Bathurst, NSW

By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan · Updated 30 May 2026

Bathurst sits on the Wiradjuri lands of the Central Tablelands, about 200 kilometres west-north-west of Sydney and some 650 metres up on the Macquarie River. Australia's oldest inland British settlement, it was proclaimed by Governor Macquarie in 1815 and named after Henry Bathurst, the 3rd Earl Bathurst. The district was country of the Muurrai clan of the Wiradjuri people, who are said to have known it as dalman, often translated as a place of plenty. Payable gold was struck nearby at Ophir in 1851, triggering Australia's first rush. Today the city is known for its colonial and Victorian streetscapes, Charles Sturt University, and the Mount Panorama circuit that hosts the Bathurst 1000.

27/100

Suburb Score

Less advantaged than the national average

Bathurst is more socio-economically advantaged than about 27% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 944, 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.

Bathurst at a glance

Population (2021): 7,001
Median age: 41
Median weekly household income: $1,209
SEIFA score: 944
Coordinates: -33.4190, 149.5790

Bathurst demographics (2021 Census)

The figures below profile Bathurst 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 young adults (25–44) at 27%, 54% of homes are rented, and 18% of residents were born overseas.

Age profile

Age group	People	Share
Children (0–14)	890	13%
Youth (15–24)	971	14%
Young adults (25–44)	1,875	27%
Mid-life (45–64)	1,595	23%
Seniors (65+)	1,669	24%

Share of the 7,000 people counted by age.

Housing and households

Tenure	Dwellings	Share
Owned outright	901	28%
Owned with a mortgage	505	16%
Rented	1,736	54%

Dwelling type	Dwellings	Share
Houses	1,627	50%
Townhouses & semis	989	30%
Flats & apartments	603	19%

Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 3,257 occupied private dwellings in Bathurst.

Median weekly rent: $300
Median monthly mortgage: $1,517
Average household size: 1.9 people
Median weekly family income: $1,648
Median weekly personal income: $753

Community and culture

Born overseas: 1,160 (18%)
Speaks a language other than English at home: 801 (12%)
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander: 379 (5%)

Work and education

Completed Year 12: 3,192 (54%)
Labour-force participation: 57.9%
Unemployment rate: 5.5%
Employed full-time: 2,021
Employed part-time: 1,113

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 Bathurst

Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Bathurst is January (average daytime high around 26.9°C) and the coolest is July (around 10.4°C). The area receives roughly 718 mm of rain across the year.

Month	Avg high	Avg low	Rain
Jan	26.9°C	14.4°C	70 mm
Feb	25.6°C	13.2°C	53 mm
Mar	22.8°C	11.9°C	73 mm
Apr	18.7°C	8°C	52 mm
May	13.9°C	4.3°C	37 mm
Jun	10.9°C	2.3°C	45 mm
Jul	10.4°C	1.5°C	49 mm
Aug	11.5°C	1.6°C	57 mm
Sep	15.2°C	3.9°C	51 mm
Oct	19.2°C	7.1°C	70 mm
Nov	21.8°C	9.4°C	82 mm
Dec	24.9°C	12°C	79 mm

Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).

Common questions about Bathurst

Where is Bathurst?

Bathurst is a suburb of New South Wales, Australia.

What is the population of Bathurst?

At the 2021 Census, Bathurst had a population of about 7,001.

Is Bathurst an advantaged area?

Bathurst has an ABS SEIFA score of 944, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 27 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 27% of Australian suburbs.

What is the weather like in Bathurst?

Bathurst has average daytime highs of about 18.5°C and overnight lows of about 7.5°C, with roughly 718 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).