United Kingdom / Western Europe
Barnsley is an indexed city in United Kingdom (Western Europe), with a metropolitan population of about ~245K. This profile brings together deterministic city-intelligence indicators for Barnsley spanning cost of living, climate, safety and quality of life, economy and jobs, education, and healthcare. Barnsley is a western europe city of about ~245K in United Kingdom. On the composite city-intelligence score, Barnsley sits below the indexed median, with practical gaps to close (63/100).
8 of 8 published intelligence dimensions. Positions compare Barnsley with other indexed cities in United Kingdom.
Strongest in United Kingdom
Trade-offs in United Kingdom
Where a position is shown, it compares Barnsley with the other indexed cities in United Kingdom — using the data currently published on this site, not any external benchmark. Cities whose indicators are still pending integration are excluded from those comparisons entirely, and no position is shown for a country with fewer than 10 comparable cities. Where too many cities share the same published value to separate them honestly, the card says “Typical for this country” instead of a stronger claim, and positions describe rank order rather than a fixed percentage.
Cities with comparable characteristics based on the indicators currently published by Global City Intelligence.
Cities that stay broadly comparable to Barnsley while improving one named indicator. Each result states what it gains and what it gives up.
Choose an indicator to see alternatives.
Recommendations use the indicators currently published on this site — they are not external rankings. Each indicator is scaled to a common range before cities are compared, so no single measure dominates because of its units, and only cities with a complete set of published indicators take part. Cities whose data is still pending integration are excluded entirely. An alternative must stay broadly comparable to Barnsley and improve the indicator you chose by a margin large enough to be meaningful rather than rounding noise; where it gives something up in exchange, that is stated on the card.
Image credit: Image: Jonosunde / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Composite profile
63/100
Use the Barnsley profile to compare affordability, livability, and economic indicators against other indexed cities in United Kingdom and across Western Europe, and to explore nearby nature and weekend destinations.
63/100
Composite directional score across affordability, air quality, clean energy, and resilience.
Directional
Directional indicators pending integration of verified city-level data.
See country hub
Emergency, healthcare, and transport verification status appears on the country hub.
The table is part of the initial server-rendered HTML and mirrors the key city score cards.
| Metric | Value | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Overall score | 63/100 | Composite score across major city intelligence modules. |
| Cost of Living | 59/100 | Barnsley's cost-of-living profile is a directional indicator pending integration of verified city-level data; structured benchmark context applies. |
| Air Quality | 67/100 | Barnsley's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Energy | 60/100 | Barnsley's energy-readiness profile is a directional indicator that combines national policy framing with city-level adaptation context. |
| Safety | 63/100 | Barnsley's safety profile is a directional indicator; verified country-level emergency profiles attach via the country hub where available. |
| Internet Speed | 62/100 | Barnsley's connectivity profile is a directional indicator combining national digital-readiness context with widely cited speed-test references. |
| Climate Risk | 62/100 | Barnsley's climate-risk profile is a directional indicator combining regional hazard categories with national adaptation capacity. |
| Resilience | 62/100 | Climate adaptation and infrastructure continuity context. |
Safety, air quality, internet speed and energy for Barnsley, each as a 0–100 GCI model indicator.
A GCI model indicator for orientation (model edition 2025), not an official statistic. How it is built.
A GCI model indicator for orientation (model edition 2025), not an official statistic. How it is built.
A GCI model indicator for orientation (model edition 2025), not an official statistic. How it is built.
A GCI model indicator for orientation (model edition 2025), not an official statistic. How it is built.
Deterministic safety estimates from our index — planning signals derived from country priors and city data, not official crime statistics.
Barnsley is estimated to be a generally safe city (79/100 in our safety index), with solid personal-safety indicators.
A composite quality-of-life estimate and its component indicators.
Barnsley has a very high quality-of-life estimate (82/100), with notable strengths in healthcare, green space, cleanliness and infrastructure.
How the city scores for raising a family, with the indicators that drive it.
Barnsley scores very high for family living (82/100), helped by education access, safety, parks and green space and healthcare.
Suitability for remote workers, based on connectivity, mobility, and livability.
Barnsley is high for remote workers (73/100), based on connectivity, walkability, safety and overall livability and day-to-day amenities.
Suitability for retirement, weighing healthcare, affordability, climate, and environment.
Barnsley is high for retirement (77/100), appealing for healthcare access and a clean environment.
Local public safety guidance for Barnsley, with the country-level emergency contacts that apply when calling for police, fire, or ambulance.
| Service | Number | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Universal emergency | 99924/7 | 999 is the primary UK emergency number; 112 also connects to the same service from any phone. |
For the universal emergency contacts that apply in Barnsley, including police, fire, and ambulance, see the United Kingdom emergency profile.
Each emergency contact above is attributed to an official emergency service or government publisher. Confirm current numbers directly with these sources.
Used as the primary attribution for the EU-wide 112 universal emergency number on European country profiles.
Last verified: 2026-05-16
Methodology and the wider source registry are documented on the scoring methodology and data sources pages.
