Helensburgh, NSW
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs
Helensburgh is more socio-economically advantaged than about 89% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 1068, 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 Helensburgh 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.
Around the national middle
A weighted blend of the 2 components we can score for Helensburgh 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
89/100Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs
Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs — the same ABS SEIFA-based Suburb Score (89/100) shown above. Income, education and occupation, as published by the ABS. · ABS SEIFA 2021
Housing affordability
4/100Among the more expensive suburbs
Median weekly rent was $535 at the 2021 Census — more affordable than about 4% 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.
Helensburgh at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 6,576
- Median age
- 38
- Median weekly household income
- $2,490
- SEIFA score
- 1068
- Local government area
- Wollongong
- Coordinates
- -34.1843, 150.9830
Map of Helensburgh
© OpenStreetMap contributors · View larger map
Housing & property in Helensburgh
What it costs to live in Helensburgh and how residents hold their homes, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census.
- Median rent
- $535
- per week
- Median mortgage
- $2,500
- per month
- Owner-occupied
- 83%
- of dwellings
- Rented
- 15%
- of dwellings
The full tenure and dwelling-type breakdown is in the Helensburgh demographics section below.
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021. © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. See our methodology.
Helensburgh demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Helensburgh 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 26% and 13% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 1,475 | 22% |
| Youth (15–24) | 815 | 12% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 1,711 | 26% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 1,739 | 26% |
| Seniors (65+) | 845 | 13% |
Share of the 6,585 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 659 | 30% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 1,147 | 53% |
| Rented | 321 | 15% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,784 | 82% |
| Townhouses & semis | 61 | 3% |
| Flats & apartments | 302 | 14% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 2,172 occupied private dwellings in Helensburgh.
- Average household size
- 2.9 people
- Median weekly family income
- $2,718
- Median weekly personal income
- $981
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 814 (13%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 300 (5%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 219 (3%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 2,625 (54%)
- Labour-force participation
- 69.8%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.1%
- Employed full-time
- 1,888
- Employed part-time
- 1,158
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 Helensburgh
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Helensburgh is January (average daytime high around 26.1°C) and the coolest is July (around 16.8°C). The area receives roughly 1097 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 26.1°C | 19.8°C | 99 mm |
| Feb | 25.4°C | 19.7°C | 129 mm |
| Mar | 24.4°C | 19°C | 185 mm |
| Apr | 22.1°C | 16.5°C | 91 mm |
| May | 19.5°C | 13.5°C | 62 mm |
| Jun | 16.9°C | 11.5°C | 83 mm |
| Jul | 16.8°C | 10.4°C | 71 mm |
| Aug | 17.4°C | 10.5°C | 66 mm |
| Sep | 19.8°C | 12.3°C | 59 mm |
| Oct | 22°C | 14.5°C | 88 mm |
| Nov | 23.1°C | 16.2°C | 82 mm |
| Dec | 25.1°C | 18.2°C | 82 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Share your local knowledge of Helensburgh
Lived here or spent time in Helensburgh? Add a review or a quick tip. Reviews and tips are moderated before they appear.
Common questions about Helensburgh
Is Helensburgh 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, Helensburgh rates 61/100 overall (Around the national middle). Public transport, schools and safety aren't scored yet — see our methodology for why.
What is the median rent in Helensburgh?
At the 2021 Census, the median weekly rent in Helensburgh was $535, and the median monthly mortgage repayment was $2,500. These are official ABS Census figures — StreetScout publishes housing data only, with no property valuations or agent referrals.
Where is Helensburgh?
Helensburgh is a suburb of New South Wales, Australia, in the Wollongong local government area.
What is the population of Helensburgh?
At the 2021 Census, Helensburgh had a population of about 6,576.
Is Helensburgh an advantaged area?
Helensburgh has an ABS SEIFA score of 1068, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 89 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 89% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Helensburgh?
Helensburgh has average daytime highs of about 21.6°C and overnight lows of about 15.2°C, with roughly 1,097 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
Nearby suburbs in New South Wales
More suburb guides in New South Wales
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.