Morpeth, NSW
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Morpeth is a historic town in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, on the Hunter River about 8 kilometres from Maitland, 35 kilometres from Newcastle and 165 kilometres north of Sydney. The Wonnarua people are the traditional owners, and the town takes its name from Morpeth in Northumberland, England. Edward Charles Close developed the town as a river port through the 1830s, and for a time Morpeth was a busy landing for shipping on the Hunter. When the Great Northern Railway bypassed it in 1857, trade drifted to Newcastle. Many buildings survive from the boom, among them Closebourne House, St James' Anglican Church of the late 1830s, and the Greek Revival courthouse of about 1861. Today the town lives on heritage tourism and antiques.
Around the national middle
Morpeth is more socio-economically advantaged than about 48% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 984, 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.
Morpeth at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 1,686
- Median age
- 55
- Median weekly household income
- $1,122
- SEIFA score
- 984
- Coordinates
- -32.7314, 151.6270
Morpeth demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Morpeth 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 38%, 16% of homes are rented, and 8% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 253 | 15% |
| Youth (15–24) | 120 | 7% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 288 | 17% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 376 | 22% |
| Seniors (65+) | 637 | 38% |
Share of the 1,674 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 303 | 41% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 172 | 23% |
| Rented | 116 | 16% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 485 | 65% |
| Townhouses & semis | 246 | 33% |
| Flats & apartments | 13 | 2% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 744 occupied private dwellings in Morpeth.
- Median weekly rent
- $370
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,788
- Average household size
- 2.1 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,510
- Median weekly personal income
- $634
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 135 (8%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 27 (2%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 68 (4%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 628 (45%)
- Labour-force participation
- 45.2%
- Unemployment rate
- 4.5%
- Employed full-time
- 331
- Employed part-time
- 232
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 Morpeth
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Morpeth is January (average daytime high around 29.2°C) and the coolest is July (around 17.3°C). The area receives roughly 860 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 29.2°C | 19.6°C | 75 mm |
| Feb | 27.9°C | 19.2°C | 90 mm |
| Mar | 26.2°C | 18.1°C | 145 mm |
| Apr | 23.4°C | 14.6°C | 70 mm |
| May | 20.2°C | 11.3°C | 37 mm |
| Jun | 17.3°C | 9.2°C | 59 mm |
| Jul | 17.3°C | 8.1°C | 52 mm |
| Aug | 18.6°C | 8.5°C | 44 mm |
| Sep | 21.6°C | 10.9°C | 52 mm |
| Oct | 24.5°C | 13.7°C | 86 mm |
| Nov | 26.1°C | 15.7°C | 72 mm |
| Dec | 28.2°C | 18°C | 78 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Common questions about Morpeth
Where is Morpeth?
Morpeth is a suburb of New South Wales, Australia.
What is the population of Morpeth?
At the 2021 Census, Morpeth had a population of about 1,686.
Is Morpeth an advantaged area?
Morpeth has an ABS SEIFA score of 984, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 48 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 48% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Morpeth?
Morpeth has average daytime highs of about 23.4°C and overnight lows of about 13.9°C, with roughly 860 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.