Your area · Compare
South Lanarkshire
South Lanarkshire
Better on
10measures
Dumfries and Galloway
Dumfries and Galloway
Better on
9measures
South Lanarkshire comes out better on 10 of the 19 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.
South Lanarkshire 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.
South Lanarkshire
£798
8th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
£723
29th highest of 32
Pay is higher in South LanarkshireClear gap
Scotland £776
2025 · ONS, via Nomis
The yearly council tax bill for a Band D home, not counting water and sewerage.
South Lanarkshire
£1,468
Lowest of 32 areas
Dumfries and Galloway
£1,579
27th highest of 32
Council tax is higher in Dumfries and GallowayClear gap
2026-27 · Scottish Government
The average price paid for a home.
South Lanarkshire
£186,196
16th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
£171,854
22nd highest of 32
Homes cost more in South LanarkshireSmall 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.
South Lanarkshire
+3.9%
10th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
+3.9%
10th highest of 32
About the same in both
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.
South Lanarkshire
£894
a month
9th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
£556
a month
Lowest of 32 areas
Rent is higher in South LanarkshireClear 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.
South Lanarkshire
+1.3%
12th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
+5.6%
2nd highest of 32
Rents are rising faster in Dumfries and GallowayClear gap
Scotland +0.7%
September 2026 · Office for National Statistics
How many people are out of work, and how many jobs there are.
Level: 1 each
People who want a job and are looking, as a share of everyone working or looking.
South Lanarkshire
4.0%
9th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
3.2%
21st highest of 32
More people out of work in South LanarkshireSmall 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.
South Lanarkshire
2.5%
18th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
2.7%
15th highest of 32
More people on out of work benefits in Dumfries and GallowaySmall 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.
South Lanarkshire
Not published
Dumfries and Galloway
Not published
Not published for both areas
Scotland 0.83
2024 · ONS, via Nomis
Children growing up without enough, and the poorest neighbourhoods.
Level: 1 each
Children living in poverty once rent or mortgage costs are paid.
South Lanarkshire
19.5%
25th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
22.7%
15th highest of 32
More children in poverty in Dumfries and GallowaySmall gap
Scotland 23.3%
Share of the area's neighbourhoods in Scotland's most deprived 20%.
South Lanarkshire
20.4%
10th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
9.5%
20th highest of 32
More deprived neighbourhoods in South LanarkshireClear gap
Scotland 20.0%
SIMD 2020 (version 2) · Scottish Government
Crimes recorded by the police, for every 10,000 people.
South Lanarkshire better on 3 of 3
All crimes recorded by the police, for every 10,000 people.
South Lanarkshire
501
per 10,000
16th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
552
per 10,000
9th highest of 32
More crime in Dumfries and GallowaySmall 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.
South Lanarkshire
123
per 10,000
16th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
145
per 10,000
8th highest of 32
More violent crime in Dumfries and GallowaySmall gap
Scotland 136 per 10,000
2025-26 · Scottish Government
Break ins to homes and other buildings, including attempts, for every 10,000 people.
South Lanarkshire
10
per 10,000
19th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
13
per 10,000
11th highest of 32
More break ins in Dumfries and GallowaySmall gap
Scotland 13 per 10,000
2025-26 · Scottish Government
How long people live, and deaths from drugs.
Dumfries and Galloway better on 3 of 3
How long a baby boy born here can expect to live, at today's death rates.
South Lanarkshire
76.8
years
20th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
77.2
years
19th highest of 32
About the same in both
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.
South Lanarkshire
80.5
years
23rd highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
81.2
years
18th highest of 32
Women live longer in Dumfries and GallowaySmall 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.
South Lanarkshire
24
per 100,000
9th highest of 31
Dumfries and Galloway
23
per 100,000
12th highest of 31
About the same in both
Scotland 22 per 100,000
2021 to 2025 · National Records of Scotland
How school leavers do.
South Lanarkshire better on 2 of 2
School leavers with at least one Higher or better.
South Lanarkshire
61.2%
5th highest of 31
Dumfries and Galloway
52.7%
26th highest of 31
More leavers get a Higher in South LanarkshireClear gap
Scotland 58.4%
2024/25 school leavers · Scottish Government
School leavers going on to a job, college, university or training.
South Lanarkshire
96.6%
11th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
95.9%
15th highest of 32
More leavers go on to work or study in South LanarkshireSmall gap
Scotland 95.7%
2024/25 school leavers · Scottish Government
How the council itself performs, from the official benchmarking figures.
Dumfries and Galloway better on 4 of 6
The share of the council's A class roads flagged for repair.
South Lanarkshire
26.5%
17th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
32.8%
8th highest of 32
More main roads need repair in Dumfries and GallowayClear gap
Scotland 30.3%
2025/26 · Improvement Service
What the council spends collecting bins, per property, each year.
South Lanarkshire
£83
10th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
£70
16th highest of 32
Bin collection costs more in South LanarkshireSmall gap
Scotland £77
2024/25 · Improvement Service
How much of the year's council tax came in on time.
South Lanarkshire
96.4%
12th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
97.5%
3rd highest of 32
More council tax is collected in Dumfries and GallowaySmall gap
Scotland 95.5%
2024/25 · Improvement Service
What the council spends on each primary pupil in a year.
South Lanarkshire
£7,755
16th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
£8,312
7th highest of 32
More is spent on each primary pupil in Dumfries and GallowaySmall gap
Scotland £7,606
2024/25 · Improvement Service
Average days lost to sickness per council worker, not counting teachers.
South Lanarkshire
15.5
11th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
13.7
21st highest of 32
Council staff take more sick days in South LanarkshireClear gap
Scotland 14.5
2024/25 · Improvement Service
The share of household waste that gets recycled.
South Lanarkshire
40.7%
25th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
43.2%
20th highest of 32
More waste is recycled in Dumfries and GallowaySmall gap
Scotland 44.3%
2024/25 · Improvement Service
The share of adults happy with how clean the streets are.
South Lanarkshire
57.3%
19th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
36.0%
Lowest of 32 areas
More people are happy with street cleaning in South LanarkshireBig gap
Scotland 57.0%
2024/25 · Improvement Service
How many people live there, and how old they are.
Everyone living in the area.
South Lanarkshire
334,330
5th highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
145,490
14th highest of 32
More people live in South LanarkshireClear gap
Scotland 5,545,500
Mid-2025 (30 June 2025) · National Records of Scotland
Half the people here are older than this, half younger.
South Lanarkshire
44.2
years
21st highest of 32
Dumfries and Galloway
51.8
years
3rd highest of 32
People are older in Dumfries and GallowayBig 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: South Lanarkshire and Dumfries and Galloway.
Rankings