Crap Towns / Kent / Margate
Margate
63/100Crap Score
Known as Margaluf.
362nd crappest of 984 towns, and 16th in Kent. Higher scores are crapper.
Have your say
Crap Town of the Year 2026/27
See the raceThe public vote. It's separate from the Crap Score, and it closes on 31 December 2027.
Letters from the locals
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agree it's crap have defended it
Margate. Arty now, apparently.
Londoners moved in, opened galleries and pushed the rents up. The aggro stayed.
Margate's got a lovely beach, a big art gallery on the front, arcades, Dreamland and a grotto made of shells that nobody can explain. Londoners have bought it up for holiday lets and the rents have gone through the roof. Arty? It's Margate, mate.
The aggro stayed. Anti-social behaviour and vandalism both run at one and a half times the typical town's rate. 34 serious pollution incidents have been logged in or round the town since 2016, and the old Dreamland cinema has ended up on the at-risk register. The sea's clean, mind, and the sun's out for 1,863 hours a year. Lovely for the second-homers.
What the score is made of
Ten ingredients, each marked out of 100. Higher is crapper.
Margate's 92 for broadband means it's crapper than 92% of towns.
- Broadband92/10021.7% of premises can't get gigabit, January 2026, and 20.8% across the Thanet council area
- Criminal damage and arson87/10010.8 per 1,000 people a year, September 2023 to August 2026
- Serious road collisions86/1003.6 per 10,000 people a year, fatal and serious, 2021 to 2025
- Anti-social behaviour80/10021.8 per 1,000 people a year, September 2023 to August 2026
- Fly-tipping77/10017.3 incidents per 1,000 people a year, Thanet council area, 2022-23 to 2024-25
- Deliberate fires43/1005.5 per 10,000 people a year, April 2023 to March 2026
- Air pollution39/1007.1 µg/m³ of nitrogen dioxide and 6.6 of fine particles, 2024 average
- Sewage spills5/1000.1 spill hours per 10,000 people a year, storm overflows within 1 km, 2024 to 2025
- Food hygiene3/1000.9% rated 0 to 2, of the 550 food businesses with a rating
- Rain3/100108 days of rain a year, at least 1 mm, 1991 to 2020 average
| Pos | Town | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 12 | Ramsgate | 67 |
| 13 | Folkestone | 65 |
| 14 | Herne Bay | 64 |
| 15 | Faversham | 64 |
| 16 | Margate | 63 |
| 17 | Swanley | 59 |
| 18 | Whitstable | 56 |
| 19 | Ashford | 55 |
| 20 | Minster | 54 |
Margate by numbers
Thinking of moving here? Don't say we didn't warn you.
Crime, muck and dodgy water
- 105 crimes per 1,000 people a year (September 2023 to August 2026) Worse: 38% higher than the typical town's 76.2
- 5 reports of fly-tipping on FixMyStreet, the most reported problem in the year to October 2026 Better: 0.8 per 10,000 people, 27% lower than the typical town's 1.1
- 34 serious pollution incidents within 1 km since 2016, the latest in 2026
- 5 of 9 bathing waters here or within 2 km rated Excellent in 2025
What's left on the high street
- 36 pubs, 36 hairdressers, 16 charity shops, 6 bookmakers, 4 vape shops, 5 banks, 1 Greggs on the map here as of 1 October 2026
- 0.0% of takeaways rated 0 to 2 for hygiene (0 of 80) Better: Against the typical town's 4.0%
- 2 bank branch closures announced since 2022 Better: 3.2 per 100,000 people, 6% lower than the typical town's 3.4
- 14 public toilets on the map (October 2026) Better: 2.2 per 10,000 people, 38% higher than the typical town's 1.6
- 2 public swimming pools open Worse: 0.3 per 10,000 people, 57% lower than the typical English town's 0.7
- 1 place on England's Heritage at Risk register
Getting about, getting online, getting rained on
- midnight last bus out on a Wednesday About the same: About the same as the typical town's 12.14am
- 1.1% of premises can't get superfast broadband (January 2026) Worse: 2.2x the typical town's 0.5%
- 15.0% live more than 400 metres from a park or play space About the same: About the same as the typical town's 15.5%
- 1,863 hours of sunshine a year (1991 to 2020 average) Better: 22% higher than the typical town's 1,532
Thanet council
Have a crap-off
Margate against your mate's town, and a match ticket to rub it in.
- ?Fly-tippingper 1,000, council area?
- ?Anti-social behaviourper 1,000 people?
- ?Serious road crashesper 10,000 people?
- ?Sewage spillshours per 10,000 people?
- ?Food hygienerated poor?
- ?Criminal damageper 1,000 people?
- ?Dirty airµg/m³?
- ?No gigabitof premises can't get it?
- ?Deliberate firesper 10,000 people?
- ?Raindays a year?
Ten ingredients. One verdict. Who's crapper? The higher Crap Score takes it.