Central Tilba, NSW
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Central Tilba is a heritage village on the New South Wales South Coast, about 10 kilometres south of Narooma and 60 kilometres north of Bega, in the Eurobodalla Shire. The Yuin people are the traditional owners of the district, and the name Tilba is said to mean 'many waters' in the Thawa language. The village grew during the 19th-century gold rushes, with Henry Jefferson Bate taking up land as the first resident selector in 1869, and gold was mined on the slopes of Gulaga (Mount Dromedary) from 1876. Dairying followed, and the ABC Cheese Factory operated from 1891 to 2006. Today the whole village is a National Trust conservation area, its 1895 Dromedary Hotel and timber shopfronts sitting beneath the extinct volcano of Gulaga.
Around the national middle
Central Tilba is more socio-economically advantaged than about 45% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 979, 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.
Central Tilba at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 342
- Median age
- 57
- Median weekly household income
- $1,156
- SEIFA score
- 979
- Coordinates
- -36.3045, 150.0755
Central Tilba demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Central Tilba 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 31%, 16% of homes are rented, and 20% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 51 | 14% |
| Youth (15–24) | 27 | 8% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 63 | 18% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 113 | 31% |
| Seniors (65+) | 106 | 29% |
Share of the 360 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 74 | 53% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 35 | 25% |
| Rented | 22 | 16% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 135 | 98% |
| Townhouses & semis | 3 | 2% |
| Flats & apartments | 0 | 0% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 138 occupied private dwellings in Central Tilba.
- Median weekly rent
- $295
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,732
- Average household size
- 2.1 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,562
- Median weekly personal income
- $682
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 60 (20%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 23 (8%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 8 (2%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 154 (53%)
- Labour-force participation
- 50.3%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.4%
- Employed full-time
- 71
- Employed part-time
- 60
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.
Common questions about Central Tilba
Where is Central Tilba?
Central Tilba is a suburb of New South Wales, Australia.
What is the population of Central Tilba?
At the 2021 Census, Central Tilba had a population of about 342.
Is Central Tilba an advantaged area?
Central Tilba has an ABS SEIFA score of 979, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 45 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 45% of Australian suburbs.
Nearby suburbs in New South Wales
More suburb guides in New South Wales
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.