Your area · Compare
City of Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Better on
4measures
Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire
Better on
14measures
Aberdeenshire comes out better on 14 of the 18 measures where better or worse is clear, like crime and life expectancy. Prices, rents and council tax are not scored, because cheaper is not better for everyone.
The headline from each part of life. Tap one to see the detail.
Pay, council tax and what a home costs.
Aberdeenshire better on 1 of 1
The middle weekly pay of full time employees who live here, before tax. It leaves out the self employed and some small samples.
Edinburgh
£820
7th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
£825
6th highest of 32
About the same in both
Scotland £776
2025 · ONS, via Nomis
The yearly council tax bill for a Band D home, not counting water and sewerage.
Edinburgh
£1,626
23rd highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
£1,686
14th highest of 32
Council tax is higher in AberdeenshireSmall gap
2026-27 · Scottish Government
The average price paid for a home.
Edinburgh
£301,313
2nd highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
£200,965
12th highest of 32
Homes cost more in EdinburghBig gap
Scotland £198,397
August 2026 · HM Land Registry and Registers of Scotland, with the Office for National Statistics
How much the average price has moved in the last 12 months.
Edinburgh
+2.8%
18th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
-2.0%
28th highest of 32
Prices are rising faster in EdinburghSmall gap
Scotland +2.9%
August 2026 · HM Land Registry and Registers of Scotland, with the Office for National Statistics
The average monthly rent for a private let. ONS publishes some areas together, so neighbouring councils can share a figure.
Edinburgh
£1,411
a month
Shared with the Lothian rental area
Aberdeenshire
£844
a month
Shared with the Aberdeen and Shire rental area
Rent is higher in EdinburghBig gap
Scotland £1,011 a month
September 2026 · Office for National Statistics
How much the average private rent has moved in the last 12 months.
Edinburgh
+1.0%
Shared with the Lothian rental area
Aberdeenshire
-1.2%
Shared with the Aberdeen and Shire rental area
Rents are rising faster in EdinburghSmall gap
Scotland +0.7%
September 2026 · Office for National Statistics
How many people are out of work, and how many jobs there are.
Aberdeenshire better on 2 of 2
People who want a job and are looking, as a share of everyone working or looking.
Edinburgh
3.6%
14th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
2.8%
29th highest of 32
More people out of work in EdinburghSmall gap
Scotland 4.0%
Small areas have wide margins of error, so a gap under a point or two may not be real.July 2025 to June 2026 · ONS model based estimates of unemployment, via Nomis
Adults aged 16 to 64 claiming benefits mainly because they are out of work.
Edinburgh
2.5%
18th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
1.9%
28th highest of 32
More people on out of work benefits in EdinburghSmall gap
Scotland 2.9%
January 2026 · ONS, via Nomis
Jobs based in the area for every resident aged 16 to 64. Below 1 means fewer jobs than working age people.
Edinburgh
Not published
Aberdeenshire
Not published
Not published for both areas
Scotland 0.83
2024 · ONS, via Nomis
Children growing up without enough, and the poorest neighbourhoods.
Aberdeenshire better on 2 of 2
Children living in poverty once rent or mortgage costs are paid.
Edinburgh
22.8%
14th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
15.0%
29th highest of 32
More children in poverty in EdinburghClear gap
Scotland 23.3%
Share of the area's neighbourhoods in Scotland's most deprived 20%.
Edinburgh
11.9%
16th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
2.6%
29th highest of 32
More deprived neighbourhoods in EdinburghClear gap
Scotland 20.0%
SIMD 2020 (version 2) · Scottish Government
Crimes recorded by the police, for every 10,000 people.
Aberdeenshire better on 3 of 3
All crimes recorded by the police, for every 10,000 people.
Edinburgh
744
per 10,000
3rd highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
294
per 10,000
27th highest of 32
More crime in EdinburghBig gap
Scotland 569 per 10,000
2025-26 · Scottish Government
Non sexual crimes of violence, for every 10,000 people. Most of it is common assault.
