Smithton, TAS
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Smithton is the commercial hub of the Circular Head district on Tasmania's far north-west coast, set on the Duck River about 85 kilometres north-west of Burnie. The settlement grew around the Duck River post office, which opened in 1873 and was renamed Smithton in 1895; the town was formally declared in 1905. Railways and tramways built in the early twentieth century linked it to the wider region and helped it prosper. Surrounded by some of Tasmania's richest dairy and forestry country, Smithton serves as the seat of the Circular Head Council. Its economy rests on dairy and beef farming, timber, fishing and aquaculture, with major local employers in meat, vegetable and seafood processing.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Smithton is more socio-economically advantaged than about 8% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 881, 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.
Smithton at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 3,934
- Median age
- 42
- Median weekly household income
- $1,189
- SEIFA score
- 881
- Coordinates
- -40.8454, 145.1364
Smithton demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Smithton 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 mid-life (45–64) at 25%, 27% of homes are rented, and 10% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 716 | 18% |
| Youth (15–24) | 435 | 11% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 909 | 23% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 976 | 25% |
| Seniors (65+) | 897 | 23% |
Share of the 3,933 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 541 | 35% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 490 | 32% |
| Rented | 410 | 27% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,403 | 92% |
| Townhouses & semis | 97 | 6% |
| Flats & apartments | 12 | 1% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 1,521 occupied private dwellings in Smithton.
- Median weekly rent
- $222
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,083
- Average household size
- 2.3 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,554
- Median weekly personal income
- $652
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 366 (10%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 179 (5%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 816 (21%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 829 (27%)
- Labour-force participation
- 55.7%
- Unemployment rate
- 5.5%
- Employed full-time
- 973
- Employed part-time
- 595
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.
Common questions about Smithton
Where is Smithton?
Smithton is a suburb of Tasmania, Australia.
What is the population of Smithton?
At the 2021 Census, Smithton had a population of about 3,934.
Is Smithton an advantaged area?
Smithton has an ABS SEIFA score of 881, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 8 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 8% of Australian suburbs.
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