How council tax bands work

By the CouncilData research team. Where this guide cites a figure, it comes from our verified dataset of all 350 UK councils — every record source-linked and dated.

Every home that pays council tax sits in a valuation band, and that band — not what your home is worth today — decides your bill. The system is simpler than it looks once you know two things: where the bands came from, and how they relate to each other.

Where the bands came from

When council tax replaced the poll tax in 1993, every home in England and Scotland was assigned a band based on its estimated market value on 1 April 1991. Those 1991 values are still the basis of your band today, which is why a modest terrace and its identical neighbour can only differ in band if the valuers judged them differently three decades ago. Wales is the exception: it revalued in 2003 and added a ninth band, so Welsh homes are banded A–I on 2003 values.

The ninths arithmetic

Bands are not independent price lists — each one is a fixed fraction of Band D, counted in ninths. Band A is 6/9 of the Band D charge, Band B is 7/9, C is 8/9, D is 9/9, E is 11/9, F is 13/9, G is 15/9 and H is exactly double at 18/9. Wales's Band I pays 21/9. So when a council publishes only its Band D figure, every other band follows mechanically — that is how we compute full tables where a council publishes precepts rather than a per-band grid, and every derived table is arithmetic-checked to the penny.

Scotland kept the same A–H structure but raised the multipliers for bands E–H in April 2017, so higher-band Scottish homes pay proportionately more than the old ninths would suggest. Scottish bills also work differently in another way: water and sewerage are charged on top.

What your bill actually includes

The figure on your bill is usually a stack of precepts: the main council, plus police, fire, and sometimes a mayoral authority or a parish council. Councils present these differently, which is a major source of wrong figures online — we wrote about why. Every figure on this site states what it includes and links to the council's own page.

Find your own numbers

Look up your council's full table with the band checker, work out your bill with the calculator, or browse all 350 councils. If you suspect your 1991 valuation put you in the wrong band, you can challenge it.

What the verified data shows

Figures computed from the CouncilData verified dataset (2026/27) and official OGL statistical releases; regenerated with every data refresh.

Frequently asked

What is the average council tax in the UK for 2026/27?+

Across the 350 verified UK billing authorities, the average Band D council tax for 2026/27 is £2,337.15 per year — roughly £194.76 per month over 12 instalments. Individual councils range from £1,028.21 (Wandsworth) to £2,765.02 (Dorset).

How different can council tax be between two councils?+

Very: the 2026/27 Band D spread across the UK is £1,736.81 a year. Two identical homes in different billing authorities can face bills more than double apart, which is why comparing councils matters when moving.

What are council tax bands based on?+

In England and Scotland, bands are based on what your home was worth on 1 April 1991. Wales revalued in 2003, so Welsh bands reflect 2003 values and run A to I rather than A to H.

Why is Band D always quoted as the headline figure?+

Band D is the statutory reference point: every other band is a fixed fraction of it (Band A is 6/9 of D, Band H is 18/9). Councils, government statistics and CouncilData all quote Band D as the comparable headline.

Are bands the same across the UK?+

No. England uses eight bands (A–H) on 1991 values, Wales nine bands (A–I) on 2003 values, and Scotland eight bands on 1991 values but with higher multipliers for bands E–H since 2017. Northern Ireland uses domestic rates, not council tax.

Sources & method

This guide draws on the verified 2026/27 council tax dataset (every figure linked to the council's own page), the wider dataset catalogue, and official statutory rules. How verification works — two-pass reads, arithmetic checks, a public corrections log — is documented in the methodology. Found something wrong? Tell us — corrections are published.

Keep reading