South Oxfordshire Council Tax 2026
South East, England · 67,410 domestic properties
According to MHCLG, Council Tax levels set by local authorities in England 2026-27, South Oxfordshire's Band D Council Tax is £2,597.57 for 2026-27, the 38th highest of 350 UK billing authorities (higher than 89% of them) and 11% above the UK average of £2,337.00. Nearest published Band D rates sit with Mansfield, Croydon, Woking, Northumberland, then East Devon, Tandridge. Closest published housing-stock shapes include Vale of White Horse, West Berkshire, Chichester, Wandsworth.
How we calculate this rank & percentile
We compare every UK billing authority with a published 2026-27 Band D rate (350 in total). Rank is one plus the number with a higher charge, so equal charges share a rank. Percentile is round(authorities with a lower charge ÷ 350 × 100). The UK average is the simple mean of every council's Band D rate in our coverage set. Because the rank spans all three nations, it compares what each authority charges, not what each charge buys. English bands rest on 1991 property values in eight bands, A to H, while Scotland uses its own 1991 thresholds and Wales revalued to 2003 values with a ninth band. An English Band D home is therefore not the same property profile as a Welsh or Scottish one. Nearest published Band D rates sit with Mansfield, Croydon, Woking, Northumberland, then East Devon, Tandridge. See our methodology page for the full source-to-figure lineage.
- £2,597.57
- Band D charge · 2026 statutory
- Above the UK average
- +4.98%
- year-on-year vs £2,474.44
- Middle-half rise
- +11.1%
- vs UK avg £2,337.00
- £5,195.14
- Band H · 18/9 of Band D
Nearest published Band D rates sit with Mansfield, Croydon, Woking, Northumberland, then East Devon, Tandridge. Closest published housing-stock shapes include Vale of White Horse, West Berkshire, Chichester, Wandsworth. Open Mansfield for the closest published Band D on the same vintage.
South Oxfordshire · year-on-year Band D
What changed for South Oxfordshire
South Oxfordshire's Band D Council Tax rose from £2,474.44 (2025-26) to £2,597.57 (2026-27). Among 350 billing authorities by percentage rise, it ranks 161.
How to read this Band D change
This is a change in the published Band D charge, not advice about household bills. Precepts, discounts, and banding decide the amount you pay.
See UK year-on-year changesSouth Oxfordshire bands A-H schedule
Per-band charge 2026
South Oxfordshire's nearest Band D charges nationwide
South Oxfordshire is 38th of 350 on the national Band D list at £2,597.57. Nearest published Band D rates sit with Mansfield, Croydon, Woking, Northumberland, then East Devon, Tandridge. The six closest published 2026-27 rates, led by Mansfield, ignore geography on purpose, so a map neighbour is not mistaken for a charge twin. Read the difference column as a pound gap; cross-check the South East ranking further down when you care about local neighbours, and the stock-weighted average when you care what most of South Oxfordshire's 67,410 dwellings actually pay. Closest published housing-stock shapes include Vale of White Horse, West Berkshire, Chichester, Wandsworth.
| Council | Band D | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| Mansfield | £2,600.38 | +£2.81 |
| Croydon | £2,599.91 | +£2.34 |
| Woking | £2,598.04 | +£0.47 |
| Northumberland | £2,596.94 | −£0.63 |
| East Devon | £2,595.46 | −£2.11 |
| Tandridge | £2,594.85 | −£2.72 |
Band A–H charge table (2026/2027)
| Band | Annual Charge | Monthly | Sole occupant (−25%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | £1,731.71 | £173.17 | £1,298.78 |
| B | £2,020.33 | £202.03 | £1,515.25 |
| C | £2,308.95 | £230.89 | £1,731.71 |
| D | £2,597.57 | £259.76 | £1,948.18 |
| E | £3,174.81 | £317.48 | £2,381.11 |
| F | £3,752.05 | £375.21 | £2,814.04 |
| G | £4,329.28 | £432.93 | £3,246.96 |
| H | £5,195.14 | £519.51 | £3,896.36 |
England 1991 valuation ranges (Band A–H)
- Band A: Up to £40,000 (1991 valuation)
- Band B: £40,001 to £52,000
- Band C: £52,001 to £68,000
- Band D: £68,001 to £88,000 (reference band)
- Band E: £88,001 to £120,000
- Band F: £120,001 to £160,000
- Band G: £160,001 to £320,000
- Band H: Over £320,000
Source: MHCLG, Council Tax levels set by local authorities in England 2026-27 (area Band D) + statutory England band ratios documented in our methodology. Monthly figure is the annual charge / 10 (most councils use 10 monthly instalments). The sole-occupant column applies the statutory 25% single-person discount, payable when only one adult lives in the property.
