Caloundra West, QLD
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Around the national middle
Caloundra West is more socio-economically advantaged than about 43% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 976, 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 Caloundra West 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.
Lower on the data we score
A weighted blend of the 2 components we can score for Caloundra West 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
43/100Around the national middle
Around the national middle — the same ABS SEIFA-based Suburb Score (43/100) shown above. Income, education and occupation, as published by the ABS. · ABS SEIFA 2021
Housing affordability
8/100Among the more expensive suburbs
Median weekly rent was $465 at the 2021 Census — more affordable than about 8% 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.
Caloundra West at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 7,270
- Median age
- 37
- Median weekly household income
- $1,571
- SEIFA score
- 976
- Local government area
- Sunshine Coast
- Coordinates
- -26.8054, 153.1042
Map of Caloundra West
© OpenStreetMap contributors · View larger map
Housing & property in Caloundra West
What it costs to live in Caloundra West and how residents hold their homes, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census.
- Median rent
- $465
- per week
- Median mortgage
- $1,842
- per month
- Owner-occupied
- 66%
- of dwellings
- Rented
- 32%
- of dwellings
The full tenure and dwelling-type breakdown is in the Caloundra West demographics section below.
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021. © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. See our methodology.
Caloundra West demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Caloundra West 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% and 23% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 1,647 | 23% |
| Youth (15–24) | 798 | 11% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 1,991 | 27% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 1,528 | 21% |
| Seniors (65+) | 1,306 | 18% |
Share of the 7,270 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 782 | 29% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 993 | 37% |
| Rented | 867 | 32% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 2,250 | 83% |
| Townhouses & semis | 448 | 17% |
| Flats & apartments | 4 | 0% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 2,705 occupied private dwellings in Caloundra West.
- Average household size
- 2.6 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,800
- Median weekly personal income
- $751
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 1,590 (23%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 539 (8%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 208 (3%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 2,874 (54%)
- Labour-force participation
- 63.8%
- Unemployment rate
- 4.8%
- Employed full-time
- 1,830
- Employed part-time
- 1,212
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 Caloundra West
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Caloundra West is January (average daytime high around 28.4°C) and the coolest is July (around 20.4°C). The area receives roughly 1234 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 28.4°C | 20.9°C | 136 mm |
| Feb | 28°C | 20.8°C | 187 mm |
| Mar | 27.4°C | 20.2°C | 171 mm |
| Apr | 24.9°C | 17.2°C | 83 mm |
| May | 22.4°C | 14.3°C | 104 mm |
| Jun | 20.5°C | 12.1°C | 62 mm |
| Jul | 20.4°C | 11.2°C | 53 mm |
| Aug | 21.8°C | 11.6°C | 42 mm |
| Sep | 23.8°C | 13.8°C | 47 mm |
| Oct | 25.6°C | 16.2°C | 118 mm |
| Nov | 27.4°C | 18.1°C | 94 mm |
| Dec | 28.2°C | 19.9°C | 137 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
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Common questions about Caloundra West
Is Caloundra West 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, Caloundra West rates 31/100 overall (Lower 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 Caloundra West?
At the 2021 Census, the median weekly rent in Caloundra West was $465, and the median monthly mortgage repayment was $1,842. These are official ABS Census figures — StreetScout publishes housing data only, with no property valuations or agent referrals.
Where is Caloundra West?
Caloundra West is a suburb of Queensland, Australia, in the Sunshine Coast local government area.
What is the population of Caloundra West?
At the 2021 Census, Caloundra West had a population of about 7,270.
Is Caloundra West an advantaged area?
Caloundra West has an ABS SEIFA score of 976, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 43 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 43% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Caloundra West?
Caloundra West has average daytime highs of about 24.9°C and overnight lows of about 16.4°C, with roughly 1,234 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
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