Byford, WA
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Byford sits on the south-eastern edge of the Perth metropolitan area, within the Shire of Serpentine-Jarrahdale. Few records survive of the area's first Aboriginal inhabitants, though physical evidence of their presence has turned up at sites across the district. The suburb's earliest name, Beenup, was a settler adaptation of an Aboriginal word linked to the nearby Beenyup Brook, and it was applied to a railway siding after the South Western Railway reached the district in 1892. Gazetted as a townsite in 1906, the settlement was renamed Byford in 1920 through a ballot of residents, who chose it over alternatives such as Beenyup and Glengeorge. For much of the twentieth century brickmaking from the local shale deposits drove the economy. In recent decades Byford has grown rapidly as Perth has expanded southward, and it gained a Metronet rail connection in 2025. Among its attractions are the long-established Cohunu Koala Park and a sculpture trail celebrating the town's history.
Around the national middle
Byford is more socio-economically advantaged than about 46% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 981, 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.
Byford at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 18,878
- Median age
- 31
- Median weekly household income
- $2,059
- SEIFA score
- 981
- Coordinates
- -32.2206, 115.9975
Byford demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Byford 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 35%, 15% of homes are rented, and 29% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 5,462 | 29% |
| Youth (15–24) | 2,066 | 11% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 6,609 | 35% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 3,370 | 18% |
| Seniors (65+) | 1,373 | 7% |
Share of the 18,880 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 838 | 14% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 4,129 | 69% |
| Rented | 919 | 15% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 5,907 | 99% |
| Townhouses & semis | 68 | 1% |
| Flats & apartments | 5 | 0% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 5,984 occupied private dwellings in Byford.
- Median weekly rent
- $380
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,898
- Average household size
- 3 people
- Median weekly family income
- $2,184
- Median weekly personal income
- $947
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 5,221 (29%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 2,818 (16%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 603 (3%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 6,722 (52%)
- Labour-force participation
- 72.7%
- Unemployment rate
- 4.3%
- Employed full-time
- 5,908
- Employed part-time
- 2,800
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 Byford
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Byford is January (average daytime high around 31.8°C) and the coolest is July (around 16.7°C). The area receives roughly 738 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 31.8°C | 18.3°C | 20 mm |
| Feb | 31.4°C | 18.4°C | 24 mm |
| Mar | 28.9°C | 17.5°C | 41 mm |
| Apr | 24.4°C | 14.5°C | 47 mm |
| May | 20.3°C | 11.9°C | 86 mm |
| Jun | 17.7°C | 10.2°C | 115 mm |
| Jul | 16.7°C | 9.7°C | 143 mm |
| Aug | 17.2°C | 9.3°C | 120 mm |
| Sep | 19.1°C | 10.2°C | 65 mm |
| Oct | 21.8°C | 11.8°C | 42 mm |
| Nov | 26°C | 14.1°C | 26 mm |
| Dec | 29.9°C | 16.7°C | 9 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Common questions about Byford
Where is Byford?
Byford is a suburb of Western Australia, Australia.
What is the population of Byford?
At the 2021 Census, Byford had a population of about 18,878.
Is Byford an advantaged area?
Byford has an ABS SEIFA score of 981, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 46 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 46% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Byford?
Byford has average daytime highs of about 23.8°C and overnight lows of about 13.6°C, with roughly 738 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
How big is Byford?
Byford is one of the most populous suburbs in Western Australia — the 9th-largest by usual resident population at the 2021 Census (about 18,878 usual residents).
Where Byford ranks
Byford appears in these data-driven guides — each a transparent sort on a single ABS figure shown on this page.
Nearby suburbs in Western Australia
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Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.