Mount Gambier, SA
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Mount Gambier is the largest city in regional South Australia, built on the slopes of a dormant volcano about 450 kilometres south-east of Adelaide and close to the Victorian border. It is famous for the crater lakes that fill its old volcanic vents — above all the Blue Lake, which turns an intense cobalt each summer — together with limestone caves and the terraced gardens of the Umpherston Sinkhole. The surrounding Limestone Coast supports forestry, farming and a steady tourist trade. The area is the Country of the Boandik (Bungandidj) people, who know the mountain as Berrin and the Blue Lake as Warwar; the European name honours the British admiral Lord Gambier, after the peak was sighted from the sea in 1800.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Mount Gambier is more socio-economically advantaged than about 9% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 887, 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 Mount Gambier 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.
Below the national middle on the data we score
A weighted blend of the 3 components we can score for Mount Gambier 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
9/100Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs — the same ABS SEIFA-based Suburb Score (9/100) shown above. Income, education and occupation, as published by the ABS. · ABS SEIFA 2021
Housing affordability
71/100More affordable than the national median
Median weekly rent was $220 at the 2021 Census — more affordable than about 71% of suburbs we can compare. Housing data only, no valuations. · ABS Census 2021
Amenities & access
80/100Plenty mapped nearby
About 144 everyday places (cafés, shops, services and more) mapped within ~1.2 km of the centre. · OpenStreetMap
Not yet scored
We’d rather leave these open than publish a number we can’t stand behind. Here’s where each one stands.
- 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.
Mount Gambier at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 25,591
- Median age
- 41
- Median weekly household income
- $1,197
- SEIFA score
- 887
- Local government area
- Mount Gambier
- Coordinates
- -37.8263, 140.7823
Map of Mount Gambier
© OpenStreetMap contributors · View larger map
Housing & property in Mount Gambier
What it costs to live in Mount Gambier and how residents hold their homes, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census.
- Median rent
- $220
- per week
- Median mortgage
- $1,083
- per month
- Owner-occupied
- 63%
- of dwellings
- Rented
- 33%
- of dwellings
The full tenure and dwelling-type breakdown is in the Mount Gambier demographics section below.
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021. © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. See our methodology.
Mount Gambier demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Mount Gambier 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 25% and 12% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 4,573 | 18% |
| Youth (15–24) | 3,003 | 12% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 6,061 | 24% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 6,356 | 25% |
| Seniors (65+) | 5,595 | 22% |
Share of the 25,588 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 3,216 | 31% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 3,385 | 32% |
| Rented | 3,426 | 33% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 8,084 | 77% |
| Townhouses & semis | 1,484 | 14% |
| Flats & apartments | 934 | 9% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 10,531 occupied private dwellings in Mount Gambier.
- Average household size
- 2.2 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,641
- Median weekly personal income
- $691
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 2,943 (12%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 1,752 (7%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 728 (3%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 7,883 (39%)
- Labour-force participation
- 58.1%
- Unemployment rate
- 4.9%
- Employed full-time
- 6,650
- Employed part-time
- 4,283
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 Mount Gambier
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Mount Gambier is January (average daytime high around 25.4°C) and the coolest is July (around 12.7°C). The area receives roughly 666 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 25.4°C | 13.7°C | 29 mm |
| Feb | 24.3°C | 13.6°C | 26 mm |
| Mar | 22.2°C | 12.6°C | 30 mm |
| Apr | 19.1°C | 11°C | 44 mm |
| May | 15.5°C | 9.4°C | 76 mm |
| Jun | 13.3°C | 7.6°C | 68 mm |
| Jul | 12.7°C | 7.1°C | 90 mm |
| Aug | 13.5°C | 7°C | 77 mm |
| Sep | 15.4°C | 7.8°C | 73 mm |
| Oct | 18.2°C | 8.9°C | 67 mm |
| Nov | 20.1°C | 10.4°C | 48 mm |
| Dec | 22.7°C | 11.8°C | 38 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Places in and around Mount Gambier
Amenities mapped within about 1.2km of the suburb centre, from OpenStreetMap. A guide to what's nearby — not a complete directory.
