Official statistics · 19 of 19 measures compare directly
Bexley and Watford compared
Every measure Civometry publishes for both areas, side by side. Each figure is its publisher’s own for the period named beside it, and the difference between the two is stated in the middle. Neither area is called better: which direction counts as better depends on what you are asking, and the page does not decide that for you. Where the two figures are not comparable — a different period, or nothing published for one side — the row says so instead of showing a difference.
Bexley
E09000004 · Metropolitan Police Service
Watford
E07000103 · Hertfordshire Constabulary
Getting better or worse
−5
Civometry calculation on Home Office, ONS, HM Land Registry and MHCLG figures
2 more in Watford
−3
Civometry calculation on Home Office, ONS, HM Land Registry and MHCLG figures
Population
257,103
ONS: Population estimates for the UK and constituent countries: historical time series
149,445 more in Bexley
107,658
ONS: Population estimates for the UK and constituent countries: historical time series
Median annual pay, full-time employees
£43,969
ONS: ASHE Table 8.7a: annual gross pay by place of residence
£750 more in Bexley
£43,219
ONS: ASHE Table 8.7a: annual gross pay by place of residence
Average house price
£405,477
HM Land Registry: UK House Price Index: average prices
£9,092 more in Bexley
£396,385
HM Land Registry: UK House Price Index: average prices
All private rents
£1,534
ONS: Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics
£289 more in Watford
£1,823
ONS: Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics
All claimants
3.5%
ONS: Claimant count by sex and age (Nomis)
1.0 percentage points higher in Watford
4.5%
ONS: Claimant count by sex and age (Nomis)
Net international migration
+1,315
ONS: Components of population change by local authority (ONS mid-year estimates, sheet MYE3)
930 more in Bexley
+385
ONS: Components of population change by local authority (ONS mid-year estimates, sheet MYE3)
Band D council tax
£2,366
MHCLG: Council tax levels set by local authorities in England 2026 to 2027
£80 more in Watford
£2,447
MHCLG: Council tax levels set by local authorities in England 2026 to 2027
Outstanding borrowing
£246m
MHCLG: Local authorities borrowing and investments: UK live table
£209m more in Bexley
£36m
MHCLG: Local authorities borrowing and investments: UK live table
Supported asylum seekers
115
Home Office: Immigration system statistics: asylum seekers in receipt of support by local authority (Asy_D11)
91 more in Bexley
24
Home Office: Immigration system statistics: asylum seekers in receipt of support by local authority (Asy_D11)
Borrowing per resident
£955
MHCLG: Local authorities borrowing and investments: UK live table
£618 more in Bexley
£337
MHCLG: Local authorities borrowing and investments: UK live table
IMD average score
15.3
MHCLG: English Indices of Deprivation: local authority district summaries
1.0 more in Watford
16.3
MHCLG: English Indices of Deprivation: local authority district summaries
Income-deprived residents
18.7%
MHCLG: English Indices of Deprivation: local authority district summaries
3.4 percentage points higher in Watford
22.1%
MHCLG: English Indices of Deprivation: local authority district summaries
Recorded crime
77.6
Home Office: data.police.uk street-level crime, cumulative monthly archive
32.3 more in Watford
109.9
Home Office: data.police.uk street-level crime, cumulative monthly archive
House price to pay ratio
9.2 years
HM Land Registry: UK House Price Index: average prices
The same in both
9.2 years
HM Land Registry: UK House Price Index: average prices
Annual rent as a share of pay
41.9%
ONS: Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics
8.7 percentage points higher in Watford
50.6%
ONS: Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics
Band D council tax as a share of pay
5.38%
MHCLG: Council tax levels set by local authorities in England 2026 to 2027
0.28 percentage points higher in Watford
5.66%
MHCLG: Council tax levels set by local authorities in England 2026 to 2027
Mean domestic gas use per meter
11,986
DESNZ: Regional and local authority gas consumption statistics
499 more in Watford
12,485
DESNZ: Regional and local authority gas consumption statistics
Mean domestic electricity use per meter
3,378
DESNZ: Regional and local authority electricity consumption statistics
47 more in Watford
3,425
DESNZ: Regional and local authority electricity consumption statistics
In one sentence
In the latest published figures, population was 257,103 in Bexley and 107,658 in Watford (mid-2025); median annual pay, full-time employees was £43,969 in Bexley and £43,219 in Watford (2025); and average house price was £405,477 in Bexley and £396,385 in Watford (June 2026). (Civometry, from official statistics; each figure is the publisher's own.)
In the latest published figures, population was 257,103 in Bexley and 107,658 in Watford (mid-2025); median annual pay, full-time employees was £43,969 in Bexley and £43,219 in Watford (2025); and average house price was £405,477 in Bexley and £396,385 in Watford (June 2026). (Civometry, from official statistics; each figure is the publisher's own.)
Recorded crime by category
Offences per 1,000 residents in the 12 months to June 2026, from the same archive and the same window for both areas.
| Category | Bexley per 1,000 | offences | Watford per 1,000 | offences | E&W |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All recorded crime | 77.6 | 19,960 | 109.9 | 11,828 | 97.4 |
| Bicycle theft | 0.3 | 65 | 1.7 | 188 | 0.8 |
| Burglary | 3.1 | 793 | 2.6 | 283 | 3.6 |
| Criminal damage and arson | 5.2 | 1,329 | 6.9 | 738 | 6.9 |
| Drugs | 3.6 | 938 | 4.3 | 464 | 3.4 |
| Other crime | 1.1 | 274 | 1.7 | 182 | 2.2 |
| Other theft | 4.7 | 1,203 | 9.2 | 994 | 6.5 |
| Possession of weapons | 0.5 | 127 | 1.0 | 103 | 1.0 |
| Public disorder and weapons | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| Public order | 4.9 | 1,257 | 6.5 | 704 | 6.8 |
| Robbery | 1.5 | 373 | 1.3 | 143 | 1.4 |
| Shoplifting | 6.0 | 1,532 | 8.0 | 858 | 8.3 |
| Theft from the person | 0.9 | 220 | 1.7 | 179 | 1.7 |
| Vehicle crime | 6.3 | 1,619 | 6.0 | 646 | 5.0 |
| Violence and sexual offences | 23.8 | 6,116 | 37.2 | 4,008 | 34.7 |
| Violent crime | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 |
Police-recorded crime counts offences reported to and recorded by the police. It is affected by whether people report crime and by changes in police recording practice, so it does not measure all crime that happens. The Crime Survey for England and Wales is the better guide to long-term trends in the crimes it covers. Police recorded crime is not designated as National Statistics.
What this comparison rests on
Two figures are only subtracted when they are the same measure over the same period. Populations differ (257,103 and 107,658 residents on the latest estimates used here), so counts are shown alongside rates rather than instead of them. Nothing on this page is weighted, indexed or scored: every difference is one published number minus another, and the rows that cannot be compared say why.