Benalla, VIC
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Benalla is a city in the Hume region of north-eastern Victoria, set on the Broken River about 212 kilometres north-east of Melbourne, with the Hume Freeway now bypassing it to the south. It lies on the traditional country of the Taungurung people. Known as the Rose City, it is also a centre for public art: the Benalla Art Gallery sits beside Lake Benalla, and more than fifty murals make up a street art trail fed by the annual Wall to Wall festival held since 2015. Hamilton Hume and William Hovell passed through in 1824; a post office opened in 1844, the town was surveyed in 1849, and Benalla was proclaimed a city in 1965. Farming services, tourism, manufacturing and gliding all sustain it today.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Benalla is more socio-economically advantaged than about 18% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 922, 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.
Benalla at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 10,822
- Median age
- 51
- Median weekly household income
- $1,142
- SEIFA score
- 922
- Coordinates
- -36.5734, 146.0068
Benalla demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Benalla 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 31%, 26% of homes are rented, and 11% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 1,512 | 14% |
| Youth (15–24) | 1,043 | 10% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 2,101 | 19% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 2,811 | 26% |
| Seniors (65+) | 3,345 | 31% |
Share of the 10,812 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 1,953 | 42% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 1,241 | 27% |
| Rented | 1,190 | 26% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 3,973 | 86% |
| Townhouses & semis | 583 | 13% |
| Flats & apartments | 7 | 0% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 4,606 occupied private dwellings in Benalla.
- Median weekly rent
- $250
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,253
- Average household size
- 2.1 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,521
- Median weekly personal income
- $645
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 1,058 (11%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 459 (5%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 218 (2%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 3,533 (39%)
- Labour-force participation
- 49.5%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.8%
- Employed full-time
- 2,439
- Employed part-time
- 1,613
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 Benalla
Where is Benalla?
Benalla is a suburb of Victoria, Australia.
What is the population of Benalla?
At the 2021 Census, Benalla had a population of about 10,822.
Is Benalla an advantaged area?
Benalla has an ABS SEIFA score of 922, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 18 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 18% of Australian suburbs.
Nearby suburbs in Victoria
More suburb guides in Victoria
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.