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Council tax in Swansea
Last updated . Figures refresh every night. How each figure is worked out.
Council tax in Swansea for 2026-27 is £2,238 a year for a Band D home, £1,492 for Band A and £5,223 for the top band. That is £88 below the Wales average of £2,326. It ranks 16 of 22 billing areas in Wales. Figures are the council's own set rates. Wales publishes Band D only, so the other bands here are worked out from the statutory ratios.
Figures for the 2026–27 financial year. Source: Welsh Government.
Key figures
- £2,238Band D a year, 2026-27
- £1,492Band A, the lowest
- −£88Band D against the Wales average of £2,326 Below average
- 16 of 22Rank in Wales, highest first
Source: Welsh Government.
What is the bill for each band?
| Band | A year | A month |
|---|---|---|
Band ADetails for Band A | £1,492.19 | £124.35 |
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Band BDetails for Band B | £1,740.89 | £145.07 |
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Band CDetails for Band C | £1,989.59 | £165.80 |
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Band DDetails for Band D | £2,238.29 | £186.52 |
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Band EDetails for Band E | £2,735.69 | £227.97 |
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Band FDetails for Band F | £3,233.09 | £269.42 |
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Band GDetails for Band G | £3,730.48 | £310.87 |
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Band HDetails for Band H | £4,476.58 | £373.05 |
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Band IDetails for Band I | £5,222.68 | £435.22 |
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Wales publishes Band D only. The other bands are derived using the statutory ratios, which are fixed in law and the same for every Welsh authority, so these are exact rather than estimated.
Who gets the money?
| Who receives it | Band D | Share |
|---|---|---|
County or county borough councilDetails for County or county borough council | £1,807 | 81% |
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Police and crime commissionerDetails for Police and crime commissioner | £405 | 18% |
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Community councilDetails for Community council | £26 | 1% |
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Each body sets its own precept and the council simply collects them together. The council that sends the bill keeps only its own share.
How does it compare?
Band D here is £88 below the Wales average, 16 of 22 councils from the highest. It rose 4% on last year.
How does Swansea compare? The report card
Official figures on complaints, finances, audit, pay and services for Swansea, each from the body that published it and set against the figure for Wales. See every council on the council map.
- Council tax rise this year4.5%Lower than the Wales figure of 5.2%
- Council tax per head£880Lower than the Wales figure of £963
- Ombudsman interventions11% (12 of 109 closed)Lower than the Wales figure of 13%
- Recycling rate71.7%Higher than the Wales figure of 68.4%
- Planning decisions on time88.7%Lower than the Wales figure of 90.5%
Each figure is set against the figure for Wales as a whole. They are plain comparisons, one measure at a time: there is no overall score and no ranking of councils. Higher is not always better or worse; what each measure does and does not show is on the methodology page.
What do complaints to the ombudsman show?
| Measure | Swansea | For comparison |
|---|---|---|
Complaints closedDetails for Complaints closed | 109 | — |
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Closed with the Ombudsman interveningDetails for Closed with the Ombudsman intervening | 12 (11%) | 13% across Welsh councils |
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The Ombudsman publishes one row per closed case; the counts here are this site’s own, from those rows, for the 2024-25 financial year. The Ombudsman’s annual letter to each council may count slightly differently.
Source: Public Services Ombudsman for Wales, Open data: complaints closed, 2024-25.
How healthy are its finances?
| Measure | Swansea | For comparison |
|---|---|---|
Outstanding borrowing at 30 June 2026Details for Outstanding borrowing at 30 June 2026 | £622.2m | — |
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The Welsh Government publishes council reserves as a PDF report only, so no figure is shown here. Much of any council’s reserves is set aside for particular purposes. Borrowing is total outstanding loans of every kind; councils borrow mainly to pay for buildings, roads and housing, and the figure does not show what the borrowing was for.
Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Local authority borrowing and investment live table, 30 June 2026.
