Townsville City, QLD
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Townsville is the largest city in northern Australia, strung along Cleveland Bay on the dry-tropical coast of North Queensland, about 1,350 kilometres north of Brisbane. The pink-granite dome of Castle Hill looms over the centre, the palm-lined Strand traces the waterfront, and the city is the mainland gateway to Magnetic Island and the Great Barrier Reef. A large army garrison and James Cook University give it a young, busy feel. It was named after Robert Towns, a Sydney businessman who backed the settlement in the 1860s. The area is the Country of the Wulgurukaba and Bindal peoples, the Wulgurukaba knowing their land as Gurrumbilbarra.
Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs
Townsville City is more socio-economically advantaged than about 88% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 1065, 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 Townsville City 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.
Strong on the data we score
A weighted blend of the 2 components we can score for Townsville City 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
88/100Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs
Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs — the same ABS SEIFA-based Suburb Score (88/100) shown above. Income, education and occupation, as published by the ABS. · ABS SEIFA 2021
Housing affordability
21/100Less affordable than the national median
Median weekly rent was $390 at the 2021 Census — more affordable than about 21% 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.
Townsville City at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 2,945
- Median age
- 39
- Median weekly household income
- $2,013
- SEIFA score
- 1065
- Local government area
- Townsville
- Coordinates
- -19.2569, 146.8186
Map of Townsville City
© OpenStreetMap contributors · View larger map
Housing & property in Townsville City
What it costs to live in Townsville City and how residents hold their homes, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census.
- Median rent
- $390
- per week
- Median mortgage
- $1,663
- per month
- Owner-occupied
- 42%
- of dwellings
- Rented
- 56%
- of dwellings
The full tenure and dwelling-type breakdown is in the Townsville City demographics section below.
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021. © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. See our methodology.
Townsville City demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Townsville City 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 37% and 29% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 202 | 7% |
| Youth (15–24) | 351 | 12% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 1,086 | 37% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 841 | 29% |
| Seniors (65+) | 464 | 16% |
Share of the 2,944 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 291 | 23% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 238 | 19% |
| Rented | 720 | 56% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 147 | 11% |
| Townhouses & semis | 64 | 5% |
| Flats & apartments | 1,018 | 80% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 1,279 occupied private dwellings in Townsville City.
- Average household size
- 1.8 people
- Median weekly family income
- $2,630
- Median weekly personal income
- $1,182
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 747 (29%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 332 (13%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 123 (4%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 1,731 (64%)
- Labour-force participation
- 64.2%
- Unemployment rate
- 5.1%
- Employed full-time
- 1,169
- Employed part-time
- 414
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 Townsville City
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Townsville City is January (average daytime high around 30.7°C) and the coolest is July (around 24.3°C). The area receives roughly 1147 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 30.7°C | 24.5°C | 306 mm |
| Feb | 30.9°C | 24.3°C | 232 mm |
| Mar | 30°C | 23.7°C | 166 mm |
| Apr | 28.7°C | 21.5°C | 110 mm |
| May | 26.7°C | 18.6°C | 46 mm |
| Jun | 25°C | 16.5°C | 26 mm |
| Jul | 24.3°C | 15.2°C | 42 mm |
| Aug | 25.5°C | 15.9°C | 16 mm |
| Sep | 27.3°C | 18.4°C | 11 mm |
| Oct | 28.9°C | 21.4°C | 37 mm |
| Nov | 30.3°C | 23.3°C | 51 mm |
| Dec | 30.9°C | 24.3°C | 104 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
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Common questions about Townsville City
Is Townsville City 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, Townsville City rates 66/100 overall (Strong 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 Townsville City?
At the 2021 Census, the median weekly rent in Townsville City was $390, and the median monthly mortgage repayment was $1,663. These are official ABS Census figures — StreetScout publishes housing data only, with no property valuations or agent referrals.
Where is Townsville City?
Townsville City is a suburb of Queensland, Australia, in the Townsville local government area.
What is the population of Townsville City?
At the 2021 Census, Townsville City had a population of about 2,945.
Is Townsville City an advantaged area?
Townsville City has an ABS SEIFA score of 1065, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 88 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 88% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Townsville City?
Townsville City has average daytime highs of about 28.3°C and overnight lows of about 20.6°C, with roughly 1,147 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
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