Barwon Heads, VIC
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs
Barwon Heads is more socio-economically advantaged than about 95% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 1100, 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 Barwon Heads 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 Barwon Heads 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
95/100Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs
Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs — the same ABS SEIFA-based Suburb Score (95/100) shown above. Income, education and occupation, as published by the ABS. · ABS SEIFA 2021
Housing affordability
11/100Among the more expensive suburbs
Median weekly rent was $450 at the 2021 Census — more affordable than about 11% 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.
Barwon Heads at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 4,353
- Median age
- 46
- Median weekly household income
- $2,226
- SEIFA score
- 1100
- Local government area
- Greater Geelong
- Coordinates
- -38.2747, 144.4886
Map of Barwon Heads
© OpenStreetMap contributors · View larger map
Housing & property in Barwon Heads
What it costs to live in Barwon Heads and how residents hold their homes, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census.
- Median rent
- $450
- per week
- Median mortgage
- $2,184
- per month
- Owner-occupied
- 81%
- of dwellings
- Rented
- 15%
- of dwellings
The full tenure and dwelling-type breakdown is in the Barwon Heads demographics section below.
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021. © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. See our methodology.
Barwon Heads demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Barwon Heads 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 29% and 10% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 868 | 20% |
| Youth (15–24) | 416 | 10% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 771 | 18% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 1,269 | 29% |
| Seniors (65+) | 1,030 | 24% |
Share of the 4,354 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 739 | 47% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 527 | 34% |
| Rented | 241 | 15% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,416 | 91% |
| Townhouses & semis | 94 | 6% |
| Flats & apartments | 44 | 3% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 1,557 occupied private dwellings in Barwon Heads.
- Average household size
- 2.5 people
- Median weekly family income
- $2,773
- Median weekly personal income
- $1,030
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 411 (10%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 68 (2%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 22 (1%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 2,262 (69%)
- Labour-force participation
- 58.3%
- Unemployment rate
- 2.7%
- Employed full-time
- 1,006
- Employed part-time
- 801
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 Barwon Heads
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Barwon Heads is January (average daytime high around 22.7°C) and the coolest is July (around 13.1°C). The area receives roughly 590 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 22.7°C | 16.1°C | 50 mm |
| Feb | 22.3°C | 15.9°C | 28 mm |
| Mar | 21.4°C | 15.3°C | 36 mm |
| Apr | 18.9°C | 13°C | 49 mm |
| May | 16°C | 10.7°C | 50 mm |
| Jun | 13.6°C | 8.9°C | 46 mm |
| Jul | 13.1°C | 8.2°C | 42 mm |
| Aug | 13.6°C | 8.3°C | 49 mm |
| Sep | 15.6°C | 9.4°C | 59 mm |
| Oct | 17.7°C | 10.8°C | 68 mm |
| Nov | 19.1°C | 12.3°C | 60 mm |
| Dec | 21°C | 14.1°C | 53 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
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Common questions about Barwon Heads
Is Barwon Heads 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, Barwon Heads 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 Barwon Heads?
At the 2021 Census, the median weekly rent in Barwon Heads was $450, and the median monthly mortgage repayment was $2,184. These are official ABS Census figures — StreetScout publishes housing data only, with no property valuations or agent referrals.
Where is Barwon Heads?
Barwon Heads is a suburb of Victoria, Australia, in the Greater Geelong local government area.
What is the population of Barwon Heads?
At the 2021 Census, Barwon Heads had a population of about 4,353.
Is Barwon Heads an advantaged area?
Barwon Heads has an ABS SEIFA score of 1100, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 95 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 95% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Barwon Heads?
Barwon Heads has average daytime highs of about 17.9°C and overnight lows of about 11.9°C, with roughly 590 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
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