Official statistics · 6 of 16 measures compare directly
Colchester and East Lothian 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.
Colchester
E07000071 · Essex Police
East Lothian
S12000010 · Scotland
Getting better or worse
−1
Civometry calculation on Home Office, ONS, HM Land Registry and MHCLG figures
1 more in Colchester
−2
Civometry calculation on Home Office, ONS, HM Land Registry and MHCLG figures
Population
201,163
ONS: Population estimates for the UK and constituent countries: historical time series
84,703 more in Colchester
116,460
National Records of Scotland: Mid-year population estimates time series
Median annual pay, full-time employees
£39,353
ONS: ASHE Table 8.7a: annual gross pay by place of residence
£639 more in Colchester
£38,714
ONS: ASHE Table 8.7a: annual gross pay by place of residence
Average house price
£298,003
HM Land Registry: UK House Price Index: average prices
£17,620 more in Colchester
£280,383
HM Land Registry: UK House Price Index: average prices
All private rents
£1,196
ONS: Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics
Not published for East Lothian.
Not published for this area
All claimants
3.1%
ONS: Claimant count by sex and age (Nomis)
0.6 percentage points higher in Colchester
2.5%
ONS: Claimant count by sex and age (Nomis)
Net international migration
+1,728
ONS: Components of population change by local authority (ONS mid-year estimates, sheet MYE3)
Not published for East Lothian.
Not published for this area
Band D council tax
£2,283
MHCLG: Council tax levels set by local authorities in England 2026 to 2027
Not published for East Lothian.
Not published for this area
IMD average score
17.3
MHCLG: English Indices of Deprivation: local authority district summaries
Not published for East Lothian.
Not published for this area
Income-deprived residents
18.6%
MHCLG: English Indices of Deprivation: local authority district summaries
Not published for East Lothian.
Not published for this area
Recorded crime
92.3
Home Office: data.police.uk street-level crime, cumulative monthly archive
Not published for East Lothian.
Not published for this area
House price to pay ratio
7.6 years
HM Land Registry: UK House Price Index: average prices
0.4 years more in Colchester
7.2 years
HM Land Registry: UK House Price Index: average prices
Annual rent as a share of pay
36.5%
ONS: Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics
No published figure for East Lothian.
No published figure
ONS: Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics
Band D council tax as a share of pay
5.80%
MHCLG: Council tax levels set by local authorities in England 2026 to 2027
No published figure for East Lothian.
No published figure
MHCLG: Council tax levels set by local authorities in England 2026 to 2027
Mean domestic gas use per meter
10,867
DESNZ: Regional and local authority gas consumption statistics
Not published for East Lothian.
Not published for this area
Mean domestic electricity use per meter
3,483
DESNZ: Regional and local authority electricity consumption statistics
Not published for East Lothian.
Not published for this area
In one sentence
In the latest published figures, population was 201,163 in Colchester and 116,460 in East Lothian (mid-2025); median annual pay, full-time employees was £39,353 in Colchester and £38,714 in East Lothian (2025); and average house price was £298,003 in Colchester and £280,383 in East Lothian (June 2026). (Civometry, from official statistics; each figure is the publisher's own.)
In the latest published figures, population was 201,163 in Colchester and 116,460 in East Lothian (mid-2025); median annual pay, full-time employees was £39,353 in Colchester and £38,714 in East Lothian (2025); and average house price was £298,003 in Colchester and £280,383 in East Lothian (June 2026). (Civometry, from official statistics; each figure is the publisher's own.)
Recorded crime by category
A category-by-category crime comparison needs both areas to have a full, current twelve months in the data.police.uk archive. One of them does not, so it is not shown; the crime rate above, where published, still comes from that archive.
What this comparison rests on
Two figures are only subtracted when they are the same measure over the same period. Populations differ (201,163 and — 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.