Edinburgh
140
per 10,000
10th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
86
per 10,000
27th highest of 32
More violent crime in EdinburghClear gap
Scotland 136 per 10,000
2025-26 · Scottish Government
Break ins to homes and other buildings, including attempts, for every 10,000 people.
Edinburgh
22
per 10,000
Highest of 32 areas
Aberdeenshire
5
per 10,000
30th highest of 32
More break ins in EdinburghBig gap
Scotland 13 per 10,000
2025-26 · Scottish Government
How long people live, and deaths from drugs.
Aberdeenshire better on 3 of 3
How long a baby boy born here can expect to live, at today's death rates.
Edinburgh
78.3
years
10th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
79.5
years
3rd highest of 32
Men live longer in AberdeenshireSmall gap
Scotland 77.2 years
2022 to 2024 · National Records of Scotland
How long a baby girl born here can expect to live, at today's death rates.
Edinburgh
82.2
years
9th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
82.9
years
4th highest of 32
Women live longer in AberdeenshireSmall gap
Scotland 81.1 years
2022 to 2024 · National Records of Scotland
Drug misuse deaths each year for every 100,000 people, averaged over five years.
Edinburgh
21
per 100,000
14th highest of 31
Aberdeenshire
12
per 100,000
29th highest of 31
More drug deaths in EdinburghClear gap
Scotland 22 per 100,000
2021 to 2025 · National Records of Scotland
How school leavers do.
Edinburgh better on 2 of 2
School leavers with at least one Higher or better.
Edinburgh
67.3%
3rd highest of 31
Aberdeenshire
56.2%
16th highest of 31
More leavers get a Higher in EdinburghClear gap
Scotland 58.4%
2024/25 school leavers · Scottish Government
School leavers going on to a job, college, university or training.
Edinburgh
96.7%
9th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
94.7%
23rd highest of 32
More leavers go on to work or study in EdinburghClear gap
Scotland 95.7%
2024/25 school leavers · Scottish Government
How the council itself performs, from the official benchmarking figures.
Aberdeenshire better on 3 of 5
The share of the council's A class roads flagged for repair.
Edinburgh
25.4%
19th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
22.5%
23rd highest of 32
More main roads need repair in EdinburghSmall gap
Scotland 30.3%
2025/26 · Improvement Service
What the council spends collecting bins, per property, each year.
Edinburgh
£86
6th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
£86
7th highest of 32
About the same in both
Scotland £77
2024/25 · Improvement Service
How much of the year's council tax came in on time.
Edinburgh
96.3%
13th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
96.2%
15th highest of 32
About the same in both
Scotland 95.5%
2024/25 · Improvement Service
What the council spends on each primary pupil in a year.
Edinburgh
£6,859
31st highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
£7,132
28th highest of 32
About the same in both
Scotland £7,606
2024/25 · Improvement Service
Average days lost to sickness per council worker, not counting teachers.
Edinburgh
16.0
8th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
11.3
31st highest of 32
Council staff take more sick days in EdinburghBig gap
Scotland 14.5
2024/25 · Improvement Service
The share of household waste that gets recycled.
Edinburgh
37.5%
28th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
44.7%
18th highest of 32
More waste is recycled in AberdeenshireSmall gap
Scotland 44.3%
2024/25 · Improvement Service
The share of adults happy with how clean the streets are.
Edinburgh
62.7%
15th highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
60.7%
18th highest of 32
About the same in both
Scotland 57.0%
2024/25 · Improvement Service
How many people live there, and how old they are.
Everyone living in the area.
Edinburgh
531,370
2nd highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
264,640
6th highest of 32
More people live in EdinburghClear gap
Scotland 5,545,500
Mid-2025 (30 June 2025) · National Records of Scotland
Half the people here are older than this, half younger.
Edinburgh
37.4
years
31st highest of 32
Aberdeenshire
46.3
years
14th highest of 32
People are older in AberdeenshireBig gap
Scotland 43.1 years
Mid-2025 (30 June 2025) · National Records of Scotland
On each line, the coloured dots show where the two areas sit between the lowest and highest of Scotland's 32 council areas, and the grey diamond is Scotland as a whole. Every figure is the latest published, with its source under the card.
More on each area: Edinburgh and Aberdeenshire.
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