Barmera, SA
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Barmera lies in the Riverland of South Australia, on the shore of the freshwater Lake Bonney, about 220 kilometres north-east of Adelaide on the Sturt Highway. The country around the lake is the traditional land of several Aboriginal groups, its original inhabitants being the Barmerara Meru clan of the Ngawadj people. The town's name is uncertain in origin, but is thought to come from a local Aboriginal word meaning something like water place or land dwellers. European settlement began with the Overland Corner Hotel in 1859, a resting point for drovers moving sheep along the Murray. Irrigation arrived in 1921 and the town was proclaimed in 1928. Today Lake Bonney draws swimmers and sailors, and Barmera hosts a popular country music festival each winter.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Barmera is more socio-economically advantaged than about 9% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 884, 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.
Barmera at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 2,884
- Median age
- 49
- Median weekly household income
- $1,037
- SEIFA score
- 884
- Coordinates
- -34.2326, 140.4745
Barmera demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Barmera 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 30%, 28% of homes are rented, and 14% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 446 | 15% |
| Youth (15–24) | 270 | 9% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 594 | 21% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 719 | 25% |
| Seniors (65+) | 866 | 30% |
Share of the 2,895 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 458 | 37% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 349 | 28% |
| Rented | 352 | 28% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,042 | 84% |
| Townhouses & semis | 162 | 13% |
| Flats & apartments | 17 | 1% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 1,236 occupied private dwellings in Barmera.
- Median weekly rent
- $200
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,028
- Average household size
- 2.1 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,388
- Median weekly personal income
- $578
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 379 (14%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 268 (10%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 158 (5%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 842 (36%)
- Labour-force participation
- 47.9%
- Unemployment rate
- 5.6%
- Employed full-time
- 630
- Employed part-time
- 412
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 Barmera
Where is Barmera?
Barmera is a suburb of South Australia, Australia.
What is the population of Barmera?
At the 2021 Census, Barmera had a population of about 2,884.
Is Barmera an advantaged area?
Barmera has an ABS SEIFA score of 884, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 9 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 9% of Australian suburbs.
Nearby suburbs in South Australia
More suburb guides in South Australia
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.