities in United KingdomUnemployment in Folkestone is 4.5%. Of 384 cities with data, 230 have unemployment of 2 to under 4%.
unemployment rate, % · measured cities in United Kingdom per band9 cities: 0% to under 2%90–2230 cities: 2% to under 4%2302–4107 cities: 4% to under 6%1074–6Folkestone 4.5%30 cities: 6% to under 8%306–84 cities: 8% to under 10%48–103 cities: 10% to under 12%310–121 city: 16% to under 18%116–18

Unemployment rate (%)

MetricValuePeriodSource
Employment rate55.7 %31 Dec 2021Office for National Statistics3Official
Median gross salary (regional)3,163 EUR/month31 Dec 2024Office for National Statistics (ONS)5Official · regional context
Unemployment rate4.5 %31 Dec 2023Office for National Statistics (ONS)6Official · regional context

Public employment service

No exact public employment office is currently linked to Folkestone. 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 Folkestone. Sources checked through 10 Aug 2026.

Family and education

MetricValuePeriodSource
Primary School Count19 count3 Aug 2026Department for Education (GIAS)1Official
School Count29 count3 Aug 2026Department for Education (GIAS)1Official

Mobility and administration

Folkestone's nearest airport was SEN, 64 km away and offered 14 direct destinations.

MetricValuePeriodSource
Airport Direct Destinations Count14 count3 Aug 2026OpenFlights9Official
Nearest Major Airport Distance Km64 km3 Aug 2026OurAirports10Official
Nearest Major Airport IataSEN3 Aug 2026OurAirports10Official

Climate and air quality

Monthly mean temperatures were 6.4°C in January and 17°C in July.

Air quality vs health guidelinesAnnual means against WHO 2021 guidelines and EU legal limits
Folkestone annual air pollutant levels against WHO 2021 guidelines and EU legal limitsCity valueWHO guidelineEU limit5256.5PM2.5µg/m³

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 Folkestone is 6.5 µg/m³. Of 104 cities with data, 52 have annual PM2.5 of 6 to under 7 µg/m³.
annual PM2.5, µg/m³ · measured cities in United Kingdom per band1 city: 4 µg/m³ to under 5 µg/m³14–522 cities: 5 µg/m³ to under 6 µg/m³225–652 cities: 6 µg/m³ to under 7 µg/m³526–7Folkestone 6.527 cities: 7 µg/m³ to under 8 µg/m³277–82 cities: 8 µg/m³ to under 9 µg/m³28–9

Annual PM2.5 (µg/m³)

MetricValuePeriodSource
PM2.5 — annual mean6.51 µg/m³31 Dec 2024uk-air.defra.gov.uk11Official source, approximated value · Supplemental context
Climate Monthly Extreme High CJan 13.17 · Feb 12.87 · Mar 14.62 · Apr 19.14 · May 21.07 · Jun 25.08 · Jul 27.68 · Aug 27.85 · Sep 23.21 · Oct 21.77 · Nov 17.13 · Dec 14.17 °C31 Dec 2001NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center2Official · coordinate grid
Climate Monthly Extreme Low CJan -1.74 · Feb -2.24 · Mar -2.89 · Apr 1.64 · May 5.79 · Jun 8.32 · Jul 12.05 · Aug 11.76 · Sep 9.56 · Oct 6.02 · Nov 1.79 · Dec -0.85 °C31 Dec 2001NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center2Official · coordinate grid
Average temperature by monthJan 6.37 · Feb 5.94 · Mar 6.97 · Apr 9.2 · May 11.97 · Jun 14.79 · Jul 17.04 · Aug 17.61 · Sep 16.13 · Oct 13.61 · Nov 10.18 · Dec 7.5 °C31 Dec 2001NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center2Official · coordinate grid

Cities of a similar size in United Kingdom

Closest published populations, for a like-for-like comparison.

All United Kingdom cities
Torquay52,035 residentsBanbury52,045 residentsKingswinford51,910 residentsBloxwich51,875 residentsWelwyn Garden City51,505 residentsLancaster52,655 residents

Population and city profile

The median age was 41 years at the end of 2021.

