# Claimant rate: highest and lowest councils in Scotland (August 2026)

Glasgow had the highest claimant rate of Scotland’s 32 councils in August 2026, at 4.9%.

Shetland Islands had the lowest, at 1.2%. The middle council, Scottish Borders, had 2.9%.

| Rank | Area | Claimant rate |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | [Glasgow](https://openindex.co.uk/glasgow) | 4.9% |
| =2 | [Dundee](https://openindex.co.uk/dundee) | 4.2% |
| =2 | [North Ayrshire](https://openindex.co.uk/north-ayrshire) | 4.2% |
| 4 | [West Dunbartonshire](https://openindex.co.uk/west-dunbartonshire) | 3.9% |
| 5 | [Aberdeen](https://openindex.co.uk/aberdeen) | 3.8% |
| 6 | [East Ayrshire](https://openindex.co.uk/east-ayrshire) | 3.7% |
| 7 | [Inverclyde](https://openindex.co.uk/inverclyde) | 3.5% |
| 8 | [Fife](https://openindex.co.uk/fife) | 3.4% |
| 9 | [Angus](https://openindex.co.uk/angus) | 3.3% |
| 10 | [South Ayrshire](https://openindex.co.uk/south-ayrshire) | 3.2% |
| 11 | [North Lanarkshire](https://openindex.co.uk/north-lanarkshire) | 3.1% |
| =12 | [Clackmannanshire](https://openindex.co.uk/clackmannanshire) | 3.0% |
| =12 | [Falkirk](https://openindex.co.uk/falkirk) | 3.0% |
| =12 | [Renfrewshire](https://openindex.co.uk/renfrewshire) | 3.0% |
| =15 | [Dumfries and Galloway](https://openindex.co.uk/dumfries-and-galloway) | 2.9% |
| =15 | [Scottish Borders](https://openindex.co.uk/scottish-borders) | 2.9% |
| =17 | [Edinburgh](https://openindex.co.uk/edinburgh) | 2.8% |
| =17 | [South Lanarkshire](https://openindex.co.uk/south-lanarkshire) | 2.8% |
| 19 | [West Lothian](https://openindex.co.uk/west-lothian) | 2.7% |
| =20 | [Midlothian](https://openindex.co.uk/midlothian) | 2.6% |
| =20 | [Moray](https://openindex.co.uk/moray) | 2.6% |
| =22 | [Argyll and Bute](https://openindex.co.uk/argyll-and-bute) | 2.5% |
| =22 | [East Lothian](https://openindex.co.uk/east-lothian) | 2.5% |
| 24 | [Perth and Kinross](https://openindex.co.uk/perth-and-kinross) | 2.4% |
| =25 | [Highland](https://openindex.co.uk/highland) | 2.3% |
| =25 | [Stirling](https://openindex.co.uk/stirling) | 2.3% |
| 27 | [Aberdeenshire](https://openindex.co.uk/aberdeenshire) | 2.1% |
| 28 | [East Dunbartonshire](https://openindex.co.uk/east-dunbartonshire) | 2.0% |
| 29 | [Na h-Eileanan Siar](https://openindex.co.uk/na-h-eileanan-siar) | 1.9% |
| 30 | [East Renfrewshire](https://openindex.co.uk/east-renfrewshire) | 1.8% |
| 31 | [Orkney Islands](https://openindex.co.uk/orkney-islands) | 1.6% |
| 32 | [Shetland Islands](https://openindex.co.uk/shetland-islands) | 1.2% |

Source: Claimant count (Nomis), ONS via Nomis. Period: August 2026. Period: August 2026.

## Other rankings of this measure

- [UK](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/uk)
- [England](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/england)
- [Northern Ireland](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/northern-ireland)
- [Wales](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/wales)
- [North East](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/north-east)
- [North West](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/north-west)
- [Yorkshire and The Humber](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/yorkshire-and-the-humber)
- [East Midlands](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/east-midlands)
- [West Midlands](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/west-midlands)
- [East of England](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/east-of-england)
- [London](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/london)
- [South East](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/south-east)
- [South West](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/south-west)

- [The map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/claimant-rate)
- [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/claimant-rate)

## How to cite

Source: Open Index, openindex.co.uk. Link to this page, https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/scotland.

Open Index's own text and the figures it works out are licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Source data keeps its publishers' licences, named with each figure. Give each figure's period and source with it.

Snapshot 2026.10.11. The HTML page: https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/scotland