Murray Bridge, SA
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Murray Bridge is the largest river town in South Australia, set on the Murray about an hour east of Adelaide. It is the country of the Ngarrindjeri people, who know the place as Pomberuk. The town grew up around the crossing of the river: a long road bridge opened here in 1879, the first of its kind across the Murray in the colony, and the settlement that gathered at its western end took the bridge's name. Rail, river trade and irrigated farming built the town, and paddle-steamers once worked the wharves. Today Murray Bridge is a busy regional centre, a base for houseboating and fishing on the river, with a riverside precinct, gallery and the long-running speedway.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Murray Bridge is more socio-economically advantaged than about 3% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 830, 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 Murray Bridge 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.
Lower on the data we score
A weighted blend of the 2 components we can score for Murray Bridge 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
3/100Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs — the same ABS SEIFA-based Suburb Score (3/100) shown above. Income, education and occupation, as published by the ABS. · ABS SEIFA 2021
Housing affordability
65/100More affordable than the national median
Median weekly rent was $240 at the 2021 Census — more affordable than about 65% 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.
Murray Bridge at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 15,043
- Median age
- 42
- Median weekly household income
- $1,005
- SEIFA score
- 830
- Local government area
- Murray Bridge
- Coordinates
- -35.1294, 139.2612
Map of Murray Bridge
© OpenStreetMap contributors · View larger map
Housing & property in Murray Bridge
What it costs to live in Murray Bridge and how residents hold their homes, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census.
- Median rent
- $240
- per week
- Median mortgage
- $1,083
- per month
- Owner-occupied
- 55%
- of dwellings
- Rented
- 40%
- of dwellings
The full tenure and dwelling-type breakdown is in the Murray Bridge demographics section below.
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021. © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. See our methodology.
Murray Bridge demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Murray Bridge 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 25% and 16% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 2,546 | 17% |
| Youth (15–24) | 1,720 | 11% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 3,700 | 25% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 3,575 | 24% |
| Seniors (65+) | 3,511 | 23% |
Share of the 15,052 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 1,700 | 28% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 1,596 | 27% |
| Rented | 2,387 | 40% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 5,096 | 85% |
| Townhouses & semis | 801 | 13% |
| Flats & apartments | 33 | 1% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 5,993 occupied private dwellings in Murray Bridge.
- Average household size
- 2.2 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,311
- Median weekly personal income
- $574
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 2,246 (16%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 1,535 (11%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 983 (7%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 4,178 (35%)
- Labour-force participation
- 47.6%
- Unemployment rate
- 7.7%
- Employed full-time
- 3,057
- Employed part-time
- 2,065
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 Murray Bridge
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Murray Bridge is January (average daytime high around 28.4°C) and the coolest is July (around 14.9°C). The area receives roughly 400 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 28.4°C | 16°C | 31 mm |
| Feb | 27°C | 15.3°C | 26 mm |
| Mar | 25.3°C | 14.2°C | 16 mm |
| Apr | 22.1°C | 12°C | 33 mm |
| May | 17.9°C | 9.7°C | 36 mm |
| Jun | 15.2°C | 7.7°C | 33 mm |
| Jul | 14.9°C | 7.1°C | 37 mm |
| Aug | 15.6°C | 7.2°C | 43 mm |
| Sep | 18.5°C | 8.4°C | 39 mm |
| Oct | 22.3°C | 10.5°C | 32 mm |
| Nov | 24°C | 12.5°C | 45 mm |
| Dec | 26.6°C | 14.3°C | 29 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Share your local knowledge of Murray Bridge
Lived here or spent time in Murray Bridge? Add a review or a quick tip. Reviews and tips are moderated before they appear.
Common questions about Murray Bridge
Is Murray Bridge 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, Murray Bridge rates 24/100 overall (Lower 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 Murray Bridge?
At the 2021 Census, the median weekly rent in Murray Bridge was $240, 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 Murray Bridge?
Murray Bridge is a suburb of South Australia, Australia, in the Murray Bridge local government area.
What is the population of Murray Bridge?
At the 2021 Census, Murray Bridge had a population of about 15,043.
Is Murray Bridge an advantaged area?
Murray Bridge has an ABS SEIFA score of 830, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 3 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 3% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Murray Bridge?
Murray Bridge has average daytime highs of about 21.5°C and overnight lows of about 11.2°C, with roughly 400 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
How big is Murray Bridge?
Murray Bridge is one of the most populous suburbs in South Australia — the 7th-largest by usual resident population at the 2021 Census (about 15,043 usual residents).
Where Murray Bridge ranks
Murray Bridge 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.