By region
East of England council tax 2026/27
The region with the most shire districts, where five county councils take the lion's share of most bills.
Colchester, Band D, 2026/27
£2,283a year
First payment £230.85, then 9 of £228.00
| Band D charge | £2,282.85 |
| Bill for the year | £2,282.85 |
Band D at 9/9 of Band D.
Where the council tax goes
How Colchester compares
Band D here is £2,282.85, number 251 of 296 in England (1 = dearest). The same band in Wandsworth, the cheapest, costs £1,028 on the same terms.
Think the band is wrong? How a band challenge works
The East of England has 45 billing authorities, 39 of them shire districts under five county councils: Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The other 6 are unitary councils: Bedford, Central Bedfordshire, Luton, Peterborough, Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock. For 2026/27, Band D for two adults runs from £2,254.68 in Thurrock to £2,556.40 in Huntingdonshire, a narrow range for so many councils, with a simple average of £2,391.20. In the Cambridgeshire districts and Peterborough the bill also carries a mayoral precept of £36.00 at Band D for the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority. Parish and town councils cover most of the rural parts of the region, and their precepts explain much of the spread between neighbouring districts in the same county, often more than the districts' own charges do.
Figures checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How the bill is worked out
Every council in the East of England
| Council | Band A | Band D | Band H | Band D 2025/26 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Huntingdonshire | £1,704.27 | £2,556.40 | £5,112.80 | £2,439.67 | 4.8 % |
| Fenland | £1,691.83 | £2,537.74 | £5,075.48 | £2,432.81 | 4.3 % |
| South Cambridgeshire | £1,690.83 | £2,536.25 | £5,072.50 | £2,414.52 | 5.0 % |
| Central Bedfordshire | £1,677.44 | £2,516.16 | £5,032.32 | £2,394.14 | 5.1 % |
| Norwich | £1,668.96 | £2,503.44 | £5,006.88 | £2,391.59 | 4.7 % |
| East Cambridgeshire | £1,656.79 | £2,485.18 | £4,970.36 | £2,374.13 | 4.7 % |
| South Norfolk | £1,655.25 | £2,482.87 | £4,965.74 | £2,367.89 | 4.9 % |
| Bedford | £1,647.83 | £2,471.74 | £4,943.48 | £2,350.94 | 5.1 % |
| Ipswich | £1,645.50 | £2,468.25 | £4,936.50 | £2,358.54 | 4.7 % |
| Cambridge | £1,644.68 | £2,467.02 | £4,934.04 | £2,355.41 | 4.7 % |
| North Norfolk | £1,639.95 | £2,459.93 | £4,919.86 | £2,341.13 | 5.1 % |
| East Hertfordshire | £1,636.52 | £2,454.78 | £4,909.56 | £2,339.63 | 4.9 % |
| Welwyn Hatfield | £1,634.84 | £2,452.26 | £4,904.52 | £2,333.46 | 5.1 % |
| North Hertfordshire | £1,632.35 | £2,448.52 | £4,897.04 | £2,332.61 | 5.0 % |
| Watford | £1,631.13 | £2,446.70 | £4,893.40 | £2,343.38 | 4.4 % |
| Breckland | £1,629.11 | £2,443.67 | £4,887.34 | £2,328.59 | 4.9 % |
| Luton | £1,626.62 | £2,439.93 | £4,879.86 | £2,320.43 | 5.1 % |
| Broadland | £1,625.19 | £2,437.78 | £4,875.56 | £2,327.99 | 4.7 % |
| Kings Lynn and West Norfolk | £1,620.09 | £2,430.13 | £4,860.26 | £2,318.63 | 4.8 % |
| Three Rivers | £1,614.87 | £2,422.31 | £4,844.62 | £2,306.47 | 5.0 % |
| St Albans | £1,612.81 | £2,419.22 | £4,838.44 | £2,305.95 | 4.9 % |
| Great Yarmouth | £1,609.61 | £2,414.41 | £4,828.82 | £2,305.13 | 4.7 % |
| Dacorum | £1,605.67 | £2,408.51 | £4,817.02 | £2,294.23 | 5.0 % |
| Hertsmere | £1,603.89 | £2,405.83 | £4,811.66 | £2,289.22 | 5.1 % |
| Stevenage | £1,594.65 | £2,391.97 | £4,783.94 | £2,281.28 | 4.9 % |
| Rochford | £1,575.65 | £2,363.48 | £4,726.96 | £2,268.00 | 4.2 % |