What South Oxfordshire's 67,410 properties actually pay
South Oxfordshire's housing stock peaks below the reference point, in Band C, which covers 18,620 of 67,410 dwellings (27.6%). A Band C home is charged at eight-ninths of the Band D rate, which is why the typical bill here lands under the headline figure. Bands C and D between them account for 50.3% of the stock. 39.8% of dwellings on the England valuation list here are banded below D.
Weighting each band's statutory charge by the number of properties in it gives a stock-weighted average of £2,853.05 per dwelling, £255.48 (9.8%) above the £2,597.57 Band D headline. On that measure South Oxfordshire is 19th of 318 authorities with published stock counts, against a £2,269.00 average. That places South Oxfordshire 14th of the 64 billing authorities in South East, above the regional median of £2,511.00.
How to read this stock pattern
South Oxfordshire's largest property group sits in the lower half of the valuation ladder rather than at the Band D reference used in national tables. Its modal Band C charge is eight-ninths of the Band D rate, and 39.8% of the published stock lies below D. The headline alone does not show how often each band occurs. The stock-weighted amount applies the full distribution for an area-level comparison, while remaining an average rather than a household quotation.
This is a two-band centre rather than a single-band market. Bands C and D together contain 50.3% of dwellings, so neither band should be presented as a complete account of the area. The stock-weighted result combines both groups and the smaller tails into one comparable measure. The table shows where that mean comes from and prevents the distribution being flattened into an overconfident "typical property" claim.
South Oxfordshire sits in the upper quarter of South East on the stock-weighted ordering, above the regional median of £2,511.00. This narrows the comparison from a UK rank to authorities facing the same broad regional context, while still correcting each one for its different band mix. The placement says the council's average published stock is relatively costly within that peer set; it does not convert the mean into an individual household charge.
Closest housing-stock shape: Tonbridge & Malling
Tonbridge & Malling is the closest full-distribution match for South Oxfordshire. The profiles are close rather than identical: 3.8% of dwellings would need to shift between valuation bands for their published shares to align. The comparison therefore tests the whole ladder, not just the largest band.
Four largest band differences
- The largest separation is at reference Band D: its share is 22.7% in South Oxfordshire and 25.3% in Tonbridge & Malling. The familiar benchmark represents a larger slice of the peer's housing stock.
- A smaller distinction is lower on the ladder at Band B: South Oxfordshire has 9.1% of dwellings there, against 7.1% in Tonbridge & Malling. That extra lower-band weight pulls its stock profile away from the peer.
- A smaller distinction appears in the upper part of the ladder at Band H. South Oxfordshire places 1.5% of dwellings there versus 0.8% for Tonbridge & Malling, giving this profile the heavier upper-band tail at that point.
- A smaller distinction sits at lower Band C, where Tonbridge & Malling holds 28.2% of its stock and South Oxfordshire holds 27.6%. The peer is more bottom-weighted at this rung of the valuation list.
How the wider profile compares
South Oxfordshire has the stronger combined lower-band tilt: Bands A to C account for 1.5% more of its stock than they do in Tonbridge & Malling. The nearest match still leaves that bottom-of-ladder difference visible.
South Oxfordshire carries 1.2% more of its stock in Bands E and above than Tonbridge & Malling. The extra upper-tail weight is small enough for this to remain the nearest peer, but large enough to distinguish the two areas.
Both profiles peak in Band C, so the peer match agrees on the most common valuation group as well as the full-distribution distance. The band-by-band gaps above show why a shared mode does not make the profiles interchangeable.
Band A is the most stable point in the comparison, with shares of 3.2% and 3.0%. Reading that near-match beside the largest gaps prevents the peer label from hiding where the two published distributions actually agree.
Show every band direction
- Band A is closely balanced
- Band B leans toward South Oxfordshire
- Band C leans toward Tonbridge & Malling
- Band D leans toward Tonbridge & Malling
- Band E leans toward Tonbridge & Malling
- Band F is closely balanced
- Band G leans toward South Oxfordshire
- Band H leans toward South Oxfordshire
This sequence is read from the lowest published band to the highest.
Other close England matches for South Oxfordshire: Vale of White Horse (4.0% redistribution distance); West Berkshire (4.6% redistribution distance); Chichester (5.1% redistribution distance); Wandsworth (5.2% redistribution distance). Ranked across every published band in the England valuation system, this shortlist shows whether Tonbridge & Malling stands alone or sits in a cluster of similarly shaped authorities.
| Band | Properties | Share of stock | Annual charge |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 2,130 | 3.2% | £1,731.71 |
| B | 6,110 | 9.1% | £2,020.33 |
| C | 18,620 | 27.6% | £2,308.95 |
| D | 15,290 | 22.7% | £2,597.57 |
| E | 11,000 | 16.3% | £3,174.81 |
| F | 6,830 | 10.1% | £3,752.05 |
| G | 6,430 | 9.5% | £4,329.28 |
| H | 1,000 | 1.5% | £5,195.14 |
Property-stock source, rounding and weighting notes
Property counts: VOA, Council Tax: stock of properties 2025 (Table CTSOP1.0_SUP, as at 9 September 2025), Open Government Licence v3.0. Counts are published rounded to the nearest 10, so shares are approximate and may not sum to exactly 100%. The stock-weighted average is our calculation: each band's 2026/2027 charge multiplied by its property count, divided by the total. It is a mean across the whole stock, not a bill any individual household receives.
