Belair, SA
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Belair lies in the south-eastern foothills of Adelaide, at the base of the Mount Lofty Ranges about 10 kilometres from the city. Before European settlement the Kaurna people knew the area as piraldi, and the Kaurna and Peramangk peoples used the hills for seasonal hunting and gathering. The suburb is dominated by Belair National Park, proclaimed in 1891 as the first national park in South Australia and the second-oldest in the country. The park grew out of an early colonial Government Farm, where Old Government House was built between 1858 and 1860 as a summer residence for the colony's governors. A campaign by residents in the 1880s saved the land from subdivision and turned it into public parkland. Today Belair is a quiet, leafy suburb prized for its bushland setting and historic railway station.
Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs
Belair is more socio-economically advantaged than about 95% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 1103, 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.
Belair at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 4,718
- Median age
- 47
- Median weekly household income
- $2,265
- SEIFA score
- 1103
- Coordinates
- -35.0074, 138.6555
Belair demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Belair 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 27%, 8% of homes are rented, and 23% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 767 | 16% |
| Youth (15–24) | 566 | 12% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 894 | 19% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 1,286 | 27% |
| Seniors (65+) | 1,209 | 26% |
Share of the 4,722 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 694 | 41% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 736 | 43% |
| Rented | 135 | 8% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,508 | 89% |
| Townhouses & semis | 162 | 10% |
| Flats & apartments | 9 | 1% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 1,701 occupied private dwellings in Belair.
- Median weekly rent
- $376
- Median monthly mortgage
- $2,100
- Average household size
- 2.6 people
- Median weekly family income
- $2,791
- Median weekly personal income
- $977
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 1,047 (23%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 340 (7%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 26 (1%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 2,754 (73%)
- Labour-force participation
- 61.8%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.8%
- Employed full-time
- 1,337
- Employed part-time
- 892
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 Belair
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Belair is January (average daytime high around 29.7°C) and the coolest is July (around 14.4°C). The area receives roughly 732 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 29.7°C | 17°C | 34 mm |
| Feb | 28.2°C | 16.4°C | 32 mm |
| Mar | 26°C | 15.4°C | 23 mm |
| Apr | 22.1°C | 13.5°C | 54 mm |
| May | 17.7°C | 11.2°C | 83 mm |
| Jun | 15.1°C | 9.3°C | 91 mm |
| Jul | 14.4°C | 8.5°C | 102 mm |
| Aug | 15.3°C | 8.4°C | 91 mm |
| Sep | 18°C | 9.7°C | 69 mm |
| Oct | 21.9°C | 11.5°C | 59 mm |
| Nov | 24.1°C | 13°C | 57 mm |
| Dec | 27.3°C | 15°C | 37 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Common questions about Belair
Where is Belair?
Belair is a suburb of South Australia, Australia.
What is the population of Belair?
At the 2021 Census, Belair had a population of about 4,718.
Is Belair an advantaged area?
Belair has an ABS SEIFA score of 1103, 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 Belair?
Belair has average daytime highs of about 21.7°C and overnight lows of about 12.4°C, with roughly 732 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
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