| West Suffolk | £1,567.65 | £2,351.47 | £4,702.94 | £2,243.00 | 4.8 % |
| Babergh | £1,561.03 | £2,341.55 | £4,683.10 | £2,233.16 | 4.9 % |
| East Suffolk | £1,556.53 | £2,334.80 | £4,669.60 | £2,222.36 | 5.1 % |
| Uttlesford | £1,555.88 | £2,333.82 | £4,667.64 | £2,237.45 | 4.3 % |
| Maldon | £1,552.25 | £2,328.37 | £4,656.74 | £2,232.83 | 4.3 % |
| Basildon | £1,551.49 | £2,327.24 | £4,654.48 | £2,244.63 | 3.7 % |
| Castle Point | £1,545.75 | £2,318.63 | £4,637.26 | £2,227.21 | 4.1 % |
| Mid Suffolk | £1,544.59 | £2,316.88 | £4,633.76 | £2,208.43 | 4.9 % |
| Broxbourne | £1,537.62 | £2,306.43 | £4,612.86 | £2,198.11 | 4.9 % |
| Chelmsford | £1,533.45 | £2,300.18 | £4,600.36 | £2,206.97 | 4.2 % |
| Harlow | £1,532.46 | £2,298.69 | £4,597.38 | £2,216.43 | 3.7 % |
| Peterborough | £1,528.98 | £2,293.47 | £4,586.94 | £2,185.72 | 4.9 % |
| Colchester | £1,521.90 | £2,282.85 | £4,565.70 | £2,192.08 | 4.1 % |
| Braintree | £1,520.23 | £2,280.34 | £4,560.68 | £2,194.67 | 3.9 % |
| Epping Forest | £1,518.14 | £2,277.21 | £4,554.42 | £2,186.69 | 4.1 % |
| Tendring | £1,513.09 | £2,269.63 | £4,539.26 | £2,178.46 | 4.2 % |
| Southend-on-Sea | £1,510.11 | £2,265.17 | £4,530.34 | £2,154.65 | 5.1 % |
| Brentwood | £1,505.43 | £2,258.14 | £4,516.28 | £2,166.72 | 4.2 % |
| Thurrock | £1,503.12 | £2,254.68 | £4,509.36 | £2,145.06 | 5.1 % |
Five counties, five county shares
- Essex: 12 districts, average Band D £2,303.21, county share £1,641.96
- Hertfordshire: 10 districts, average Band D £2,415.65, county share £1,858.19
- Norfolk: 7 districts, average Band D £2,453.18, county share £1,843.38
- Suffolk: 5 districts, average Band D £2,362.59, county share £1,731.69
- Cambridgeshire: 5 districts, average Band D £2,516.52, county share £1,785.42
Because the county share is the same across each county, the ranking inside a county is set by two things: the district's own charge and the average parish precept. In Hertfordshire, for instance, St Albans and Watford share Hertfordshire County Council's charge, but Watford's district charge is higher and St Albans has more parishes.
Unitary towns
Luton, Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock are urban unitary councils, each with a single council charge. Central Bedfordshire and Bedford replaced Bedfordshire County Council in 2009. Peterborough is unitary but inside the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough mayoral area.
Coast and countryside
North Norfolk and the Suffolk coast have many second homes and holiday lets. Their councils can now charge a premium of up to 100 % on second homes and up to 300 % on homes empty for ten years, explained in the guides on second homes and empty homes. Check your district's own rate: the calculator lets you enter it.
Parishes and towns
Parish precepts vary more in this region than almost anywhere. Central Bedfordshire has 79 parish and town councils, averaging £164.31 at Band D, which helps place it near the top of the table. Watford has none, so its bill is made of the county, district, police and fire shares only. Within a district with many parishes, a home in a town with a large town council can pay noticeably more than a home in a small village.
Your annual bill names your parish and gives its own charge for your band. The figures in the table and the calculator use the district average.
Using the calculator
The calculator above opens on Colchester, Band D. Choose your council, band and household; the result shows the annual bill, the monthly instalments and how it splits between county, district, police, fire and parish.