What have the auditors said?
| Report | Title | Published |
|---|---|---|
| Latest local report (Audit Wales) | Swansea Council – Temporary accommodation: The front door to more settled futures | 4 September 2026 |
| Latest Annual Audit Summary (Audit Wales) | Swansea Council – Annual Audit Summary 2025 | 15 April 2026 |
Audit Wales, in its Annual Audit Summary: “We issued an unqualified opinion on the accounts after the statutory deadline of 31 October 2025.”
Audit Wales publishes an Annual Audit Summary for each council, which states its opinion on the accounts, and reports on particular services. Follow each link for the findings in full.
Source: Audit Wales, Local reports and Annual Audit Summaries, latest report. Checked 22 September 2026.
What are senior staff and councillors paid?
| Measure | 2024-25 | 2023-24 |
|---|---|---|
Employees paid £60,000 or moreDetails for Employees paid £60,000 or more | 308 | 239 |
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Councillors’ allowancesDetails for Councillors’ allowances | £2,097,000 | £1,987,000 |
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The count is up 69 on the year before. Current = 2024/25, previous = 2023/24. Welsh threshold £60,000. Note 27(b): 'The number of employees (excluding Senior Officers) whose remuneration (excluding employer's pension contributions) was £60,000 or more'. Includes compensation for loss of office. 'The numbers shown relate to Authority employees, which predominantly include teaching staff. The bandings above include fifteen teachers (2023/24 ten teachers) who are employed by voluntary aided schools.' Totals 308 and 239. The accounts describe the allowances figure as “Members' Allowances: Allowances 2,085 (2023/24 1,968); Expenses 12 (19); Total 2,097 (1,987) £'000”. Thresholds are not adjusted for inflation, so more staff cross them each year as pay rises.
Source: Swansea, Statement of Accounts 2024/25 Swansea Council l Cyngor Abertawe, PDF page 117, Note 27(b). Checked 24 September 2026.
How are its services rated?
| Measure | Swansea | For comparison |
|---|---|---|
Municipal waste reused, recycled or composted (the statutory target measure), 2024-25Details for Municipal waste reused, recycled or composted (the statutory target measure), 2024-25 | 71.7% | 68.4% for Wales |
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Planning decisions on time, January to March 2026Details for Planning decisions on time, January to March 2026 | 88.7% | 90.5% for Wales |
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Inspections happen at different times, so a rating can be several years old; the date is shown with each. Planning figures are measured differently in each nation: share of planning applications determined within the statutory or an agreed time, in one quarter. Recycling rates are measured differently in England, Scotland and Wales, so compare within a nation.
Source: Welsh Government, Local authority municipal waste management, 2024-25; Welsh Government, Development management quarterly survey, January to March 2026.
What has happened recently?
Decisions and publications by official bodies about Swansea, newest first. Each links to the body that made or published it. News reports are not included.
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Audit
Audit Wales
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Audit
We issued an unqualified opinion on the accounts after the statutory deadline of 31 October 2025.Audit Wales
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Council tax
Welsh Government
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Election
Labour Party 45, Liberal Democrats 11, Conservative and Unionist Party 7, Independent 5, Uplands 4, Independents @ Swansea 2, Green Party 1Democracy Club
Does the council think something here is wrong?
If you represent Swansea and think a figure here is wrong, out of date or unfairly presented, email hello@whereyourmoneygoes.co.uk with this page’s address and the source you would point to. Every correction is logged, with its date, on the corrections page.
Where can I find out more?
What council tax is and why it works this way, including why the bands are still based on 1991 property values in England and Scotland, and how every area compares, everything else on Swansea: parking, roads, your MP and local services, and Swansea on the council map.
Common questions
- How much is council tax in Swansea?
- Band D is £2,238 a year for 2026-27. Band A is £1,492 and the top band £5,223.
- Is council tax in Swansea higher than average?
- No. Band D here is £88 below the Wales average of £2,326.
Sources for this page
| Source | Publisher | Figures as of | Updated | Licence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Council Tax levels | Welsh Government | the 2026–27 financial year | annual | Open Government Licence v3.0 |
Each source's figures are used under the licence shown. Our own words, analysis, charts and derived calculations are ours, under CC BY 4.0.