Nambour, QLD
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Nambour is a town in the Sunshine Coast hinterland of Queensland, about 100 kilometres north of Brisbane at the foot of the Blackall Range. Its name comes from the local Aboriginal word 'naamba', for the red-flowering bottlebrush that grows in the area. For more than a century the town was built around sugar, and the Moreton Central Sugar Mill operated here from 1897 until 2003. European settlement began around 1870 as Petrie's Creek, and the town took the name Nambour when the railway arrived in 1891. Today it is the commercial centre for the surrounding hinterland, and just to the south stands one of Queensland's most famous roadside attractions, the Big Pineapple, a reminder of the region's fruit-growing heritage.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Nambour is more socio-economically advantaged than about 13% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 905, 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.
Nambour at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 12,145
- Median age
- 40
- Median weekly household income
- $1,224
- SEIFA score
- 905
- Coordinates
- -26.6270, 152.9557
Nambour demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Nambour 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 26%, 38% of homes are rented, and 18% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 2,238 | 18% |
| Youth (15–24) | 1,374 | 11% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 3,131 | 26% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 3,028 | 25% |
| Seniors (65+) | 2,375 | 20% |
Share of the 12,146 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 1,077 | 22% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 1,681 | 35% |
| Rented | 1,827 | 38% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 3,184 | 66% |
| Townhouses & semis | 975 | 20% |
| Flats & apartments | 630 | 13% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 4,804 occupied private dwellings in Nambour.
- Median weekly rent
- $340
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,560
- Average household size
- 2.3 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,529
- Median weekly personal income
- $641
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 2,068 (18%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 713 (6%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 626 (5%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 4,600 (48%)
- Labour-force participation
- 56.9%
- Unemployment rate
- 6.2%
- Employed full-time
- 2,706
- Employed part-time
- 1,975
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 Nambour
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Nambour is January (average daytime high around 28.4°C) and the coolest is July (around 20.4°C). The area receives roughly 1234 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 28.4°C | 20.9°C | 136 mm |
| Feb | 28°C | 20.8°C | 187 mm |
| Mar | 27.4°C | 20.2°C | 171 mm |
| Apr | 24.9°C | 17.2°C | 83 mm |
| May | 22.4°C | 14.3°C | 104 mm |
| Jun | 20.5°C | 12.1°C | 62 mm |
| Jul | 20.4°C | 11.2°C | 53 mm |
| Aug | 21.8°C | 11.6°C | 42 mm |
| Sep | 23.8°C | 13.8°C | 47 mm |
| Oct | 25.6°C | 16.2°C | 118 mm |
| Nov | 27.4°C | 18.1°C | 94 mm |
| Dec | 28.2°C | 19.9°C | 137 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Common questions about Nambour
Where is Nambour?
Nambour is a suburb of Queensland, Australia.
What is the population of Nambour?
At the 2021 Census, Nambour had a population of about 12,145.
Is Nambour an advantaged area?
Nambour has an ABS SEIFA score of 905, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 13 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 13% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Nambour?
Nambour has average daytime highs of about 24.9°C and overnight lows of about 16.4°C, with roughly 1,234 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
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