The highest and cheapest council tax in the UK (2026/27)

Data last updated

For 2026/27 the highest Band D council tax in England is £2,765.02 in Dorset; the cheapest in the UK is £1,028.21 in Wandsworth. That is a gap of £1,736.81 a year for homes in the same band. Rankings below cover every UK billing authority, from official data.

The highest council tax in England, 2026/27

Highest area Band D charges in England, 2026/27
RankCouncilRegionBand D
1DorsetSouth West£2,765.02
2LewesSouth East£2,756.17
3City of NottinghamEast Midlands£2,755.39
4RutlandEast Midlands£2,737.58
5WealdenSouth East£2,728.43
6GatesheadNorth East£2,715.81
7BristolSouth West£2,713.68
8West DevonSouth West£2,705.33
9RotherSouth East£2,700.95
10Newark & SherwoodEast Midlands£2,682.10

Area Band D charges including precepts, from the MHCLG 2026/27 council tax levels release. The England average is £2,392.

The cheapest council tax in the UK, 2026/27

Cheapest Band D charges in the UK, 2026/27
RankCouncilRegionBand D
1WandsworthLondon£1,028.21
2WestminsterLondon£1,049.55
3City of LondonLondon£1,329.56
4South LanarkshireScotland£1,468.47
5Shetland IslandsScotland£1,487.90
6Na h-Eileanan SiarScotland£1,505.50
7Hammersmith & FulhamLondon£1,519.51
8North LanarkshireScotland£1,554.56
9FifeScotland£1,573.70
10Dumfries and GallowayScotland£1,578.65

Scottish figures exclude separately billed water and sewerage charges, and Welsh figures use the nine-band 2003 valuation system, so like-for-like comparisons need care.

The highest charges anywhere in the UK, 2026/27

Highest Band D charges in the UK, 2026/27
RankCouncilRegionBand D
1DorsetSouth West£2,765.02
2LewesSouth East£2,756.17
3City of NottinghamEast Midlands£2,755.39
4RutlandEast Midlands£2,737.58
5WealdenSouth East£2,728.43
6GatesheadNorth East£2,715.81
7BristolSouth West£2,713.68
8West DevonSouth West£2,705.33
9RotherSouth East£2,700.95
10Newark & SherwoodEast Midlands£2,682.10

Whatever your council charges, check your band

These rankings are set by councillors and precepting authorities; you cannot challenge the charge. What you can challenge, free of charge, is your band. Every home in England and Scotland is still banded by its 1 April 1991 value (Wales: 1 April 2003), and moving one band down saves roughly a ninth of your council's Band D charge every year, backdated. Of 39,590 challenges resolved by the VOA in the year to March 2024, 10,530 (27%) ended in a lower band and only 30 (0.08%) moved up.

Is your band one too high?

Enter your postcode to compare your band with every similar property near you, using official data. If your band looks too high, we build the evidence pack; submitting the challenge is free.

Check my council tax band

Frequently asked questions

Which council has the highest council tax in England in 2026/27?

Dorset has the highest area Band D council tax in England for 2026/27 at £2,765.02 a year, followed by Lewes at £2,756.17 and City of Nottingham at £2,755.39. Figures include precepts and come from the official MHCLG release.

Where is the cheapest council tax in the UK in 2026/27?

Wandsworth has the cheapest Band D council tax in the UK for 2026/27 at £1,028.21 a year, followed by Westminster at £1,049.55. The cheapest charges cluster in inner London, where boroughs raise more income from other sources.

Why do Scottish charges look lower than English ones?

Scottish figures exclude water and sewerage, which Scottish Water bills through the council tax system separately, typically adding several hundred pounds a year. Scottish bands E to H also use higher multipliers than England since April 2017, so higher-band Scottish homes pay proportionally more than the Band D figure suggests.

Can I pay less council tax without moving?

You cannot change your council's charge, but you can check your band. Moving one band down cuts the bill by roughly a ninth of the Band D charge and refunds are backdated. Of 39,590 challenges resolved in the year to March 2024, 27% ended in a lower band. The official challenge is free.

Sources

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

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