Renmark, SA
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Renmark is a town in the Riverland of South Australia, on the Murray River about 254 kilometres north-east of Adelaide. The river country is the traditional home of the Erawirung people, and the town's name is of uncertain origin, sometimes said to mean red mud, though accounts note the local mud is not actually red. Renmark was founded in 1887 when the brothers George and William Chaffey established Australia's first irrigation settlement here, turning hot sand into orchards. Their company failed in 1893, but the grower-run Renmark Irrigation Trust carried the scheme on, and the town was proclaimed in 1904. Today its irrigated farms produce grapes, citrus and other crops. Attractions include the historic Renmark Hotel and the restored paddle steamer Industry.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Renmark is more socio-economically advantaged than about 5% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 858, 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 Renmark 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 Renmark 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
5/100Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs — the same ABS SEIFA-based Suburb Score (5/100) shown above. Income, education and occupation, as published by the ABS. · ABS SEIFA 2021
Housing affordability
78/100More affordable than the national median
Median weekly rent was $200 at the 2021 Census — more affordable than about 78% 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.
Renmark at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 4,705
- Median age
- 44
- Median weekly household income
- $1,017
- SEIFA score
- 858
- Local government area
- Renmark Paringa
- Coordinates
- -34.1629, 140.7500
Map of Renmark
© OpenStreetMap contributors · View larger map
Housing & property in Renmark
What it costs to live in Renmark and how residents hold their homes, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census.
- Median rent
- $200
- per week
- Median mortgage
- $975
- per month
- Owner-occupied
- 57%
- of dwellings
- Rented
- 36%
- of dwellings
The full tenure and dwelling-type breakdown is in the Renmark demographics section below.
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021. © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. See our methodology.
Renmark demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Renmark 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 27% and 19% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 736 | 16% |
| Youth (15–24) | 499 | 11% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 1,142 | 24% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 1,065 | 23% |
| Seniors (65+) | 1,273 | 27% |
Share of the 4,715 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 659 | 33% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 480 | 24% |
| Rented | 725 | 36% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,579 | 79% |
| Townhouses & semis | 322 | 16% |
| Flats & apartments | 66 | 3% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 1,994 occupied private dwellings in Renmark.
- Average household size
- 2.2 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,345
- Median weekly personal income
- $602
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 831 (19%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 784 (18%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 214 (5%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 1,442 (38%)
- Labour-force participation
- 51.6%
- Unemployment rate
- 7.1%
- Employed full-time
- 1,047
- Employed part-time
- 736
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.
Share your local knowledge of Renmark
Lived here or spent time in Renmark? Add a review or a quick tip. Reviews and tips are moderated before they appear.
Common questions about Renmark
Is Renmark 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, Renmark rates 29/100 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 Renmark?
At the 2021 Census, the median weekly rent in Renmark was $200, and the median monthly mortgage repayment was $975. These are official ABS Census figures — StreetScout publishes housing data only, with no property valuations or agent referrals.
Where is Renmark?
Renmark is a suburb of South Australia, Australia, in the Renmark Paringa local government area.
What is the population of Renmark?
At the 2021 Census, Renmark had a population of about 4,705.
Is Renmark an advantaged area?
Renmark has an ABS SEIFA score of 858, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 5 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 5% of Australian suburbs.
Nearby suburbs in South Australia
More suburb guides in South Australia
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.