Galway scores 65/100 for quality of life, #23 of the 107 Irish areas BuyerIQ ranks, and its fundamentals are rated “on the up — emerging”. The median home sells for €406,608 (most €330,000–€490,000), it scores 67/100 for safety (60.1 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents), 84,998 people live here. It's strongest on transport & services and environment, weakest on local economy.
Updated October 2026 · Property Price Register + 20+ official sources, refreshed daily
About average today — but the fundamentals are turning, faster than the national trend.
These seven scores and the 65/100 are measured across the H91 Eircode area, not Galway alone — an area that takes in much of Galway. A strong or weak pocket inside it can read very differently from the area average.
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 #19 of 107 for value for money (most quality of life per euro).
The score is for the H91 Eircode area; the crime rate is recorded per Garda division (Galway). Neither is measured for Galway on its own.
84,998 people.
Population is for Galway itself (Census 2022, Small-Area boundary).
3rd most vibrant large town in Ireland, of 65 ranked.
Ranked against large towns only; tourist towns read high.
Census profile and the affluence rating are Electoral Division figures — the CSO/Pobal area around Galway, which is why this unemployment rate can differ from the one behind the quality-of-life scores above (those are Eircode-area wide).
Galway, Co. Galway, scores 65/100 on BuyerIQ's Quality of Life composite (cost of living excluded) — #23 of the 107 areas we rank. It's strongest on transport & services and environment.
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 €406,608, with most sales between €330,000 and €490,000 (Property Price Register, rolling 24 months).
The median sale price in Galway over the last 24 months was €406,608, most between €330,000 and €490,000 (Property Price Register).
Galway is rated "On the up — emerging" — unemployment fell 14% → 9% — faster than nationally, prices up 12.1%.
About 10% of homes sold in Galway in the last 24 months were new builds (Property Price Register).
360 planning applications were lodged within Galway in the last 12 months, covering 1,511 residential units (2,844 on record) — measured per town, not just at county level.
Galway scores 73/100 for families and community.
Galway scores 47/100 for schools and education, with 26 schools in the area.
Galway is about 3 minutes by road from Galway, with 2 rail stops 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 October 2026.