What is the employment rate in Laois?

The employment rate in Laois was 57.4% according to Census 2022, compared to a national average of 55.2%. IrelandInsights maps employment at electoral division level for every county in Ireland.

What is the housing tenure breakdown in Laois?

In Laois, 83.1% of households are owner-occupied and 6.2% rent privately, according to Census 2022. The national averages are 76.2% owner-occupied and 11.0% privately rented.

Census Profile · Laois · 2022

County Laois — Home ownership — first in Ireland

Laois ranks first of Ireland's 30 counties for home ownership rate at 83.1%. The national average is 76.2% — a gap of 6.9pp that places Laois at the top of this ranking. Census 2022 data mapped at electoral division level shows the figure is not distributed evenly within the county.

        Laois is +6.9pp vs national on home ownership rate.
      

Key statistics — County Laois

Home ownership

83.1%

#1 of 30 counties

National Average

76.2%

home ownership rate

Employment Rate

57.4%

National: 55.2%

Third-Level

51.2%

National: 52.6%

Top electoral divisions — Owner Occupied in Laois

The electoral divisions within County Laois with the highest owner occupied rate, Census 2022.

Electoral Division	Owner Occupied Rate
1. MONEYMORE	95.8%
2. LACKA	94.7%
3. ROSSMORE	93.8%
4. SHAEN	93.7%
5. REARYMORE	93.1%

Explore Laois data on the map

Every electoral division in County Laois is mapped. Hover to inspect Census 2022 figures or ask the AI analyst for a plain-language explanation.

Home ownership — first in Ireland — Laois map Employment — Laois Housing — Laois

County Laois — what stands out

What stands out?

County Laois has the lowest private renting rate in Ireland — 6.2% in Census 2022.

Why does it matter?

Renting rates reveal the balance between housing tenure types and the affordability of homeownership in a county. High renting indicates either strong demand from a mobile or young population, or property prices too high for first-time buyers. It concentrates housing insecurity when rents rise faster than wages.

How does it compare nationally?

Laois6.2%

National avg9.1%

Difference-2.9pp

Rank26 / 26

What's the likely explanation?

Very low private renting reflects a county where homeownership is the dominant tenure — driven by affordable land, limited rental stock outside the main towns, and a stable, settled population. These counties often attract households priced out of the capital: homeownership here is within reach where it is not in Dublin or Cork, sustaining high ownership rates without the affordability pressure of more expensive coastal counties.

County Laois — census data context

County-level figures aggregate all electoral divisions within Laois. The map reveals the internal variation those county averages suppress — the gap between the most and least deprived EDs in Laois is typically far wider than the county-to-national difference highlighted above. View the full Laois area guide →

Compare counties

Kildare Offaly Tipperary Kilkenny Carlow Dublin Cork

Ireland census guides

→ Where to live in Ireland → Housing crisis by area → Home ownership rates → Education levels → Unemployment by area → Commuter towns → Deprivation map → Population growth

Data: CSO Census 2022 · County Laois · Electoral Division averages · cso.ie/census