South West Rocks, NSW
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
South West Rocks sits on the New South Wales Mid North Coast, about 40 kilometres from Kempsey near the mouth of the Macleay River, on one of the few north-facing bays on the Australian east coast. The name is said to come from ship captains who found it safest to moor near the rocks south-west of Laggers Point. The nearby township of Arakoon was established on Trial Bay in 1866, and by 1889 the town had become a popular bathing resort for the Macleay Valley. It keeps a long commercial-fishing tradition alongside warm-water tourism. Landmarks include the Smoky Cape Lighthouse, on the cape Captain Cook named in 1770, and the heritage-listed Trial Bay Gaol, on a bay named after a brig wrecked there in 1816.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
South West Rocks is more socio-economically advantaged than about 14% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 910, 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 South West Rocks 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 South West Rocks 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
14/100Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs — the same ABS SEIFA-based Suburb Score (14/100) shown above. Income, education and occupation, as published by the ABS. · ABS SEIFA 2021
Housing affordability
37/100Less affordable than the national median
Median weekly rent was $323 at the 2021 Census — more affordable than about 37% 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.
South West Rocks at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 5,058
- Median age
- 58
- Median weekly household income
- $980
- SEIFA score
- 910
- Local government area
- Kempsey
- Coordinates
- -30.8952, 153.0389
Map of South West Rocks
© OpenStreetMap contributors · View larger map
Housing & property in South West Rocks
What it costs to live in South West Rocks and how residents hold their homes, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census.
- Median rent
- $323
- per week
- Median mortgage
- $1,517
- per month
- Owner-occupied
- 73%
- of dwellings
- Rented
- 24%
- of dwellings
The full tenure and dwelling-type breakdown is in the South West Rocks demographics section below.
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021. © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. See our methodology.
South West Rocks demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile South West Rocks 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 39% and 10% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 653 | 13% |
| Youth (15–24) | 354 | 7% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 800 | 16% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 1,289 | 25% |
| Seniors (65+) | 1,962 | 39% |
Share of the 5,058 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 1,167 | 53% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 429 | 20% |
| Rented | 530 | 24% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,777 | 81% |
| Townhouses & semis | 117 | 5% |
| Flats & apartments | 278 | 13% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 2,196 occupied private dwellings in South West Rocks.
- Average household size
- 2.1 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,230
- Median weekly personal income
- $533
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 488 (10%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 144 (3%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 322 (6%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 1,405 (33%)
- Labour-force participation
- 40%
- Unemployment rate
- 6.2%
- Employed full-time
- 822
- Employed part-time
- 692
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.
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Common questions about South West Rocks
Is South West Rocks 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, South West Rocks rates 22/100 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 South West Rocks?
At the 2021 Census, the median weekly rent in South West Rocks was $323, and the median monthly mortgage repayment was $1,517. These are official ABS Census figures — StreetScout publishes housing data only, with no property valuations or agent referrals.
Where is South West Rocks?
South West Rocks is a suburb of New South Wales, Australia, in the Kempsey local government area.
What is the population of South West Rocks?
At the 2021 Census, South West Rocks had a population of about 5,058.
Is South West Rocks an advantaged area?
South West Rocks has an ABS SEIFA score of 910, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 14 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 14% of Australian suburbs.
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