By council
Westminster council tax 2026/27
One of the two lowest Band D charges in England, applied to a borough where large and valuable homes are common.
Westminster, Band G, 2026/27
£1,749a year
First payment £174.25, then 9 of £175.00
| Band G charge | £1,749.25 |
| Bill for the year | £1,749.25 |
Band G at 15/9 of Band D.
Where the council tax goes
How Westminster compares
Band D here is £1,049.55, number 295 of 296 in England (1 = dearest). The same band in Wandsworth, the cheapest, costs £1,714 on the same terms.
Think the band is wrong? How a band challenge works
Westminster City Council sets a Band D council tax of £1,049.55 for 2026/27, up 3.0 % on £1,019.00, which places it second lowest of the 296 English billing authorities. Of that sum £537.74 is the city council's own charge and £510.51 the Greater London Authority precept. What makes Westminster unusual is the spread of bands: the city has many homes in Bands F, G and H, where the ratios to Band D are thirteen, fifteen and eighteen ninths. A Band G home with two adults pays £1,749.25, still less than an average Band D home in England at £2,391.52, and Band H pays £2,099.10. Homes in Queen's Park and Montpelier Square pay an extra local precept on top of these figures, and an adult living alone pays 25 % less in every band.
Figures checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How the bill is worked out
Westminster band charges
| Band | Share of D | Two adults | Living alone | Each of 10 payments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Band A | 6/9 | £699.70 | £524.77 | £69.97 |
| Band B | 7/9 | £816.32 | £612.24 | £81.63 |
| Band C | 8/9 | £932.93 | £699.70 | £93.29 |
| Band D | 9/9 | £1,049.55 | £787.16 | £104.96 |
| Band E | 11/9 | £1,282.78 | £962.08 | £128.28 |
| Band F | 13/9 | £1,516.02 | £1,137.01 | £151.60 |
| Band G | 15/9 | £1,749.25 | £1,311.94 | £174.93 |
| Band H | 18/9 | £2,099.10 | £1,574.32 | £209.91 |
These are the charges for the unparished city. The figure for each band is Band D multiplied by the fraction set in the band rules, so the gap between bands widens as you go up: Band H pays three times Band A. A couple in a Band H mansion flat therefore pays £1,399 more than a couple in a Band A studio on the same street.
Queen's Park and Montpelier Square
Two parts of the city carry a charge that the rest of Westminster does not. Queen's Park is London's only parish, and its council raises a precept that Westminster collects with the city charge. Montpelier Square has a separate precept of its own. The council's 2026/27 tables give a Band D total of £1,100.16 in Queen's Park and £1,598.70 in Montpelier Square. The government figure of £1,049.55 includes these precepts only as an average of £1.30 spread across the whole city, so residents of both areas should read the line on their own bill.
Westminster beside other central London authorities
Central London has the lowest Band D charges in England, but not all of it. The table ranks Westminster and its neighbours from the cheapest Band D and adds Bands F and H, the bands where much of central London housing sits.
| Authority | Band D | Band F | Band H | Change on 2025/26 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wandsworth | £1,028.21 | £1,485.19 | £2,056.42 | 3.1 % |
| Westminster | £1,049.55 | £1,516.02 | £2,099.10 | 3.0 % |
| City of London | £1,329.56 | £1,920.48 | £2,659.12 | 4.4 % |
| Hammersmith and Fulham | £1,519.51 | £2,194.85 | £3,039.02 | 4.7 % |
| Kensington and Chelsea | £1,666.65 | £2,407.38 | £3,333.30 | 4.7 % |
| Lambeth | £2,047.11 | £2,956.94 | £4,094.22 | 4.8 % |
| Camden | £2,207.55 | £3,188.68 | £4,415.10 | 4.8 % |
The London page covers every borough. Because a high band costs so much more than a low one, a band that is wrong by one step costs real money here; the GOV.UK challenge service and the challenge guide explain when a review can be asked for.
Second homes and empty flats
Westminster applies the maximum premiums allowed in England. A furnished flat that is no one's main home pays double the band charge: in Band H that is £4,198.20 a year instead of £2,099.10. A home empty and unfurnished for more than 12 months pays 100 % extra, 200 % after five years and 300 % after ten, so a Band F flat empty for a decade costs £6,064.08. The government guidance on premiums lists the exceptions, such as homes on the market for up to a year or annexes used as part of the main home, and the GOV.UK summary explains how to tell the council. The empty property page goes through the tiers in detail.
A person living alone in Westminster gets 25 % off whatever the band, which in Band G is £1,311.94 for the year.