Healthcare context for Barnsley, with national-level information from United Kingdom where city-specific data is not yet verified. This is informational only and does not provide medical advice.
For the national healthcare and public-health context that applies in Barnsley, see the United Kingdom healthcare profile.
Official hospital registry
NHS England service finder for locating hospitals and other NHS services by postcode.
Last verified: 2026-05-16
Each entry above is attributed to an official government, public health, or recognised health-system publisher. Confirm current information directly with these sources.
Used as the primary attribution for United Kingdom public-health and hospital information.
Used as the official England hospital registry reference for verified facility lookups.
Last verified: 2026-05-16
Related sections: emergency and public safety, scoring methodology, and data sources.
Local mobility context for Barnsley, with national-level context from United Kingdom where city-specific data is not yet verified. This is informational only.
For national transport authorities and operators that apply in Barnsley, see the United Kingdom transport profile.
Each entry above is attributed to an official transport authority, national operator, airport publisher, or government source. Confirm current information directly with these publishers.
Used as the primary attribution for United Kingdom national transport context.
Used as the primary attribution for United Kingdom aviation authority information.
Used as the primary attribution for Great Britain rail infrastructure information.
Last verified: 2026-05-16
Related sections: emergency and public safety, healthcare and hospitals, cities directory, countries directory, scoring methodology, data sources.
Source-attributed air-quality dataset for Barnsley. Verified measurements are surfaced when published from accepted official datasets; transparent fallback is shown otherwise.
Source-attributed values for Barnsley will appear here after the platform integrates verified measurements from accepted official publishers. Until then, structured air-quality module context remains available on the dedicated module page.
| Metric | Value | Data year | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air quality | Verified air-quality measurements are not yet published for this location. | ||
Global City Intelligence — air-quality dataset
Verified data unavailableThe air-quality dataset begins empty by design. Verified city-level measurements appear here only after they are sourced from accepted publishers (WHO, EEA, US EPA, OpenAQ, OECD, or official national/city environmental agencies).
Numeric measurements appear in this section only after they are sourced from accepted official publishers. The dataset is independently validated at build time; malformed records cannot ship to production.
Quick, evidence-based answers about Barnsley drawn from this profile's indexed cost, climate, safety, economy, education, healthcare and nearby-nature data. Figures are deterministic estimates for orientation — verify specifics with official sources.
Yes — excellent quality of life (82/100), with nearby nature such as Locke Park, Penny Pie Park.
Excellent (82/100) on safety, schools and green space.
Around average cost; about £1,510/month for one person (estimate).
Late spring to early autumn; warmest in Jul, coldest in Jan.
Mainly tourism, hospitality, technology.
An oceanic climate, averaging about 8.8°C.
Higher education is strong (70/100).
Healthcare access is strong (70/100).
Retirement suitability is strong (69/100).
Within ~170 km: Locke Park, Penny Pie Park.
Rankings and topic pages for Barnsley.
Compare this city against other indexed cities in crawlable ranking tables.
Cost of living estimates for Barnsley — monthly budgets, rent, food, and transport in the local currency, plus an affordability score for comparison. Planning estimates derived from country baselines, not live prices.
Climate profile for Barnsley — Oceanic climate, annual average 8.8°C, comfort score 59/100. Month-by-month temperatures, rainfall, sunshine, and the best months to visit. Deterministic planning estimates, not a forecast.
Economy and jobs profile for Barnsley — tourism economy, economy score 75/100, key industries including tourism, hospitality, technology. Employment, salary, startup, remote-work, and career indicators. Deterministic planning estimates.
Education profile for Barnsley — regional education center, education score 69/100, 4 representative universities, plus research, student life, and international-student indicators. Deterministic dataset, not institutional rankings.
Healthcare and retirement profile for Barnsley — regional healthcare center, healthcare score 70/100, retirement score 69/100. Medical access, specialist and emergency care, affordability, and retirement suitability. Deterministic planning estimates.
Source-attributed visual context for Barnsley using verified Wikimedia imagery from the existing media catalog, alongside structured city intelligence and planning links. Not a tourism guide or attractions ranking.
Weekend trip planning checklist for Barnsley — links into arrival planning, Summer 2026 travel context, visual orientation, budget tools, transport, public safety, and healthcare context. Not an itinerary, events calendar, hotel-price guide, restaurant guide, or tourism ranking.
Source-backed nearby place records for local-first weekend planning, with verification status, official source links, Wikidata identity, and visual context.
Estimate a monthly budget for Barnsley using your own housing, food, transport, healthcare, and lifestyle inputs. Planning estimator only — not an official cost-of-living measurement.
Plan a trip budget for Barnsley using your own accommodation, food, local transport, activities, travel, healthcare buffer, and emergency buffer inputs. Planning estimator only — not an official travel cost estimate.
Barnsley across Global City Intelligence — comparisons, rankings, places and editorial coverage.
Global ranking pages. Linking to one says nothing about how Barnsley places in it.
