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London · Guide · GOV.UK

London council tax 2026-27: Wandsworth has the lowest Band D bill in England at £1,028 a year, Westminster £1,050, against an England average of £2,392

Council tax is the yearly local charge on every home in England. Official figures from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government show that for 2026-27 the average area Band D bill in London is £2,068, below the England average of £2,392, and that Wandsworth, home of Battersea and Nine Elms, has the lowest in England. This guide explains, from GOV.UK, how the bill is worked out and what an owner from Kuwait should know.

Al Mithaq news desk · Published · Source: GOV.UK
The new residential towers of Vauxhall and Nine Elms on the south bank of the River Thames in London, seen from the river under a clear blue sky in January 2026
The new residential towers of Vauxhall and Nine Elms on the south bank of the River Thames in London, seen from the river under a clear blue sky in January 2026. Picture: Acabashi, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026
£1,028Wandsworth, the lowest area Band D council tax in England for 2026-27
£2,068average area Band D in London
£2,392average Band D in England

What the official figures show

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published the 2026-27 council tax figures on 25 March 2026 as accredited official statistics. The average Band D council tax in England is £2,392, up £111 or 4.9% on 2025-26. The average area Band D across London is £2,068, up £87 or 4.4%, the lowest of the four area types the release compares (metropolitan areas £2,409, unitary areas £2,490, shire areas £2,452). Across England, the release says the average area Band D ranges from £1,028 in Wandsworth to £2,765 in Dorset. The figures cover the year from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027 and include the Greater London Authority's share.

Band D in selected London boroughs, 2026-27

From the ministry's Table 10 (average area Band D, including all precepts), rounded to the nearest pound: Wandsworth £1,028; Westminster £1,050; City of London £1,330; Hammersmith and Fulham £1,520; Kensington and Chelsea £1,667; Tower Hamlets £1,838; Newham £1,944; Southwark £1,967; Lambeth £2,047; Islington £2,108; Camden £2,208. All of these are below the England average of £2,392.

How the bill is worked out

Every home in England is placed by the Valuation Office Agency in one of eight bands, A to H, based on its value on 1 April 1991; a home built after that date is given a notional 1991 value. Each band pays a set share of the Band D charge: Band A six ninths, B seven ninths, C eight ninths, D the full amount, E eleven ninths, F thirteen ninths, G fifteen ninths and H, homes valued at over £320,000 in 1991, eighteen ninths, which is twice Band D. GOV.UK lets anyone look up the band of a home by its address or postcode, and challenge it if they think it is wrong.

Discounts, second homes and empty homes

A full bill assumes at least two adults live in the home. GOV.UK says a person who lives on their own gets 25% off, and a household in which everyone is disregarded, for example full-time students, gets 50% off. For a furnished home where nobody lives as their main home, a second home, the local council decides the charge and may give a discount, or may charge up to twice the normal council tax, known as the second homes premium; the premium may not apply for up to 12 months while the home is being marketed for sale or to let. A home empty for at least one year can carry an empty home premium, rising to up to four times the bill after 10 years.

Why it mattersOur view for a buyer from Kuwait: Council tax is one of the running costs of a London home, next to the service charge, and it changes a lot from one borough to the next. In 2026-27 a Band D home pays about £1,028 a year in Wandsworth and £1,050 in Westminster, less than half the England average of £2,392. Even a home in the top band, Band H, which pays twice the Band D amount, comes to about £2,056 a year in Wandsworth (our calculation from the official figure). Before you buy, ask for the home's band, which you can check on GOV.UK, and the council's current charge. If you keep the flat furnished for your own visits and nobody lives there as their main home, ask the council whether it charges the second homes premium, which can double the bill.

What Al Mithaq adds

Our London page shows homes in London and nearby that buyers from Kuwait can view with our team. For any home you like, we can send the borough, the council tax band where the developer or the official listing gives it, and the estimated service charge, so you can see the yearly running costs before you reserve.

Sources

Homes we sell there

All our homes in the United Kingdom ›
Buyer guide

How to buy property in London

Six steps, the costs, and 14 developments from £335,000

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Wandsworth Common

London Square · Wandsworth

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Westminster Tower

London Square · London

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