Sandy Bay, TAS
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Sandy Bay is an affluent waterfront suburb of Hobart, lying immediately south of the city centre along the River Derwent. It is home to the main campus of the University of Tasmania and to Wrest Point, the hotel and casino tower that opened in 1973 as Australia's first legal casino and remains a landmark on the city's skyline. A string of small beaches — among them Nutgrove and Long Beach — line its foreshore, and several of Hobart's well-known private schools are based in the suburb. Its leafy streets and harbour outlook have long made it one of the city's most sought-after addresses.
Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs
Sandy Bay is more socio-economically advantaged than about 93% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 1083, 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.
Sandy Bay at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 12,315
- Median age
- 39
- Median weekly household income
- $1,915
- SEIFA score
- 1083
- Coordinates
- -42.9109, 147.3438
Sandy Bay demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Sandy Bay 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 31%, 34% of homes are rented, and 37% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 1,511 | 12% |
| Youth (15–24) | 1,560 | 13% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 3,794 | 31% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 2,644 | 21% |
| Seniors (65+) | 2,794 | 23% |
Share of the 12,303 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 1,941 | 41% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 998 | 21% |
| Rented | 1,600 | 34% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 3,242 | 68% |
| Townhouses & semis | 628 | 13% |
| Flats & apartments | 807 | 17% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 4,739 occupied private dwellings in Sandy Bay.
- Median weekly rent
- $418
- Median monthly mortgage
- $2,167
- Average household size
- 2.4 people
- Median weekly family income
- $2,415
- Median weekly personal income
- $887
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 4,439 (37%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 3,360 (28%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 100 (1%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 8,205 (79%)
- Labour-force participation
- 61.8%
- Unemployment rate
- 8.3%
- Employed full-time
- 3,137
- Employed part-time
- 2,667
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 Sandy Bay
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Sandy Bay is January (average daytime high around 21°C) and the coolest is July (around 11.6°C). The area receives roughly 823 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 21°C | 12.8°C | 64 mm |
| Feb | 20.2°C | 12.4°C | 55 mm |
| Mar | 18.9°C | 11.6°C | 74 mm |
| Apr | 16.6°C | 9.9°C | 44 mm |
| May | 13.8°C | 7.8°C | 68 mm |
| Jun | 12.1°C | 6.7°C | 76 mm |
| Jul | 11.6°C | 5.9°C | 52 mm |
| Aug | 12.1°C | 5.6°C | 68 mm |
| Sep | 14°C | 6.8°C | 60 mm |
| Oct | 15.6°C | 8°C | 99 mm |
| Nov | 17.2°C | 9.6°C | 81 mm |
| Dec | 19.1°C | 11°C | 82 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Common questions about Sandy Bay
Where is Sandy Bay?
Sandy Bay is a suburb of Tasmania, Australia.
What is the population of Sandy Bay?
At the 2021 Census, Sandy Bay had a population of about 12,315.
Is Sandy Bay an advantaged area?
Sandy Bay has an ABS SEIFA score of 1083, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 93 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 93% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Sandy Bay?
Sandy Bay has average daytime highs of about 16°C and overnight lows of about 9°C, with roughly 823 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
How big is Sandy Bay?
Sandy Bay is one of the most populous suburbs in Tasmania — the 2nd-largest by usual resident population at the 2021 Census (about 12,315 usual residents).
Does Sandy Bay have high household incomes?
Sandy Bay has one of the highest median weekly household incomes in Tasmania — the 11th-highest among suburbs with at least 1,000 residents at the 2021 Census ($1,915 per week).
Where Sandy Bay ranks
Sandy Bay appears in these data-driven guides — each a transparent sort on a single ABS figure shown on this page.
Nearby suburbs in Tasmania
More suburb guides in Tasmania
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.