Coolamon, NSW
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Coolamon is a town in the Riverina region of south-western New South Wales, about 40 kilometres north-west of Wagga Wagga and roughly 500 kilometres from Sydney. Its name comes from an Aboriginal word for a coolamon, a basin-shaped wooden dish used for carrying water, food or a baby. The town sits in the New South Wales wheat belt and is also known for lamb, wool and farm machinery, including the chaser bins built at the local steelworks. Its best-known landmark is the heritage-listed Up-to-Date Store, a beautifully preserved early department store on the main street. Nearby are the Coolamon Holes, natural ground hollows that fill with water, and the Kindra State Forest.
Less advantaged than the national average
Coolamon is more socio-economically advantaged than about 37% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 964, 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 Coolamon 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.
Below the national middle on the data we score
A weighted blend of the 2 components we can score for Coolamon 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
37/100Less advantaged than the national average
Less advantaged than the national average — the same ABS SEIFA-based Suburb Score (37/100) shown above. Income, education and occupation, as published by the ABS. · ABS SEIFA 2021
Housing affordability
55/100Around the national median for cost
Median weekly rent was $270 at the 2021 Census — more affordable than about 55% 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.
Coolamon at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 2,275
- Median age
- 42
- Median weekly household income
- $1,427
- SEIFA score
- 964
- Local government area
- Coolamon
- Coordinates
- -34.7941, 147.2051
Map of Coolamon
© OpenStreetMap contributors · View larger map
Housing & property in Coolamon
What it costs to live in Coolamon and how residents hold their homes, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census.
- Median rent
- $270
- per week
- Median mortgage
- $1,500
- per month
- Owner-occupied
- 78%
- of dwellings
- Rented
- 17%
- of dwellings
The full tenure and dwelling-type breakdown is in the Coolamon demographics section below.
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021. © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. See our methodology.
Coolamon demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Coolamon 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 24% and 5% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 466 | 20% |
| Youth (15–24) | 261 | 11% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 491 | 22% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 550 | 24% |
| Seniors (65+) | 510 | 22% |
Share of the 2,278 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 327 | 39% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 331 | 39% |
| Rented | 144 | 17% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 801 | 96% |
| Townhouses & semis | 18 | 2% |
| Flats & apartments | 9 | 1% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 831 occupied private dwellings in Coolamon.
- Average household size
- 2.5 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,834
- Median weekly personal income
- $746
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 106 (5%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 33 (2%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 113 (5%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 636 (37%)
- Labour-force participation
- 60.1%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.5%
- Employed full-time
- 675
- Employed part-time
- 309
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.
Share your local knowledge of Coolamon
Lived here or spent time in Coolamon? Add a review or a quick tip. Reviews and tips are moderated before they appear.
Common questions about Coolamon
Is Coolamon 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, Coolamon rates 43/100 overall (Below the national middle 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 Coolamon?
At the 2021 Census, the median weekly rent in Coolamon was $270, and the median monthly mortgage repayment was $1,500. These are official ABS Census figures — StreetScout publishes housing data only, with no property valuations or agent referrals.
Where is Coolamon?
Coolamon is a suburb of New South Wales, Australia, in the Coolamon local government area.
What is the population of Coolamon?
At the 2021 Census, Coolamon had a population of about 2,275.
Is Coolamon an advantaged area?
Coolamon has an ABS SEIFA score of 964, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 37 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 37% of Australian suburbs.
Nearby suburbs in New South Wales
More suburb guides in New South Wales
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.