All 156 councils in England are set to increase council tax bills from April, with one council slapping a staggering 9.99% increase onto bills for residents.
But there are eight councils which will not increase bills as much as everywhere else, where their lucky constituents will ‘only’ pay increases of 2-4% on their bills instead of the 5-9.99% hikes seen in the rest of the country.
Council tax is a bill usually paid in 10 monthly instalments throughout the year which pays for local services such as bin collections, libraries, road repairs, parks and social care. Usually, local authorities cannot raise council tax by 5% or more in a single financial year without triggering a local referendum but several cash-strapped councils this year are going to be asking their residents to pay up to twice that amount more from next month.
With many councils struggling with their finances, most are passing on a 4.99% price hike, with 88% of households in England facing at least that level of increase. In total, 153 councils are raising bills by at least 4.99% – see the full list below.
Bradford Council asked the government for special permission to increase bills by 9.99%, double the usual legal limit and the highest increase in the country. But there are eight areas of England in which council tax bills will go up more slowly than everywhere else.
The smallest council tax bill rises in England from April 2025:
Derby – 3.99%
Doncaster – 3.99%
Essex – 3.75%
Kensington & Chelsea – 4%
Lincolnshire – 2.99%
North East Lincolnshire – 3.98%
Rotherham – 3%
Wandsworth – 2%
Every single council tax increase in England – full list:
The figures for 2024/25 and 2023/24 are sourced from the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government.
County councils
Cambridgeshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.98%)
Derbyshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 3.75%)
Devon 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
East Sussex 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Essex 3.75% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 3.50%)
Gloucestershire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Hampshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.998% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Hertfordshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Kent 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.995%)
Lancashire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 3.99%)
Leicestershire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Lincolnshire 2.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Norfolk 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Nottinghamshire 4.84% (2024/25: 4.84% 2023/24: 4.84%)
Oxfordshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Staffordshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Suffolk 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.00%)
Surrey 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 2.99%)
Warwickshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.996% 2023/24: 3.94%)
West Sussex 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Worcestershire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.94%)
– London
Barking & Dagenham 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Barnet 4.98% (2024/25: 4.98% 2023/24: 3.80%)
Bexley 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Brent 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Bromley 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Camden 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
City of London 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Croydon 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 14.99%)
Ealing 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Enfield 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Greenwich 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Hackney 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Hammersmith & Fulham 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.80%)
Haringey 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Harrow 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Havering 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Hillingdon 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Hounslow 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Islington 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Kensington & Chelsea 4.00% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 2.18%)
Kingston-upon-Thames 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Lambeth 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Lewisham 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Merton 4.99% (2024/25: 4.999% 2023/24: 4.999%)
Newham 8.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Redbridge 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Richmond-upon-Thames 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Southwark 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Sutton 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Tower Hamlets 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 2.00%)
Waltham Forest 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Wandsworth 2.00% (2024/25: 2.09% 2023/24: 2.14%)
Westminster 4.99% (2024/25: 4.98% 2023/24: 2.01%)
– Metropolitan boroughs
Barnsley 4.90% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 3.90%)
Birmingham 7.49% (2024/25: 9.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Bolton 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 3.99%)
Bradford 9.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Bury 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Calderdale 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Coventry 4.90% (2024/25: 4.94% 2023/24: 4.94%)
Doncaster 3.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 3.99%)
Dudley 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Gateshead 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Kirklees 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Knowsley 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Leeds 4.99% (2024/25: 4.98% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Liverpool 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Manchester 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Newcastle-upon-Tyne 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 3.99%)
North Tyneside 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Oldham 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 3.99%)
Rochdale 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Rotherham 3.00% (2024/25: 3.50% 2023/24: 4.00%)
Salford 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Sandwell 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Sefton 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Sheffield 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Solihull 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
South Tyneside 4.95% (2024/25: 4.95% 2023/24: 4.95%)
St Helens 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Stockport 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 3.99%)
Sunderland 4.49% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 2.99%)
Tameside 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Trafford 7.49% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Wakefield 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Walsall 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 2.99%)
Wigan 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Wirral 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Wolverhampton 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
– Unitary authorities
(Note: where figures for 2023/24 are n/a, this is because the authority did not then exist in its current form)
Bath & North East Somerset 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Bedford 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 2.90%)
Blackburn with Darwen 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Blackpool 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Bracknell Forest 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Brighton & Hove 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Bristol 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Buckinghamshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.98% 2023/24: 4.9997%)
Central Bedfordshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 0%)
Cheshire East 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Cheshire West & Chester 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Cornwall 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Cumberland 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: n/a)
Darlington 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Derby 3.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Dorset 4.99% (2024/25: 4.996% 2023/24: 4.00%)
Durham 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
East Riding of Yorkshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.98%)
Halton 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Hartlepool 4.99% (2024/25: 2.99% 2023/24: 4.90%)
Herefordshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Hull 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Isle of Wight 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Isles of Scilly 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Leicester 4.99% (2024/25: 4.999% 2023/24: 4.998%)
Luton 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Medway 4.994% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Middlesbrough 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 3.99%)
Milton Keynes 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
North East Lincolnshire 3.98% (2024/25: 4.98% 2023/24: 3.98%)
North Lincolnshire 4.89% (2024/25: 3.73% 2023/24: 1.74%)
North Northamptonshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
North Somerset 4.99% (2024/25: 4.98% 2023/24: 4.99%)
North Yorkshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: n/a)
Northumberland 4.99% (2024/25: 4.59% 2023/24: 4.63%)
Nottingham 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Peterborough 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Plymouth 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Portsmouth 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Reading 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Redcar & Cleveland 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 3.99%)
Rutland 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Shropshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Slough 4.99% (2024/25: 8.50% 2023/24: 9.99%)
Somerset 7.49% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: n/a)
South Gloucestershire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Southampton 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Southend-on-Sea 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Stockton-on-Tees 4.95% (2024/25: 4.95% 2023/24: 4.90%)
Stoke-on-Trent 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Swindon 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Telford & Wrekin 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 2.00%)
Thurrock 4.99% (2024/25: 7.98% 2023/24: 9.99%)
Torbay 4.75% (2024/25: 4.75% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Warrington 4.98% (2024/25: 4.98% 2023/24: 4.98%)
West Berkshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
West Northamptonshire 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Westmorland & Furness 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: n/a)
Wiltshire 4.50% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
Windsor & Maidenhead 8.99% (2024/25: 4.96% 2023/24: 4.96%)
Wokingham 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%)
York 4.99% (2024/25: 4.99% 2023/24: 4.99%).
