Choosing where to spend your later years is one of the biggest decisions you can make. Whether you are planning ahead, helping a parent weigh up options, or ready to move now, the right town can make a real difference to your quality of life.
We compared 233 towns across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland on the things that matter most for later-life living: access to GPs and pharmacies, green spaces, leisure and activity facilities, community hubs, and public transport. Every count is adjusted for population so smaller towns are compared fairly with larger cities.
Here are the towns that score highest overall. Each one performs well across multiple categories rather than excelling in just one.
Scores highest for green space and healthcare access.
Scores highest for active living facilities and healthcare access.
Scores highest for public transport and active living facilities. Median house prices sit around £175k.
Scores highest for community amenities and green space.
Scores highest for public transport and healthcare access. Median house prices sit around £315k.
Scores highest for active living facilities and healthcare access. Median house prices sit around £455k.
Scores highest for public transport and community amenities.
Scores highest for healthcare access and community amenities.
Scores highest for public transport and green space. Median house prices sit around £195k.
Scores highest for public transport and community amenities. Median house prices sit around £335k.
Every town is scored across five pillars, each based on publicly available data from OpenStreetMap and the Office for National Statistics:
All counts are divided by population to give per-capita scores, so a small town with good provision ranks fairly against a large city. House price data comes from ONS median price-paid figures by local authority.
The overall score is the mean of all five pillar scores. No single factor dominates the ranking, which is why the top towns tend to be well-rounded rather than exceptional in just one area.
Based on our data, Beaumaris in Anglesey currently ranks highest across all five pillars. However, the best place for you depends on your personal priorities — someone who values healthcare access above all else may prefer a different town to someone focused on green space or affordability.
The most commonly cited factors are proximity to healthcare (GPs and pharmacies), availability of green space for walking and relaxation, community and social facilities, options for staying physically active, and reliable public transport. House prices also play a major role for many people.
We use publicly available data from OpenStreetMap and the ONS. Amenity counts (GPs, parks, leisure centres, etc.) are divided by population to produce fair per-capita scores across five categories. The overall score is the average of all five. You can adjust the weightings in the comparison tool to reflect your own priorities.
Yes. AgeWell Finder covers towns across all four UK nations. Note that house price data is currently only available for English and Welsh towns due to differences in how property transactions are recorded.
These rankings use equal weighting across all five pillars. If healthcare matters more to you than green space, or transport matters more than community, you can adjust the weightings in our free comparison tool.
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