Authorities charging a similar average across their stock
These are the closest authorities to South Oxfordshire on the stock-weighted measure, which is a different ordering from the Band D neighbours above because it accounts for how each area's properties are banded.
- Woking£2,914.95
- Buckinghamshire£2,887.01
- St Albans£2,872.96
- Three Rivers£2,863.88
- Wokingham£2,860.70
South Oxfordshire's nearest year-on-year movers
South Oxfordshire moved Band D from £2,474.44 to £2,597.57 (+4.98%, competition rank 161st of 350). The closest published movements sit with Liverpool, Sunderland, Tandridge.
- Liverpool4.99%
- Sunderland4.99%
- Tandridge4.99%
- Wirral4.99%
- Dacorum4.98%
- Westmorland and Furness4.98%
How South Oxfordshire compares in South East
Among the 64 billing authorities in South East, South Oxfordshire's 2026-27 Band D charge of £2,597.57 ranks 11th of 64, higher than 83% of them (£122.57 above the South East average of £2,475.00). Its nearest-charged neighbours in the region:
Regional high-charge outlier: this authority sits in the costliest fifth of South East.
| Region rank | Council | Band D 2026-27 |
|---|---|---|
| 9th | Waverley | £2,604.87 |
| 10th | Woking | £2,598.04 |
| 11th | South Oxfordshire | £2,597.57 |
| 12th | Tandridge | £2,594.85 |
| 13th | Surrey Heath | £2,585.16 |
Regional rank out of 64 South East billing authorities by 2026-27 Band D charge (1 = dearest). See the full UK ranking or the complete directory.
Questions answered from South Oxfordshire's data
These answers use South Oxfordshire's £2,597.57 Band D rate, the England statutory multipliers, and the VOA stock mix (modal Band C, 39.8% below D).
Is South Oxfordshire Council Tax above the UK average?
South Oxfordshire's 2026-27 Band D rate is £2,597.57, 11.1% above the UK average of £2,337.00. It has competition rank 38th of 350, with equal charges sharing a rank. Nearest published Band D rates sit with Mansfield, Croydon, Woking, Northumberland, then East Devon, Tandridge.
Which councils have charges closest to South Oxfordshire?
The closest published Band D rates are Mansfield (£2,600.38), Croydon (£2,599.91), Woking (£2,598.04), Northumberland (£2,596.94), East Devon (£2,595.46), Tandridge (£2,594.85). The comparison table above shows the six nearest authorities and the exact difference from South Oxfordshire.
What is the average Council Tax bill in South Oxfordshire?
Across South Oxfordshire's 67,410 domestic properties, the stock-weighted average charge is £2,853.05 for 2026-27. That is £255.48 above the £2,597.57 Band D rate, because the most common band here is Band C (27.6% of the stock) and 39.8% of dwellings are banded below D. Closest published housing-stock shapes include Vale of White Horse, West Berkshire, Chichester, Wandsworth. Property counts are from the VOA 2025 stock release; the weighting is our calculation.
How did South Oxfordshire Council Tax change for 2026-27?
Band D moved from £2,474.44 to £2,597.57, a 4.98% rise. Its competition rank by annual increase is 161st of 350; the closest movements include Liverpool, Sunderland, Tandridge.
Advice boundary for South Oxfordshire
They are not personalised advice - expand a question for the figure that matches the tables above for the 2026-27 vintage, then follow the methodology or gov.uk links for a binding bill on a specific property.
Council Tax figure, precept and liability disclaimer
Council Tax charges shown on this page are derived from the published England Band D dataset and statutory England band ratios. They are intended as informational guidance, not as a personalised tax statement or legal advice. Your actual bill depends on your property's assigned band and on any discounts or exemptions that apply to your household. This area Band D is a two-tier total for South Oxfordshire: district charge plus county, police, fire where separate, and the average parish precept across the district. Nearest published Band D rates sit with Mansfield, Croydon, Woking, Northumberland, then East Devon, Tandridge. Closest published housing-stock shapes include Vale of White Horse, West Berkshire, Chichester, Wandsworth. For a binding figure consult your South Oxfordshire Council Tax bill or the official gov.uk Council Tax service. Figures published in 2026 reflect the 2026/2027 financial year only.
UK tools, directories and band challenge
- Compare councils side-by-side →
- Browse all UK councils →
- Band D national rollup →
- Challenge your band guide →
Charges shown for South Oxfordshire are the area Band D and statutory band multiples, already including county, police, fire and average parish precepts where they apply. Nearest published Band D rates sit with Mansfield, Croydon, Woking, Northumberland, then East Devon, Tandridge.