Town

Living in Dumfries: Liveability Score 60/100

Last updated 7 August 2026

Dumfries scores 60/100 overall, across 8 scored categories. Its biggest lead over the typical UK town is healthcare: 76/100 against a national town median of 18/100. The biggest shortfall against other towns is economic health: 47/100 versus a median of 67/100.

That is the highest score of the 4 places in the DG1 postcode district. Against the wider DG1 district average of 54/100, that is 6 points above. Its healthcare score runs 8 points above the DG1 district's 68/100. Wider context for the surrounding area: DG1 postcode district.

60
OUT OF 100
Average
Score for:

Settlement area

The built-up area boundary and the postcodes its score is averaged from, each shaded by its own score. Clustered pins are other settlements. Tap one to view or compare it, or zoom in to reveal more.

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Each postcode is coloured by its own overall score on the default weighting. Scores are filled in as postcodes get searched on the site, so a blue dot just means that postcode hasn't been scored yet.

Dumfries scores 60 but individual postcodes tell the full story

See the exact score for any postcode, side by side with Dumfries.
Or compare:
DG1 1AA DG1 2AA DG1 3AB DG1 4AA DG1 9DQ DG1 DG2

Score breakdown

Safety & Environment

Safety
—

Crime is scored from the last 12 months of police street-level data. Police Scotland does not publish this, and there is no Scottish equivalent of the Police UK open data service, so crime has been left out of the score for this area. This is a gap in published data, not a sign of low crime.

Environment
72
Air Quality NO₂ 3.6 · PM2.5 4.4 · PM10 6.9 µg/m³
83
Green Space 48
Parks Ample 32
Sports Pitches Ample 25
Allotments Adequate 2
Golf Courses Ample 3
Tennis Courts Adequate 4
Bowling Greens Ample 6
Playgrounds Ample 64

Services

Schools
39
Top 10 by Ofsted rating · 15 in area
1Outstanding12Good2Requires Improvement
  • St Michael's SchoolOther · inspected 2014
    Outstanding
  • Calside SchoolOther · inspected 2024
    Good
  • Cargenbridge SchoolOther · inspected 2020
    Good
  • Dumfries AcademySecondary · inspected 2013
    Good
  • Dumfries High SchoolSecondary · inspected 2019
    Good
  • Georgetown SchoolOther · inspected 2009
    Good
  • Langlands SchoolOther · inspected 2023
    Good
  • Laurieknowe SchoolOther · inspected 2024
    Good
  • Loreburn SchoolOther · inspected 2017
    Good
  • Noblehill SchoolOther · inspected 2022
    Good
Healthcare
76
A&E departmentsCumberland Infirmary26.8 mi
Hexham General Hospital58.6 mi
Community Paramedic Service67.2 mi
Hospital waitsNorth Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust16.2 mi
Routine referral (median)12 wks
Treated within 18 weeks64.3%
A&E seen within 4 hrs62.6%
4 GP surgeries in area 5 within 4km
GP capacity1,433 patients per GP

A&E, dentist and pharmacy data, and CQC ratings, are currently available for England only, not Scotland.

Broadband
69
Full fibre (FTTP)53.6%
available across Dumfries and Galloway
Gigabit-capable · incl. cable
87.8%
Ultrafast (300+ Mbps)
87.6%
Superfast (30+ Mbps)
98.5%
Ofcom Connected Nations · 1,045 postcodes · full fibre at local-authority level

Economy & Bills

Economic Health
47
Employment rate56.6%
Below the Great Britain average of 57.3% of residents aged 16+
Economic activity (16+)
Employed56.7%Unemployed2.2%Retired27.1%Student3%Other inactive11%
Occupation mix
Professional & managerial34.4%Skilled & technical31.9%Routine & elementary33.6%
Degree-level (Level 4+) qualifications27.4%
Home ownership62.7%
Around the Scotland average for deprivation
Census 2021/22 (Great Britain) · deprivation: IoD 2025 / SIMD
Bills
72
Council tax Dumfries & Galloway · 2025-26
A £970
B £1,132
C £1,293
D £1,455
E £1,912
F £2,364
G £2,849
H £3,565
Energy South Scotland region
Typical bill regional £1,641/yr
Ofgem price cap, GB average · Apr–Jun 2026
Typical home efficiency local EPC band C
Water Scottish Water
Average bill regional £456/yr
Combined water & sewerage · GB average £520

Transport

Transport
62
Dumfries 0.3 mi
Lockerbie 10.8 mi
Annan 15 mi
J17 A74(M) 10.4 mi
J17 A74(M) 10.6 mi
J18 A74(M) 10.8 mi

Lifestyle

Lifestyle
54
Pubs & Bars Ample 22
Restaurants & Cafes Ample 30
Supermarkets & Convenience Ample 15
Retail Shopping Ample 109
Takeaways Ample 18
Fitness Ample 8

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House Prices

Not published for Scotland

Sold-price data isn't available for Dumfries. HM Land Registry's Price Paid dataset covers England and Wales only. Scottish sales are recorded separately by Registers of Scotland, which we don't yet include. This is a gap in the data we hold, not a sign of an inactive market.

Nearby places

Cargenbridge 51 1.9 mi away ⇄
Heathhall and Locharbriggs 44 2.3 mi away ⇄
Collin 36 3.4 mi away ⇄
New Abbey 35 6.3 mi away ⇄
Parkgate (Dumfries and Galloway) 36 7.5 mi away ⇄
Hightae 28 7.6 mi away ⇄
Lochmaben 36 7.8 mi away ⇄
Lockerbie 43 11 mi away ⇄
Millhousebridge 0 11 mi away ⇄
Dalbeattie 39 13 mi away ⇄
Southerness 0 13 mi away ⇄
Thornhill (Dumfries and Galloway) 46 13 mi away ⇄

Frequently asked questions

Is Dumfries a nice place to live?

Dumfries is a decent place to live for many people. Our liveability score for Dumfries is 60/100, placing it among an average areas in the UK across nine categories: safety, schools, healthcare, environment, transport, broadband, lifestyle, economic health, and bills.

What are the best schools in Dumfries?

Among the top-rated schools in Dumfries are St Michael's School, Calside School and Cargenbridge School, rated Outstanding by Ofsted. There are 15 rated schools in Dumfries in total.

Postcode districts in Dumfries

DG1 54 ⇄
DG2 53 ⇄

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