27 indexed destinations within reach — 10 cities and 17 natural places — grouped by measured straight-line distance.
17 classified outdoor destinations within weekend reach, grouped by what kind of place they are. Distances are straight-line kilometres from the city centre.
Where else nearby you could spend a day or a weekend from Barnsley. Links are derived from geographic proximity, shared region, shared natural-recreation areas, transport corridors, and country borders — not popularity or tourism rankings.
Nearby city · about 19 km from Barnsley. Explore Sheffield's city intelligence profile.
Nearby city · about 28 km from Barnsley. Explore Leeds's city intelligence profile.
Nearby city · about 37 km from Barnsley. Explore Bradford's city intelligence profile.
Nearby city · about 47 km from Barnsley. Explore Stockport's city intelligence profile.
Nearby city · about 51 km from Barnsley. Explore Manchester's city intelligence profile.
Nearby city · about 51 km from Barnsley. Explore York's city intelligence profile.
Nearby city · about 63 km from Barnsley. Explore Bolton's city intelligence profile.
Nearby city · about 70 km from Barnsley. Explore Nottingham's city intelligence profile.
Nearby city · about 70 km from Barnsley. Explore Lincoln's city intelligence profile.
Nearby city · about 70 km from Barnsley. Explore Derby's city intelligence profile.
Common questions about living in, visiting, working in, studying in and retiring to Barnsley, answered from the indexed cost-of-living, climate, safety, economy, education, healthcare and nearby-nature data on this profile.
Barnsley has a very high quality-of-life estimate (82/100), with notable strengths in healthcare, green space, cleanliness and infrastructure. Visitors can also reach nature such as Locke Park, Penny Pie Park and Cudworth Park within weekend range.
Barnsley has a very high quality-of-life estimate (82/100), with notable strengths in healthcare, green space, cleanliness and infrastructure. It indexes 82/100 for overall quality of life.
A single resident of Barnsley spends roughly £1,510 per month, with a one-bedroom rent near £801. Overall the city is around average cost for the United Kingdom. These are modelled estimates, not live quotes — verify locally.
Plan for around-average living costs and check current rents before relocating. Barnsley is high for remote workers (73/100), based on connectivity, walkability, safety and overall livability and day-to-day amenities.
Barnsley's labour market is strong, with opportunities concentrated in tourism and hospitality, technology and education and research. Barnsley has a tourism-driven economy with strengths in tourism, hospitality and technology.
Barnsley offers strong infrastructure and amenities for remote professionals, with a remote-work score of 80/100.
Barnsley is a regional education center with a mix of universities and research activity in our dataset, spanning fields such as Economics, Law and Medicine.
Barnsley offers a strong student environment, supported by walkable neighborhoods, strong quality of life and good connectivity.
Barnsley has a regional healthcare center, supported by hospitals, specialist services, and public-health infrastructure, with a healthcare score of 70/100. Residents have strong access to healthcare across primary, specialist, and emergency care.
Barnsley offers a combination of healthcare access, safety, and amenities that may appeal to retirees, with a retirement score of 69/100. Residents benefit from parks and green space, walkable streets and broad urban amenities and day-to-day services.
Barnsley has an oceanic climate, averaging about 8.8°C annually with roughly 1100 mm of rain. The hottest month is Jul and the coldest Jan. The driest is typically Jun.
Barnsley is estimated to be a generally safe city (79/100 in our safety index), with solid personal-safety indicators.
Barnsley indexes a walkability score of 83 and a cycling score of 64 out of 100. Check the local operator for live transit routes and fares.
Nature destinations within about 170 km of Barnsley include Locke Park, Penny Pie Park and Cudworth Park. Each is linked with its official source on the profile.
Barnsley scores very high for family living (82/100), helped by education access, safety, parks and green space and healthcare.
Barnsley rates 52/100 for outdoor lifestyle and 93/100 for green space. Nearby nature such as Locke Park, Penny Pie Park and Cudworth Park supports day hikes, water activities and weekend trips.
Use the Barnsley profile to compare affordability, livability, and economic indicators against other indexed cities in United Kingdom and across Western Europe, and to explore nearby nature and weekend destinations. Its standout dimensions are air quality (67/100) and safety (63/100). The area most worth watching is cost of living (59/100), where the model registers practical gaps. Data year 2025; last updated 2026-05-16. Drawn from 4 institutional references.
Country context is available on the United Kingdom country page. Related rankings include Overall Intelligence, Quality of Life, Remote Work. See where Barnsley appears in global rankings or read the scoring methodology.
Structured indicators on this page are directional and intended for orientation. Verified datasets are being integrated; official sources should be used for critical decisions.
4 institutional references inform this view, listed below with reliability notes. Structured indicators on this page are directional and intended for orientation; verified datasets are being integrated and official sources should be used for critical decisions.
Used as a policy and methodology reference for urban exposure and resilience signals.
Used where European city comparisons need monitored air-quality context.
Used as an energy-resource and weather-normalization reference.
Used to explain urban climate vulnerability and adaptation scoring logic.