Carlow, Co. Carlow scores 56/100 for quality of life, #74 of the 108 Irish areas BuyerIQ ranks, and its fundamentals are rated “on the up — emerging”. The median home sells for €275,000 (most €200,000–€327,250), it scores 62/100 for safety (57.6 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents), 26,162 people live here. It's strongest on affordability and family & community, weakest on local economy.
Updated July 2026 · Property Price Register + 20+ official sources, refreshed daily
Below average today — but the fundamentals are turning, faster than the national trend.
Ranked on quality of life alone — cost of living excluded, so the genuinely best areas rank top even though they cost more. Factor in price and Carlow is #66 of 108 for value for money (most quality of life per euro).
26,162 people.
Carlow, Co. Carlow, scores 56/100 on BuyerIQ's Quality of Life composite (cost of living excluded) — #74 of the 108 areas we rank. It's strongest on affordability and family & community.
Carlow scores 62/100 on safety, ~57.6 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents.
The median sale price in Carlow over the last 24 months was €275,000, most between €200,000 and €327,250 (Property Price Register).
Carlow is rated "On the up — emerging" — unemployment fell 17% → 12%, in line with nationally, third-level education up 8 points — faster than nationally, prices up 23.4%.
About 11% of homes sold in Carlow in the last 24 months were new builds (Property Price Register).
125 planning applications were lodged within Carlow in the last 12 months, covering 627 residential units (770 on record) — measured per town, not just at county level.
Carlow scores 70/100 for families and community.
Carlow scores 42/100 for schools and education, with 12 schools in the area.
Carlow is about 58 minutes by road from Waterford, with 1 rail stop nearby.
Sale prices from the Property Price Register (rolling 24 months). Quality of Life averages seven equal-weighted dimensions from 40+ metrics across 13 public datasets (CSO census + SAPS, Garda crime, SEAI, EPA, DES schools, GTFS). Population is CSO Census 2022; the “on the up” trajectory compares 2016→2022. Figures refresh daily · an area assessment, not advice on a specific property. Updated July 2026.