MetricValuePeriodSource
Population51,995 people31 Dec 2021Office for National Statistics4Official

International community in Folkestone

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 groupPeopleShare
Europe: United Kingdom44,10084.8%
Non-EU countries (including British Overseas)4,9609.5%
Europe: EU countries2,9355.6%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source8

Is Folkestone 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 worker41%strong on work, weak on safety · range 30–52%
Skilled employee56%strong on work, weak on safety · range 46–66%
Student55%strong on education, weak on safety · range 45–65%
Family61%strong on family, weak on safety · range 50–72%
Retirement51%strong on air quality, weak on admin · range 37–65%
Population51,995 people31 Dec 2021Official source · Office for National Statistics
Employment rate55.7 %31 Dec 2021Official source · Office for National Statistics
Median gross salary (regional)3,163 EUR/month31 Dec 2024Official source · Office for National Statistics (ONS)
Unemployment rate4.5 %31 Dec 2023Official source · Office for National Statistics (ONS)
PM2.5 — annual mean6.51 µg/m³31 Dec 2024Official source · uk-air.defra.gov.uk
Median age41 years31 Dec 2021Official source · Office for National Statistics
Every value keeps its source, geographic scope and verification date · Last checked 2026-08-26

Additional context

MetricValuePeriodSource
G07 Bachelors Or Higher Share Pct27.7 %31 Dec 2021Office for National Statistics3Official
G09 Total Workers 16plus23,620 workers31 Dec 2021Office for National Statistics3Official
Median age41 years31 Dec 2021Office for National Statistics3Official
Universities0 count3 Aug 2026Office for Students7Official

Yes — migrants can receive medical care in Folkestone 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.

Common questions

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

What is the typical salary around Folkestone?

The median gross salary is 3,163 EUR/month. Source: Office for National Statistics (ONS).

What is the unemployment rate in Folkestone?

The unemployment rate is 4.5 %. Source: Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Is the air quality good in Folkestone?

The annual PM2.5 mean is 6.51 µg/m³. The WHO 2021 guideline is 5 µg/m³ and the EU limit value is 25 µg/m³, so this reading is above the WHO guideline but within the EU limit. This is a supplemental estimate, not an official municipal measurement. Source: uk-air.defra.gov.uk.

How many people live in Folkestone?

The published population is 51,995 people. Source: Office for National Statistics.

Is Folkestone a good place to live?

Folkestone 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: EU countries live in Folkestone?

The official country of birth distribution records 2,935 people (5.6%) 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, September 12). Folkestone, United Kingdom: salary, jobs [ImmigrationDB compilation; snapshot approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; version approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/cities/uk/folkestone/ Retrieved 2026-09-12. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
BibTeX citation
@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_folkestone-united-kingdom-salary-jobs_5fb6f62d697e,
  author = {ImmigrationDB},
  title = {Folkestone, United Kingdom: salary, jobs},
  publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
  year = {2026},
  date = {2026-09-12},
  version = {approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0},
  snapshot = {approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0},
  url = {https://immigrationdb.com/cities/uk/folkestone/},
  note = {Retrieved 2026-09-12. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}
Markdown citation
[Folkestone, United Kingdom: salary, jobs](https://immigrationdb.com/cities/uk/folkestone/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; snapshot approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; version approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; retrieved 2026-09-12; built 2026-09-12.

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
  1. Department for Education (GIAS) get-information-schools.service.gov.uk · checked 2026-08-03
  2. NASA POWER / NASA Langley Research Center power.larc.nasa.gov · checked 2026-08-05
  3. Office for National Statistics ons.gov.uk · checked 2026-08-07
  4. Office for National Statistics ons.gov.uk · checked 2026-08-04
  5. Office for National Statistics (ONS) ons.gov.uk · checked 2026-08-06
  6. Office for National Statistics (ONS) ons.gov.uk · checked 2026-08-06
  7. Office for Students officeforstudents.org.uk · checked 2026-08-03
  8. ONS Census 2021 BUA row and ONS/OS BUA 2022 geometry for Abbots Langley and Kings Langley ons.gov.uk · checked 2026-07-06
  9. OpenFlights raw.githubusercontent.com · checked 2026-08-03
  10. OurAirports davidmegginson.github.io · checked 2026-08-03
Show 1 more source
  1. uk-air.defra.gov.uk uk-air.defra.gov.uk · checked 2026-08-26

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.