Balgowlah, NSW
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Balgowlah is a leafy residential suburb on the northern shore of Sydney, about twelve kilometres north-east of the city in the Northern Beaches region. Its name, given in 1832, is said to be an Aboriginal word for north harbour, a reference to its position above Port Jackson; in the early days of settlement it was known instead as Little Manly. One of its landmarks is Whitehall, in White Street, once the home of Sir Edmund Barton, Australia's first prime minister, and since 2004 the Norwegian Seamen's Church. The suburb's shops gather along Condamine Street and Sydney Road, where the Stockland centre stands on the site of the old Totem shopping centre. Down by the water, North Harbour Reserve is a favourite picnic spot on the scenic walk towards the Spit Bridge.
Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs
Balgowlah is more socio-economically advantaged than about 99% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 1146, where about 1000 is the national average).
A socio-economic measure from ABS Census data — not a measure of how good a suburb is to live in or visit. How we calculate this.
Is Balgowlah a good place to live?
There’s no single answer — it depends on what matters to you. So instead of one mystery number, we break it down: a transparent score on each part of life we can back with public data, and an honest “not yet” on the parts we can’t.
Strong on the data we score
A weighted blend of the 2 components we can score for Balgowlah from public data. It sits alongside — and reconciles with — the socio-economic Suburb Score above; it is a transparent read, not a complete verdict.
Socio-economic advantage
99/100Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs
Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs — the same ABS SEIFA-based Suburb Score (99/100) shown above. Income, education and occupation, as published by the ABS. · ABS SEIFA 2021
Housing affordability
2/100Among the more expensive suburbs
Median weekly rent was $640 at the 2021 Census — more affordable than about 2% of suburbs we can compare. Housing data only, no valuations. · ABS Census 2021
Not yet scored
We’d rather leave these open than publish a number we can’t stand behind. Here’s where each one stands.
- Amenities & accessNot scored yet — our OpenStreetMap amenity mapping is still rolling out across suburbs.
- Green spaceNot scored yet — our OpenStreetMap green-space mapping is still rolling out across suburbs.
- TransportNot scored yet — our OpenStreetMap public-transport mapping is still rolling out across suburbs.
- SchoolsNot scored yet — school performance (ACARA / ICSEA) needs a data-reuse licence cleared before we can publish it.
- SafetyNot scored yet — Australia has no single open crime dataset and safety data carries defamation and legal care, so it is gated pending a go/no-go and will be data-only when added.
- CommunityNot scored yet — we won't reduce community to a number from a proxy. We'd rather leave it open than publish an invented value judgement.
A transparent read on public data, not a verdict — and not a measure of any person or community. See our methodology for how each component is worked out and why some aren’t scored yet.
Balgowlah at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 8,068
- Median age
- 41
- Median weekly household income
- $2,681
- SEIFA score
- 1146
- Local government area
- Northern Beaches
- Coordinates
- -33.7945, 151.2613
Map of Balgowlah
© OpenStreetMap contributors · View larger map
Housing & property in Balgowlah
What it costs to live in Balgowlah and how residents hold their homes, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census.
- Median rent
- $640
- per week
- Median mortgage
- $3,250
- per month
- Owner-occupied
- 67%
- of dwellings
- Rented
- 31%
- of dwellings
The full tenure and dwelling-type breakdown is in the Balgowlah demographics section below.
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021. © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. See our methodology.
Balgowlah demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Balgowlah using the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census; every percentage is a share of a clearly stated Census count, so each one traces back to the source. At a glance, the largest age group is mid-life (45–64) at 28% and 33% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 1,617 | 20% |
| Youth (15–24) | 838 | 10% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 2,054 | 25% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 2,228 | 28% |
| Seniors (65+) | 1,335 | 17% |
Share of the 8,072 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 1,076 | 34% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 1,035 | 33% |
| Rented | 984 | 31% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,091 | 35% |
| Townhouses & semis | 728 | 23% |
| Flats & apartments | 1,269 | 40% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 3,157 occupied private dwellings in Balgowlah.
- Average household size
- 2.5 people
- Median weekly family income
- $3,462
- Median weekly personal income
- $1,264
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 2,610 (33%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 1,130 (14%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 35 (0%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 4,905 (80%)
- Labour-force participation
- 68.1%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.3%
- Employed full-time
- 2,570
- Employed part-time
- 1,294
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021 (General Community Profile, by Suburb and Locality). © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. How we group bands and derive each share is set out on our methodology page.
Weather and climate in Balgowlah
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Balgowlah is January (average daytime high around 25.7°C) and the coolest is July (around 16.5°C). The area receives roughly 1084 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 25.7°C | 19.3°C | 104 mm |
| Feb | 25.1°C | 19°C | 119 mm |
| Mar | 24°C | 18°C | 186 mm |
| Apr | 21.9°C | 15°C | 100 mm |
| May | 19.2°C | 11.7°C | 56 mm |
| Jun | 16.5°C | 9.8°C | 74 mm |
| Jul | 16.5°C | 8.7°C | 70 mm |
| Aug | 17.3°C | 9.2°C | 67 mm |
| Sep | 19.6°C | 11.3°C | 55 mm |
| Oct | 21.8°C | 13.7°C | 92 mm |
| Nov | 22.8°C | 15.5°C | 78 mm |
| Dec | 24.7°C | 17.5°C | 83 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
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Common questions about Balgowlah
Is Balgowlah a good place to live?
There's no single answer, so we score what the public data can back. On socio-economic advantage and housing affordability, Balgowlah rates 67/100 overall (Strong on the data we score). Public transport, schools and safety aren't scored yet — see our methodology for why.
What is the median rent in Balgowlah?
At the 2021 Census, the median weekly rent in Balgowlah was $640, and the median monthly mortgage repayment was $3,250. These are official ABS Census figures — StreetScout publishes housing data only, with no property valuations or agent referrals.
Where is Balgowlah?
Balgowlah is a suburb of New South Wales, Australia, in the Northern Beaches local government area.
What is the population of Balgowlah?
At the 2021 Census, Balgowlah had a population of about 8,068.
Is Balgowlah an advantaged area?
Balgowlah has an ABS SEIFA score of 1146, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 99 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 99% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Balgowlah?
Balgowlah has average daytime highs of about 21.3°C and overnight lows of about 14.1°C, with roughly 1,084 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
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