Karratha, WA
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Karratha is Western Australia's major Pilbara city, on the north-west coast roughly 1,550 kilometres north of Perth. LGA population: 22,199 at the 2021 Census (ABS 2021 Census QuickStats, LGA54310). The Census data reads unlike almost any other Australian city of its size. Median weekly household income: $3,158 — 81% above the national figure of $1,746. Median personal income: $1,545 per week, nearly double the national $805. The dominant industries explain the gap: iron ore mining employs 12.4% of the workforce, thirty times the national rate of 0.4%; oil and gas extraction accounts for a further 5.4%, twenty-seven times the national rate of 0.2%. Technicians and trades workers make up 25.6% of employed residents, double the national 12.9%. Bachelor degree attainment is 15.1% — well below the national 26.3% — consistent with a workforce that values certified qualifications over university credentials. The workforce is 54.2% male (national: 49.3%) and skews young: median age 32 (national: 38), with the 65-plus cohort at just 3.4% versus 15% nationally. The impermanence built into FIFO work patterns shows in one figure: 21.4% of Karratha's private dwellings were unoccupied at the 2021 Census, more than double the national 10.1%. 53.7% of households earn more than $3,000 a week (national: 24.3%). Of those in work, 39.6% put in 45 or more hours per week (national: 17.9%). Unemployment is 2.9% (national: 5.1%). Labour force participation: 69.2% (national: 61.1%). This is a working town, not a settled one — and the data makes that plain at every turn.
Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs
Karratha is more socio-economically advantaged than about 89% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 1070, 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 Karratha 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.
Strong on the data we score
A weighted blend of the 2 components we can score for Karratha 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
52/100Around the national median for cost
Median weekly rent was $280 at the 2021 Census — more affordable than about 52% 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.
Karratha at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 98
- Median age
- 34
- Median weekly household income
- $1,583
- SEIFA score
- 1070
- Local government area
- Karratha
- Coordinates
- -20.7344, 116.8446
Map of Karratha
© OpenStreetMap contributors · View larger map
Housing & property in Karratha
What it costs to live in Karratha and how residents hold their homes, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census.
- Median rent
- $280
- per week
- Rented
- 100%
- of dwellings
The full tenure and dwelling-type breakdown is in the Karratha demographics section below.
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021. © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. See our methodology.
Karratha demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Karratha 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 48% and 44% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 0 | 0% |
| Youth (15–24) | 20 | 20% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 47 | 48% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 28 | 29% |
| Seniors (65+) | 3 | 3% |
Share of the 98 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 0 | 0% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 0 | 0% |
| Rented | 42 | 100% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 0 | 0% |
| Townhouses & semis | 10 | 25% |
| Flats & apartments | 30 | 75% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 40 occupied private dwellings in Karratha.
- Average household size
- 1.5 people
- Median weekly family income
- $2,250
- Median weekly personal income
- $1,190
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 38 (44%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 24 (29%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 4 (4%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 56 (59%)
- Labour-force participation
- 74%
- Unemployment rate
- 1.4%
- Employed full-time
- 55
- Employed part-time
- 12
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 Karratha
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Karratha is March (average daytime high around 34.8°C) and the coolest is July (around 26.1°C). The area receives roughly 281 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 34.3°C | 27.3°C | 26 mm |
| Feb | 34.1°C | 27.2°C | 71 mm |
| Mar | 34.8°C | 27.4°C | 62 mm |
| Apr | 33.2°C | 24.8°C | 20 mm |
| May | 29.3°C | 20.6°C | 54 mm |
| Jun | 25.8°C | 17.2°C | 26 mm |
| Jul | 26.1°C | 16.2°C | 6 mm |
| Aug | 27.6°C | 17.4°C | 2 mm |
| Sep | 30.5°C | 20°C | 4 mm |
| Oct | 33°C | 22.9°C | 0 mm |
| Nov | 33.8°C | 24.4°C | 1 mm |
| Dec | 34.8°C | 26.4°C | 9 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
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Common questions about Karratha
Is Karratha 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, Karratha rates 77/100 overall (Strong 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 Karratha?
At the 2021 Census, the median weekly rent in Karratha was $280. These are official ABS Census figures — StreetScout publishes housing data only, with no property valuations or agent referrals.
Where is Karratha?
Karratha is a suburb of Western Australia, Australia, in the Karratha local government area.
What is the population of Karratha?
At the 2021 Census, Karratha had a population of about 98.
Is Karratha an advantaged area?
Karratha has an ABS SEIFA score of 1070, 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 Karratha?
Karratha has average daytime highs of about 31.4°C and overnight lows of about 22.7°C, with roughly 281 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
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