Nightcliff, NT
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Nightcliff is a coastal suburb of Darwin, about 10 km north of the city centre on the shore of Darwin Harbour. It is one of the northern suburbs' best-known recreation spots, built around the Nightcliff Foreshore — a popular walking and cycling path along low sea cliffs — together with the Nightcliff jetty, a swimming pool and the busy Sunday Nightcliff Markets of food, craft and live music. The suburb's name is usually traced to an 1839 landing by the crew of HMS Beagle, recorded as 'Night Cliff' on an 1869 survey map, though its precise origin has long been debated; the present spelling was formally adopted in 1948. Nightcliff lies on the traditional country of the Larrakia people.
Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs
Nightcliff is more socio-economically advantaged than about 88% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 1067, 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.
Nightcliff at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 3,884
- Median age
- 34
- Median weekly household income
- $2,051
- SEIFA score
- 1067
- Coordinates
- -12.3828, 130.8486
Nightcliff demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Nightcliff 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 41%, 54% of homes are rented, and 37% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 673 | 17% |
| Youth (15–24) | 353 | 9% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 1,579 | 41% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 838 | 22% |
| Seniors (65+) | 440 | 11% |
Share of the 3,883 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 296 | 19% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 373 | 24% |
| Rented | 828 | 54% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 545 | 36% |
| Townhouses & semis | 137 | 9% |
| Flats & apartments | 837 | 55% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 1,522 occupied private dwellings in Nightcliff.
- Median weekly rent
- $350
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,972
- Average household size
- 2.4 people
- Median weekly family income
- $2,430
- Median weekly personal income
- $1,203
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 1,355 (37%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 1,180 (33%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 188 (5%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 2,216 (71%)
- Labour-force participation
- 74.3%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.4%
- Employed full-time
- 1,507
- Employed part-time
- 645
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 Nightcliff
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Nightcliff is November (average daytime high around 33.3°C) and the coolest is July (around 30.5°C). The area receives roughly 1819 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 30.6°C | 25.9°C | 464 mm |
| Feb | 30.5°C | 25.8°C | 379 mm |
| Mar | 31.3°C | 25.8°C | 219 mm |
| Apr | 31.9°C | 25°C | 108 mm |
| May | 31.6°C | 23.1°C | 17 mm |
| Jun | 30.8°C | 21.5°C | 9 mm |
| Jul | 30.5°C | 20.1°C | 5 mm |
| Aug | 31.6°C | 20.9°C | 4 mm |
| Sep | 32.6°C | 23.3°C | 28 mm |
| Oct | 33.4°C | 25.4°C | 71 mm |
| Nov | 33.3°C | 26.2°C | 150 mm |
| Dec | 32°C | 26.4°C | 365 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Common questions about Nightcliff
Where is Nightcliff?
Nightcliff is a suburb of Northern Territory, Australia.
What is the population of Nightcliff?
At the 2021 Census, Nightcliff had a population of about 3,884.
Is Nightcliff an advantaged area?
Nightcliff has an ABS SEIFA score of 1067, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 88 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 88% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Nightcliff?
Nightcliff has average daytime highs of about 31.7°C and overnight lows of about 24.1°C, with roughly 1,819 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
How big is Nightcliff?
Nightcliff is one of the most populous suburbs in Northern Territory — the 10th-largest by usual resident population at the 2021 Census (about 3,884 usual residents).
Where Nightcliff ranks
Nightcliff appears in these data-driven guides — each a transparent sort on a single ABS figure shown on this page.
Nearby suburbs in Northern Territory
More suburb guides in Northern Territory
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.