Gulgong, NSW
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Gulgong is a historic gold-rush town on the Central Tablelands of New South Wales, about 300 kilometres north-west of Sydney and 30 kilometres north of Mudgee on the Cudgegong River. Its name comes from a Wiradjuri word for deep waterhole, the Wiradjuri being the traditional owners of the district. Payable gold was found at Red Hill in 1870 and the township was surveyed that August; the rush swelled the population to around twenty thousand within a few years. Gulgong is closely tied to the writer Henry Lawson, who lived here as a child, and its goldfields streetscape featured on the original Australian ten-dollar note. The well-preserved Prince of Wales Opera House and heritage main streets survive from the boom.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Gulgong is more socio-economically advantaged than about 14% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 907, 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.
Gulgong at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 2,680
- Median age
- 41
- Median weekly household income
- $1,371
- SEIFA score
- 907
- Coordinates
- -32.3751, 149.5325
Gulgong demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Gulgong 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%, 24% of homes are rented, and 7% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 561 | 21% |
| Youth (15–24) | 249 | 9% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 620 | 23% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 652 | 24% |
| Seniors (65+) | 582 | 22% |
Share of the 2,664 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 391 | 39% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 339 | 34% |
| Rented | 243 | 24% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 953 | 94% |
| Townhouses & semis | 21 | 2% |
| Flats & apartments | 22 | 2% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 1,011 occupied private dwellings in Gulgong.
- Median weekly rent
- $300
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,495
- Average household size
- 2.4 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,753
- Median weekly personal income
- $650
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 178 (7%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 52 (2%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 216 (8%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 668 (33%)
- Labour-force participation
- 55.6%
- Unemployment rate
- 4.3%
- Employed full-time
- 661
- Employed part-time
- 377
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 Gulgong
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Gulgong is January (average daytime high around 29.9°C) and the coolest is July (around 13°C). The area receives roughly 692 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 29.9°C | 17.2°C | 57 mm |
| Feb | 28.4°C | 16.2°C | 52 mm |
| Mar | 25.8°C | 14.6°C | 71 mm |
| Apr | 21.4°C | 10.8°C | 42 mm |
| May | 16.6°C | 6.7°C | 33 mm |
| Jun | 13.4°C | 4.4°C | 45 mm |
| Jul | 13°C | 3.4°C | 52 mm |
| Aug | 14.3°C | 3.7°C | 51 mm |
| Sep | 18.2°C | 6.2°C | 58 mm |
| Oct | 22.2°C | 9.7°C | 75 mm |
| Nov | 24.9°C | 12.1°C | 85 mm |
| Dec | 28°C | 14.8°C | 71 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Common questions about Gulgong
Where is Gulgong?
Gulgong is a suburb of New South Wales, Australia.
What is the population of Gulgong?
At the 2021 Census, Gulgong had a population of about 2,680.
Is Gulgong an advantaged area?
Gulgong has an ABS SEIFA score of 907, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 14 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 14% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Gulgong?
Gulgong has average daytime highs of about 21.3°C and overnight lows of about 10°C, with roughly 692 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
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