Eat & drink
42 nearbyKFC · Red Rooster · South Australian Hotel · Fasta Pasta · Sorrentos Cafe · Mount Gambier Hotel
Parks & recreation
56 nearbyGambier City Bowl · Blue Lake Crossfit · Cricket/Football · Mount Gambier Tennis Club · Cave Garden · Vansittart Park
Shops & groceries
16 nearbyOK Pie Shop · Bakers Delight · Homestyle Bakery · Hot Bread · Dans Pie World · Foodland
Healthcare
9 nearbyGambier City Pharmacy · YourPodiatrist · Priceline Pharmacy · Ferrers Medical Clinic · eye specialists · Star Discount Chemist Sturt St
Schools & education
2 nearbyMacDonald Park Primary School · Mount Gambier North Primary School
Things to do
19 nearbyOatmill Cinema · Sir Robert Helpmann Theatre · Engelbrecht Cave · Wehl Street Theatre · Mount Gambier Courthouse Museum-National Trust · Cave Garden Sink Hole
Eat & drink in and around Mount Gambier
Cafés, restaurants, pubs and takeaway mapped within about 1.2km of the suburb centre. Listings are drawn from OpenStreetMap and shown as plain data — we don't rank or rate them.
Own a café, restaurant or pub around here?
Claim your listing to feature it at the top of this section. Placement is paid advertising, clearly labelled — never editorial opinion.
Claim this listing- 1891 Cocktail BarBar
- A Slice of MetroCafé
- Australian Fish MarketTakeaway85 Commercial Street West, Mount Gambier
- Bay BlueCafé
- Blue Lack Tandoori ExpressRestaurant
- Caffe BelgiornoRestaurant7 Percy Street, Mount Gambier
- Commercial HotelPub
- Domino'sTakeawaydominos.com.au
- FACT - Fish And Chip TakeawayTakeaway
- Fasta PastaRestaurant
- Federal HotelPub112 Commercial Street East
- Golden ChopsticksRestaurant
- Gourmet IndianRestaurant99 Commercial Street East, Mount Gambier
- Ha Ha YummyTakeaway
- Hungry Jack'sTakeaway
- KFCTakeawaykfc.com.au
- Little BlissRestaurant
- Little Saigon CafeCafé34 Sturt Street, Mount Gambier
- Mac's HotelPub
- Malaysia HouseRestaurant
- McDonald'sTakeaway
- Molten Chocolate CafeCafé
- Mount Gambier HotelPub
- Mount Gambier Mandarin RestaurantRestaurant
- Mount Gambier RSLRestaurant
- Muffin BreakCafé
- Natural Born GrillersTakeaway3 Compton Street, Mount Gambier
- Noodle Sushi BarRestaurant
- Presto EateryCafé37 Commercial Street East, Mount Gambier
- Red RoosterTakeaway
- San Piero Coffee RoastersCafé54 Commercial Street East, Mount Gambier
- Sorrentos CafeCafé6 Bay Road, Mount Gambier
- South Australian HotelPub
- SubwayTakeaway
- Sushi HiroRestaurant
- The Globe HotelPub
- The Park HotelPub
- Vanilla BeanCafé
- Wild GingerRestaurant
- ZambreroTakeaway
Showing 40 mapped places; more may exist that aren't yet on OpenStreetMap.
Listings © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Own a venue here? Suggest a correction.
Share your local knowledge of Mount Gambier
Lived here or spent time in Mount Gambier? Add a review or a quick tip. Reviews and tips are moderated before they appear.
Common questions about Mount Gambier
Is Mount Gambier a good place to live?
There's no single answer, so we score what the public data can back. On socio-economic advantage, housing affordability and amenities, Mount Gambier rates 42/100 overall (Below the national middle 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 Mount Gambier?
At the 2021 Census, the median weekly rent in Mount Gambier was $220, and the median monthly mortgage repayment was $1,083. These are official ABS Census figures — StreetScout publishes housing data only, with no property valuations or agent referrals.
Where is Mount Gambier?
Mount Gambier is a suburb of South Australia, Australia, in the Mount Gambier local government area.
What is the population of Mount Gambier?
At the 2021 Census, Mount Gambier had a population of about 25,591.
Is Mount Gambier an advantaged area?
Mount Gambier has an ABS SEIFA score of 887, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 9 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 9% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Mount Gambier?
Mount Gambier has average daytime highs of about 18.5°C and overnight lows of about 10.1°C, with roughly 666 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
How big is Mount Gambier?
Mount Gambier is the most populous suburb in South Australia at the 2021 Census (about 25,591 usual residents).
Where Mount Gambier ranks
Mount Gambier appears in these data-driven guides — each a transparent sort on a single ABS figure shown on this page.
Nearby suburbs in South Australia
More suburb guides in South Australia
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.