Galway, Co. Galway City scores 68/100 for quality of life, #22 of the 108 Irish areas BuyerIQ ranks, and its fundamentals are rated “on the up — emerging”. The median home sells for €400,000 (most €321,793–€480,000), it scores 61/100 for safety (60.1 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents), 84,998 people live here, up 7.2% since 2016. It's strongest on environment and transport & services.
Updated July 2026 · Property Price Register + 20+ official sources, refreshed daily
About 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 Galway is #26 of 108 for value for money (most quality of life per euro).
84,998 people, up 7.2% since 2016.
Galway, Co. Galway City, scores 68/100 on BuyerIQ's Quality of Life composite (cost of living excluded) — #22 of the 108 areas we rank. It's strongest on environment and transport & services.
Galway scores 61/100 on safety, ~60.1 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents.
The median sale price in Galway over the last 24 months was €400,000, most between €321,793 and €480,000 (Property Price Register).
Galway is rated "On the up — emerging" — unemployment fell 14% → 9% — faster than nationally, prices up 52.2%.
About 4% of homes sold in Galway in the last 24 months were new builds (Property Price Register).
356 planning applications were lodged within Galway in the last 12 months, covering 1,261 residential units (2,741 on record) — measured per town, not just at county level.
Galway scores 75/100 for families and community, and its population is growing (up 7.2% since 2016).
Galway scores 50/100 for schools and education, with 38 schools in the area.
Galway is about 3 minutes by road from Galway, 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.