Commuting patterns in Wales by measure and year
See what variables and values are shown in your table
| Variable | Visibility | Selected values | Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Shown in table | All 25 values | Change values |
| Area | Shown in table | All 28 values | Change values |
| Data description | Shown in table | All 5 values | Change values |
Table
Standard shorthand is used in this table: [r] = revised, [u] = low reliability, [x] = not available.
| Data values | Data description | Year | Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,458,500 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Wales |
| 324,100 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | North Wales |
| 407,100 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Mid and South West Wales |
| 727,300 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | South East Wales |
| 96,100 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Mid Wales |
| 310,900 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | South West Wales |
| 32,300 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Isle of Anglesey |
| 57,200 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Gwynedd |
| 52,100 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Conwy |
| 43,000 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Denbighshire |
| 74,400 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Flintshire |
| 65,100 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Wrexham |
| 37,200 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Ceredigion |
| 57,600 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Pembrokeshire |
| 80,000 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Carmarthenshire |
| 109,900 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Swansea |
| 63,500 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Neath Port Talbot |
| 64,000 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Bridgend |
| 59,400 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Vale of Glamorgan |
| 198,800 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Cardiff |
| 100,300 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Rhondda Cynon Taf |
| 87,700 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Caerphilly |
| 28,200 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Blaenau Gwent |
| 44,200 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Torfaen |
| 43,400 | Total number of working residents in the area | 2025 | Monmouthshire |
Next update expected:April 2027
Updates
- 14th May 2026
Annual update.
- 16th January 2026
- Dataset first published.
Main information
- Designation
- Official statistics
- Data provider
- Office for National Statistics (ONS)
- Data source
- Annual Population Survey (APS)
- Time period covered
- January 2001 to December 2025
Overview
- Summary of dataset and variables
This dataset provides information on commuting patterns by local authority in Wales and flows between Wales and the rest of the UK.
- Data collection or calculation
These data are taken from the annual datasets from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) carried out by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The availability of local authority data is dependent upon on an enhanced sample for the annual LFS, which commenced in 2001.
For years labelled 2001 to 2003 in this dataset, the actual periods covered are the 12 months running from March in the year given to February in the following year (e.g. 2001 = 1 March 2001 to 28 February 2002).
Since 2004, the annual data have been produced on a rolling annual basis and updated every three months, and the dataset is now referred to as the Annual Population Survey (APS). The rolling annual averages presented here are on a calendar year basis starting from 2004.
- Statistical quality
Annual Population Survey (APS) responses are weighted to official population projections. The projections for 2020 were 2018-based, and, therefore, were based on demographic trends that pre-dated the COVID-19 pandemic. To allow for different trends during the pandemic the responses for the APS have been reweighted on the 9 September 2021 to new populations derived using growth rates from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Real Time Information (RTI). The reweighting has been applied from year ending March 2020 data onwards and gives improved estimates of both rates and levels.
The changes ONS have made to the weighting should reduce the bias of estimates at high levels of aggregation. Some smaller breakdowns may be impacted negatively and more extreme changes could be seen given the reduced size of the underlying sample since the start of the pandemic.
As the data come from a survey, the results are sample-based estimates and therefore subject to differing degrees of sampling variability, i.e. the true value for any measure lies in a differing range about the estimated value. This range or sampling variability increases as the detail in the data increases, for example individual local authority data are subject to higher variability than Wales data.
- Rounding applied
Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred and so there may be some apparent slight discrepancies between the sum of constituent items and the totals as shown.
- Related reports
Published by
- Organisation
- Welsh Government
- Contact email
- labourmarket.stats@gov.wales