Tara (Qld), QLD
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Tara is a rural town on the Darling Downs in Queensland's Western Downs Region, about 89 kilometres west of Dalby and 299 kilometres west of Brisbane. It takes its name from the Tara pastoral run gazetted in 1852, thought to refer in turn to the Hill of Tara in County Meath, Ireland; the Baranggum people are the area's Aboriginal custodians. The town was surveyed in 1910 and its first school opened the following year. Wheat, beef, wool and gas underpin the surrounding district. Tara's best-known landmark is the Commercial Hotel, decorated in 1960 with murals by the bush artist Hugh Sawrey illustrating the story of 'Waltzing Matilda', while Southwood National Park lies to the south.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Tara (Qld) is more socio-economically advantaged than about 2% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 791, 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.
Tara (Qld) at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 1,980
- Median age
- 48
- Median weekly household income
- $867
- SEIFA score
- 791
- Coordinates
- -27.2811, 150.4476
Tara (Qld) demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Tara (Qld) 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 30%, 24% of homes are rented, and 10% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 346 | 18% |
| Youth (15–24) | 187 | 9% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 383 | 19% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 601 | 30% |
| Seniors (65+) | 459 | 23% |
Share of the 1,976 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 410 | 53% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 122 | 16% |
| Rented | 183 | 24% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 720 | 94% |
| Townhouses & semis | 13 | 2% |
| Flats & apartments | 11 | 1% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 768 occupied private dwellings in Tara (Qld).
- Median weekly rent
- $180
- Median monthly mortgage
- $758
- Average household size
- 2.2 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,084
- Median weekly personal income
- $479
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 182 (10%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 73 (4%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 214 (11%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 453 (29%)
- Labour-force participation
- 41.1%
- Unemployment rate
- 16.8%
- Employed full-time
- 316
- Employed part-time
- 204
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 Tara (Qld)
Where is Tara (Qld)?
Tara (Qld) is a suburb of Queensland, Australia.
What is the population of Tara (Qld)?
At the 2021 Census, Tara (Qld) had a population of about 1,980.
Is Tara (Qld) an advantaged area?
Tara (Qld) has an ABS SEIFA score of 791, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 2 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 2% of Australian suburbs.
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