Freeling, SA
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Freeling is a town in the Light Regional Council area of South Australia, on the plains just west of the Barossa Valley and about 60 kilometres north of Adelaide. Surveyed around 1860, it was named after Sir Arthur Henry Freeling, a Surveyor-General of the colony, and grew as a service centre for the surrounding cereal and sheep farms on the old Gawler-to-Kapunda railway line. The town is widely known as a filming location for the television series McLeod's Daughters; its fictional Gungellan Hotel was the town's real Railway Hotel. Grain growing and mixed farming still anchor the local economy, and Freeling has increasingly become a commuter town for the greater Adelaide area.
Less advantaged than the national average
Freeling is more socio-economically advantaged than about 25% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 942, 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.
Freeling at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 2,688
- Median age
- 33
- Median weekly household income
- $1,755
- SEIFA score
- 942
- Coordinates
- -34.4487, 138.8193
Freeling demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Freeling 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%, 13% of homes are rented, and 10% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 662 | 25% |
| Youth (15–24) | 336 | 12% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 720 | 27% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 622 | 23% |
| Seniors (65+) | 359 | 13% |
Share of the 2,699 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 212 | 24% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 545 | 61% |
| Rented | 117 | 13% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 877 | 98% |
| Townhouses & semis | 8 | 1% |
| Flats & apartments | 8 | 1% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 893 occupied private dwellings in Freeling.
- Median weekly rent
- $330
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,400
- Average household size
- 2.9 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,992
- Median weekly personal income
- $790
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 258 (10%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 53 (2%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 72 (3%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 872 (45%)
- Labour-force participation
- 65.2%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.2%
- Employed full-time
- 759
- Employed part-time
- 425
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 Freeling
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Freeling is January (average daytime high around 30.3°C) and the coolest is July (around 14.3°C). The area receives roughly 498 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 30.3°C | 16.7°C | 31 mm |
| Feb | 28.9°C | 16°C | 22 mm |
| Mar | 26.7°C | 14.7°C | 20 mm |
| Apr | 22.7°C | 12.4°C | 41 mm |
| May | 18°C | 9.6°C | 49 mm |
| Jun | 15.1°C | 7.4°C | 54 mm |
| Jul | 14.3°C | 6.8°C | 56 mm |
| Aug | 14.9°C | 6.8°C | 64 mm |
| Sep | 17.8°C | 8.1°C | 49 mm |
| Oct | 22.2°C | 10.5°C | 43 mm |
| Nov | 24.8°C | 12.4°C | 42 mm |
| Dec | 28.2°C | 14.6°C | 27 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Common questions about Freeling
Where is Freeling?
Freeling is a suburb of South Australia, Australia.
What is the population of Freeling?
At the 2021 Census, Freeling had a population of about 2,688.
Is Freeling an advantaged area?
Freeling has an ABS SEIFA score of 942, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 25 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 25% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Freeling?
Freeling has average daytime highs of about 22°C and overnight lows of about 11.3°C, with roughly 498 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
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