Flagstaff Hill, SA
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Flagstaff Hill is a leafy residential suburb in Adelaide's south, part of the City of Onkaparinga and built around the Sturt Gorge Recreation Park. It takes its name from the hill itself, where Colonel William Light — the surveyor who laid out Adelaide — is said to have raised a flagstaff during his survey of the region in the late 1830s. The mark served as a survey trig point, and by 1842 the locality was simply known as the Flagstaff. Through the nineteenth century the surrounding land was used for farming and grazing. Suburban development began in the 1960s, when estate companies started buying and subdividing the farmland; the first blocks were released for sale in 1967 and sold quickly. A further stage followed from 1985. Today the suburb is prized for its many parks and reserves and its bushland setting along the Sturt Gorge.
Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs
Flagstaff Hill is more socio-economically advantaged than about 82% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 1047, 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.
Flagstaff Hill at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 10,184
- Median age
- 43
- Median weekly household income
- $2,080
- SEIFA score
- 1047
- Coordinates
- -35.0483, 138.5821
Flagstaff Hill demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Flagstaff Hill 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 28%, 10% of homes are rented, and 28% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 1,768 | 17% |
| Youth (15–24) | 1,236 | 12% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 2,308 | 23% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 2,855 | 28% |
| Seniors (65+) | 2,020 | 20% |
Share of the 10,187 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 1,394 | 38% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 1,805 | 50% |
| Rented | 374 | 10% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 3,492 | 96% |
| Townhouses & semis | 58 | 2% |
| Flats & apartments | 11 | 0% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 3,622 occupied private dwellings in Flagstaff Hill.
- Median weekly rent
- $385
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,733
- Average household size
- 2.7 people
- Median weekly family income
- $2,302
- Median weekly personal income
- $844
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 2,843 (28%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 1,361 (14%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 79 (1%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 5,250 (66%)
- Labour-force participation
- 66.5%
- Unemployment rate
- 4.2%
- Employed full-time
- 3,110
- Employed part-time
- 1,956
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 Flagstaff Hill
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Flagstaff Hill is January (average daytime high around 27.9°C) and the coolest is July (around 14°C). The area receives roughly 711 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 27.9°C | 17.5°C | 29 mm |
| Feb | 26.5°C | 17°C | 29 mm |
| Mar | 24.7°C | 16°C | 20 mm |
| Apr | 21.4°C | 14°C | 51 mm |
| May | 17.3°C | 11.7°C | 86 mm |
| Jun | 14.8°C | 9.6°C | 100 mm |
| Jul | 14°C | 8.9°C | 104 mm |
| Aug | 14.7°C | 8.8°C | 95 mm |
| Sep | 17.2°C | 10.2°C | 62 mm |
| Oct | 20.5°C | 11.9°C | 52 mm |
| Nov | 22.7°C | 13.6°C | 52 mm |
| Dec | 25.6°C | 15.6°C | 31 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Common questions about Flagstaff Hill
Where is Flagstaff Hill?
Flagstaff Hill is a suburb of South Australia, Australia.
What is the population of Flagstaff Hill?
At the 2021 Census, Flagstaff Hill had a population of about 10,184.
Is Flagstaff Hill an advantaged area?
Flagstaff Hill has an ABS SEIFA score of 1047, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 82 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 82% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Flagstaff Hill?
Flagstaff Hill has average daytime highs of about 20.6°C and overnight lows of about 12.9°C, with roughly 711 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
How big is Flagstaff Hill?
Flagstaff Hill is one of the most populous suburbs in South Australia — the 20th-largest by usual resident population at the 2021 Census (about 10,184 usual residents).
Where Flagstaff Hill ranks
Flagstaff Hill appears in these data-driven guides — each a transparent sort on a single ABS figure shown on this page.
- Largest suburbs in South Australia#20 of 25
Nearby suburbs in South Australia
More suburb guides in South Australia
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.