By council
Newcastle upon Tyne council tax 2026/27
A city bill with a few parishes on its northern edge and police and fire shares common to Tyneside.
Newcastle upon Tyne, Band A, 2026/27
£1,695a year
First payment £173.79, then 9 of £169.00
| Band A charge | £1,694.79 |
| Bill for the year | £1,694.79 |
Band A at 6/9 of Band D.
Where the council tax goes
How Newcastle upon Tyne compares
Band D here is £2,542.19, number 68 of 296 in England (1 = dearest). The same band in Wandsworth, the cheapest, costs £685 on the same terms.
Think the band is wrong? How a band challenge works
For 2026/27, Newcastle City Council has set an average Band D council tax of £2,542.19, an increase of 5.3 % on the previous £2,413.15. Among the 12 councils of the North East it is 8th from the top, in a region where Band D charges are generally above the England average of £2,391.52. Two adults in a Band A home, the lowest band, pay £1,694.79 this year, and a single adult in the same home £1,271.09. Of the Band D total, £214.34 is the police precept and £105.11 the fire precept, both shared with the other Tyne and Wear councils. A handful of parishes in the north and west of the city add a small local charge; elsewhere there is none. The figures come from the government's March 2026 tables.
Figures checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How the bill is worked out
Bands A to H in Newcastle
| Band | Share of D | Two adults | Living alone | Each of 10 payments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Band A | 6/9 | £1,694.79 | £1,271.09 | £169.48 |
| Band B | 7/9 | £1,977.26 | £1,482.94 | £197.73 |
| Band C | 8/9 | £2,259.72 | £1,694.79 | £225.97 |
| Band D | 9/9 | £2,542.19 | £1,906.64 | £254.22 |
| Band E | 11/9 | £3,107.12 | £2,330.34 | £310.71 |
| Band F | 13/9 | £3,672.05 | £2,754.04 | £367.21 |
| Band G | 15/9 | £4,236.98 | £3,177.74 | £423.70 |
| Band H | 18/9 | £5,084.38 | £3,813.28 | £508.44 |
The table uses the city's average Band D, which includes £1.53 of parish precepts spread over every home. Outside the six parished areas the true charge is a pound or two lower at Band D.
One police force, two fire arrangements
The police precept of £214.34 at Band D is the same across the five Tyne and Wear councils and Northumberland. The fire precept of £105.11 is paid only in Tyne and Wear; Northumberland shows no separate fire line in the government table. No combined authority or mayoral precept appears on a Newcastle bill this year. Newcastle City Council keeps £2,221.21, with £42.31 of it raised for adult social care.
| Council | Band A | Band B | Band D | Fire at D |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gateshead | £1,810.54 | £2,112.30 | £2,715.81 | £105.11 |
| Northumberland | £1,731.29 | £2,019.84 | £2,596.94 | none |
| Newcastle upon Tyne | £1,694.79 | £1,977.26 | £2,542.19 | £105.11 |
| North Tyneside | £1,641.18 | £1,914.71 | £2,461.77 | £105.11 |
| South Tyneside | £1,622.95 | £1,893.45 | £2,434.43 | £105.11 |
| Sunderland | £1,464.76 | £1,708.89 | £2,197.14 | £105.11 |
Newcastle sits in the middle of the group, cheaper than Gateshead and Northumberland, dearer than North and South Tyneside and well above Sunderland, which has the lowest Band D of any council in the North East. The North East overview adds Durham, Teesside and Darlington.
Student houses and halls
Student housing follows national rules, the same in Jesmond as anywhere in England. A house where everyone is a full-time student is exempt, and halls of residence are outside council tax altogether. The GOV.UK guidance for students and the student page explain who qualifies and what happens over the summer between courses. Landlords of houses in multiple occupation are usually the liable person instead of the tenants.
Empty homes and second homes
The city's website lists a 100 % premium on furnished second homes from April 2025, and premiums of 100 %, 200 % and 300 % on homes empty and unfurnished for one, five and ten years. The national rules list the exceptions; the empty property guide explains the tiers.
Questioning your band
Bands were set on 1991 values and are not reviewed automatically. If similar homes in your street sit in a lower band, the band challenge guide sets out how to ask the Valuation Office for a review, and the risk that the band could rise as well as fall. Keep paying the current bill while the review runs: if the band is lowered, the council refunds the difference for the period covered, and the calculator above shows what the new band would cost.