Lithgow, NSW
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Lithgow is a town in the Central Tablelands of New South Wales, set in a valley on the western side of the Blue Mountains roughly 140 km west of Sydney. The explorer John Oxley named the valley in 1823 after William Lithgow, the colony's first Auditor-General. From the late nineteenth century it grew into an industrial centre built on coal, iron and the railways: the State Mine, the Lithgow Blast Furnace (now a parkland ruin) and a small-arms factory established in 1912 all shaped the town. Nearby heritage attractions include the Zig Zag Railway, an engineering feat that carried the main western line down the escarpment, and Eskbank House, an early colonial homestead.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Lithgow is more socio-economically advantaged than about 10% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 888, 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.
Lithgow at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 4,956
- Median age
- 49
- Median weekly household income
- $1,010
- SEIFA score
- 888
- Coordinates
- -33.4800, 150.1601
Lithgow demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Lithgow 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 seniors (65+) at 29%, 35% of homes are rented, and 14% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 710 | 14% |
| Youth (15–24) | 465 | 9% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 1,047 | 21% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 1,304 | 26% |
| Seniors (65+) | 1,424 | 29% |
Share of the 4,950 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 887 | 39% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 511 | 23% |
| Rented | 784 | 35% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,852 | 82% |
| Townhouses & semis | 304 | 13% |
| Flats & apartments | 90 | 4% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 2,268 occupied private dwellings in Lithgow.
- Median weekly rent
- $280
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,326
- Average household size
- 2 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,422
- Median weekly personal income
- $602
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 621 (14%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 295 (6%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 364 (7%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 1,461 (35%)
- Labour-force participation
- 47.2%
- Unemployment rate
- 6.2%
- Employed full-time
- 1,067
- Employed part-time
- 643
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.
Common questions about Lithgow
Where is Lithgow?
Lithgow is a suburb of New South Wales, Australia.
What is the population of Lithgow?
At the 2021 Census, Lithgow had a population of about 4,956.
Is Lithgow an advantaged area?
Lithgow has an ABS SEIFA score of 888, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 10 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 10% of Australian suburbs.
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