Riverside (Tas.), TAS
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Riverside is a residential suburb on the north-western edge of Launceston, Tasmania's second city, set across the river a few kilometres from the centre of town. It takes in the western bank where the South Esk River joins the broad Tamar, and the West Tamar Highway threads through it towards the small towns further down the estuary. Though a handful of older homes and the mid-nineteenth-century Cormiston House survive, most of Riverside grew up after it was gazetted as a locality in 1958, with shops and schools following through the 1960s. The western part of the suburb began as a hydro-electric workers' village built in the 1950s to house crews constructing the nearby Trevallyn Power Station. Riverside is now among the largest of Launceston's suburbs.
Around the national middle
Riverside (Tas.) is more socio-economically advantaged than about 52% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 991, 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 Riverside (Tas.) 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.
Around the national middle
A weighted blend of the 2 components we can score for Riverside (Tas.) 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
52/100Around the national middle
Around the national middle — the same ABS SEIFA-based Suburb Score (52/100) shown above. Income, education and occupation, as published by the ABS. · ABS SEIFA 2021
Housing affordability
47/100Around the national median for cost
Median weekly rent was $300 at the 2021 Census — more affordable than about 47% 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.
Riverside (Tas.) at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 7,326
- Median age
- 40
- Median weekly household income
- $1,519
- SEIFA score
- 991
- Local government area
- West Tamar
- Coordinates
- -41.4213, 147.0453
Map of Riverside (Tas.)
© OpenStreetMap contributors · View larger map
Housing & property in Riverside (Tas.)
What it costs to live in Riverside (Tas.) and how residents hold their homes, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census.
- Median rent
- $300
- per week
- Median mortgage
- $1,440
- per month
- Owner-occupied
- 73%
- of dwellings
- Rented
- 25%
- of dwellings
The full tenure and dwelling-type breakdown is in the Riverside (Tas.) demographics section below.
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021. © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. See our methodology.
Riverside (Tas.) demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Riverside (Tas.) 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 18% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 1,294 | 18% |
| Youth (15–24) | 865 | 12% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 1,834 | 25% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 1,747 | 24% |
| Seniors (65+) | 1,576 | 22% |
Share of the 7,316 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 1,076 | 38% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 989 | 35% |
| Rented | 699 | 25% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 2,677 | 95% |
| Townhouses & semis | 31 | 1% |
| Flats & apartments | 107 | 4% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 2,820 occupied private dwellings in Riverside (Tas.).
- Average household size
- 2.5 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,942
- Median weekly personal income
- $776
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 1,251 (18%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 688 (10%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 178 (2%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 3,004 (53%)
- Labour-force participation
- 61.7%
- Unemployment rate
- 4.6%
- Employed full-time
- 1,962
- Employed part-time
- 1,391
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 Riverside (Tas.)
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Riverside (Tas.) is January (average daytime high around 24°C) and the coolest is July (around 10.9°C). The area receives roughly 778 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 24°C | 12.2°C | 54 mm |
| Feb | 22.6°C | 11.6°C | 53 mm |
| Mar | 20.6°C | 10.3°C | 61 mm |
| Apr | 17.1°C | 7.5°C | 53 mm |
| May | 13.6°C | 5.2°C | 72 mm |
| Jun | 11.4°C | 3.4°C | 72 mm |
| Jul | 10.9°C | 3°C | 89 mm |
| Aug | 11.8°C | 2.8°C | 68 mm |
| Sep | 14.1°C | 4.3°C | 59 mm |
| Oct | 16.4°C | 6°C | 82 mm |
| Nov | 19°C | 8.3°C | 50 mm |
| Dec | 21.6°C | 10.1°C | 65 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
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Common questions about Riverside (Tas.)
Is Riverside (Tas.) 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, Riverside (Tas.) rates 50/100 overall (Around the national middle). Public transport, schools and safety aren't scored yet — see our methodology for why.
What is the median rent in Riverside (Tas.)?
At the 2021 Census, the median weekly rent in Riverside (Tas.) was $300, and the median monthly mortgage repayment was $1,440. These are official ABS Census figures — StreetScout publishes housing data only, with no property valuations or agent referrals.
Where is Riverside (Tas.)?
Riverside (Tas.) is a suburb of Tasmania, Australia, in the West Tamar local government area.
What is the population of Riverside (Tas.)?
At the 2021 Census, Riverside (Tas.) had a population of about 7,326.
Is Riverside (Tas.) an advantaged area?
Riverside (Tas.) has an ABS SEIFA score of 991, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 52 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 52% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Riverside (Tas.)?
Riverside (Tas.) has average daytime highs of about 16.9°C and overnight lows of about 7.1°C, with roughly 778 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
How big is Riverside (Tas.)?
Riverside (Tas.) is one of the most populous suburbs in Tasmania — the 8th-largest by usual resident population at the 2021 Census (about 7,326 usual residents).
Where Riverside (Tas.) ranks
Riverside (Tas.) appears in these data-driven guides — each a transparent sort on a single ABS figure shown on this page.
- Largest suburbs in Tasmania#8 of 25
Nearby suburbs in Tasmania
More suburb guides in Tasmania
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.