This release is categorised as a CSO Frontier Series Output. Particular care must be taken when interpreting the statistics in this release as it may use new methods which are under development and/or data sources which may be incomplete, for example, new administrative data sources. For further information on the data sources, linking procedures and limitations of this report, see the Background Notes.
By administrative county (local authority) and province, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown had the highest median gross household income (€84,991) in Leinster, while Longford had the lowest (€47,217).
In Munster, Cork County was the local authority area with the highest median gross household income (€60,906), while Kerry had the lowest (€48,320).
The highest median gross household income by local authority in Connacht was in Galway County (€59,895), and the lowest was in Leitrim (€45,267).
In Ulster (part of), the local authority with the highest median gross household income was Cavan (€52,321), while Donegal had the lowest (€42,497).
By Local Electoral Area (LEA), Stillorgan in Dublin had the highest median gross household income (€99,352), while Carndonagh in Donegal had the lowest (€35,614).
This release is categorised as a CSO Frontier Series Output, which means care must be taken when interpreting the statistics in this release as it may use new methods which are under development and/or data sources which may be incomplete.
The Geographical Profiles of Income in Ireland (GPII) presents income statistics compiled based on administrative sources and is an example of the policy relevant research projects the CSO are developing as part of its leadership role of the Irish Statistical System.
The primary income data source is the Person Income Register (PIR). The PIR is an income register held internally within the CSO. It contains information on income received by individuals relating to employment, self-employment, and social transfers. It is derived from pseudonymised versions of administrative data held by the Revenue Commissioners and Department of Social Protection. This is linked to the CSO Census of Population Analysis (COPA) 2022 data to provide demographic breakdowns of household income in Ireland.
Users should note some of the limitations in the data sources. There are records on the COPA 2022 that could not be matched with administrative income, which may lead to biases particularly in border regions where there are a significant number of persons working in Northern Ireland. As such, care should be taken when interpreting results at some lower geographical levels.
The Survey on Income and Living Conditions is the official measure of household income in Ireland. The Geographical Profiles of Income in Ireland (GPII) release presents estimates based solely on available administrative income data and uses a dwelling definition of household. As such, the two are not directly comparable. For further information see the Background Notes.
The definition of income used in this release differs from that used to produce estimates in the Household Distributional Accounts published on 17 April 2025 which includes items such as imputed rent, for further information see the Institutional Sector Accounts definition of household gross disposable income.
Learn about our data and confidentiality safeguards, and the steps we take to produce statistics that can be trusted by all.
Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (23 April 2025) published Geographical Profiles of Income in Ireland 2022 – Household Income. This is the first in a series of thematic releases which will provide detailed estimates on household income in Ireland.
Commenting on today’s release, Eva O’Regan, Statistician in the Income, Consumption and Wealth (ICW) Division, said: “This release, published as a CSO Frontier Series Output, produces household income statistics using administrative data. Estimates are provided at multiple levels of geography, including by county, administrative county (local authority), Local Electoral Area (LEA), and electoral division. It is worth noting that administrative data is pseudonymised prior to any statistical analysis taking place to protect the privacy of individuals.
Administrative counties correspond with the local authorities, covering 31 City and County Councils. By administrative county (local authority) and province, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown had the highest median gross household income (€84,991) in Leinster, while Longford had the lowest (€47,217). In Munster, Cork County was the local authority area with the highest median gross household income (€60,906), while Kerry had the lowest (€48,320). The highest median gross household income by local authority in Connacht was in Galway County (€59,895), and the lowest was in Leitrim (€45,267). In Ulster (part of), the local authority with the highest median gross household income was Cavan (€52,321), while Donegal had the lowest (€42,497).
Further analysis by administrative county or local authority area is available in the chapter Household Income by Region.
For the purposes of Local Authority elections, each county and city are divided into Local Electoral Areas (LEAs). In terms of the results by LEA, four of the five LEAs with the highest median gross household income in 2022 were in Dublin: Stillorgan (€99,352), Blackrock (€94,381), Pembroke (€92,341), and Glencullen-Sandyford (€92,431). The fifth highest was Ratoath in Meath (€88,796).
The LEA in Dublin with the lowest median gross household income was Ballymun-Finglas (€53,184), while the LEA with the lowest median gross household income in Leinster was Longford in Co. Longford (€44,945).
In Munster the top five LEAs with the highest median gross household income were all in Cork: Carrigaline (€74,781), followed by Cork City South East (€71,614), Cobh (€69,833), Macroom (€69,436), and Cork City South West (€67,489). The LEA in Munster with the lowest median gross household income was Bantry-West Cork (€41,452).
In Connacht the three highest income LEAs were in Galway. Athenry-Oranmore in Galway had a median gross household income of €70,629, followed by Gort-Kinvara (€70,126), and Galway City West (€68,698). The fourth highest in Connacht was Athlone in Roscommon (€64,694), and the fifth was Sligo-Drumcliff in Sligo (€61,587). The LEA in Connacht with the lowest median gross household income was Belmullet in Mayo (€36,923).
In Ulster (part of) the LEA with the highest median gross household income was Bailieborough-Cootehill in Cavan (€55,570), followed by Ballyjamesduff in Cavan (€55,162), Carrickmacross-Castleblayney in Monaghan (€51,541), Letterkenny in Donegal (€51,167), and Monaghan in Co. Monaghan (€50,596). The LEA with the lowest income was Carndonagh in Donegal with a median gross household income of €35,614.”