Census of Population 2022 - Summary Results

In Census 2022, people were asked about several aspects of their home and whether they owned it or were renting. These questions deliver statistics across a whole range of areas such as the age of the occupied housing stock in Ireland, the number of rooms and bedrooms in people’s homes and the nature of people’s Internet connection. New questions were introduced in 2022, relating to renewable energy sources used for heating and electricity and on the number of working smoke alarms available in each home.

Housing Tenure

The data on whether people own or rent their homes provide important insight into Ireland's housing situation.

• The number of occupied dwellings increased by 8% between 2016 and 2022 matching the increase in the population.

• The proportion of owner-occupied dwellings continued to fall, down from almost 70% to 66% in the 11 years to 2022.  

• Since 2016, the number of occupied dwellings owned with a mortgage or loan fell by 1% while the number of owned outright without a mortgage or loan increased by 11%.  

• The number of occupied dwellings rented from a private landlord increased by 7% since 2016 to 330,632.  

• Occupied dwellings rented from a local authority increased by 7% to 153,192.

Average Weekly Rent

The question regarding the rent paid by tenants per week, month or year captures data that builds a picture of trends in the rental market.

• The average rent paid in properties rented from a private landlord increased by 37% to €272.91 per week in the six years to 2022. 

• In properties rented from a local authority, the average rent increased by 14% to €77.92 per week since 2016.

Weekly Rent Over €300

There were over 109,000 households in private rental accommodation where the weekly rent paid was €300 or more.

• This was more than double the number of households (48,933) paying an average weekly rent of €300 or more six years earlier.

• In 2022, nearly four times as many households in private rental accommodation were paying more than €400 per week than in 2016.

Dwellings Built since 2016

Data on the year a property was built is only available for dwellings that were occupied on Census Night. Of the occupied housing stock, over 93,000 were built between 2016 and 2022, almost twice as many as in the previous intercensal period.

• Over half (52%) of homes built since 2016 were owner occupied with a mortgage or loan. 

• Nearly 14,000 of the dwellings built since 2016 were rented from private landlords.

• Another approximately 12,500 were rented from local authorities and just over 5,600 were rented from voluntary or cooperative bodies.

Smoke Alarms

A new question was asked in the 2022 census about the number of working smoke alarms in the household. 

•  Homes built since 2016 were much more likely to have four or more working smoke alarms compared with older dwellings.

Renewable Energy

A question about renewable energy sources was asked for the first time in Census 2022.

• Nearly a quarter (23%) of households reported that they used renewable energy sources. 

• The use of solar panels was reported by 6% of households, ranging from 3% of households in Dublin City to 11% of households in Meath.

• Over 70% of the dwellings built since 2016 used at least one renewable energy source.

• Over 40% of this same cohort had heat pumps.

• Approximately 30% had solar panels.

Internet Connectivity

The question on internet connectivity was expanded in 2022 to allow more detail on the type of connection and the devices households use to access the internet.

• Almost 80% of dwellings had a broadband connection, up from 71% in 2016 and 64% in 2011. 

• This varied from 91% in the Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown area to 72% in Longford.