Charleville, QLD
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Charleville is an outback town in the Shire of Murweh in south-western Queensland, set on the Warrego River about 745 kilometres west of Brisbane on the traditional lands of the Kunja people. It was gazetted in 1865 and grew from surrounding pastoral runs, becoming a railway terminus when the line reached the town in 1888. The name is thought to honour Charleville in County Cork, Ireland. Charleville is known for its clear outback skies and the Cosmos Centre observatory, a Royal Flying Doctor Service base, and a captive-breeding program for the vulnerable greater bilby. It served as a busy air base in 1943, and the rain-making guns fired at the clouds during the 1902 drought still stand in the town.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Charleville is more socio-economically advantaged than about 18% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 923, 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.
Charleville at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 2,992
- Median age
- 42
- Median weekly household income
- $1,325
- SEIFA score
- 923
- Coordinates
- -26.3798, 146.2778
Charleville demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Charleville 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 28%, 35% of homes are rented, and 11% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 523 | 17% |
| Youth (15–24) | 318 | 11% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 731 | 24% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 844 | 28% |
| Seniors (65+) | 580 | 19% |
Share of the 2,996 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 393 | 34% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 314 | 27% |
| Rented | 401 | 35% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,068 | 92% |
| Townhouses & semis | 29 | 3% |
| Flats & apartments | 44 | 4% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 1,159 occupied private dwellings in Charleville.
- Median weekly rent
- $178
- Median monthly mortgage
- $867
- Average household size
- 2.2 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,813
- Median weekly personal income
- $822
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 295 (11%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 208 (8%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 410 (14%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 932 (39%)
- Labour-force participation
- 57.2%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.2%
- Employed full-time
- 914
- Employed part-time
- 348
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 Charleville
Where is Charleville?
Charleville is a suburb of Queensland, Australia.
What is the population of Charleville?
At the 2021 Census, Charleville had a population of about 2,992.
Is Charleville an advantaged area?
Charleville has an ABS SEIFA score of 923, 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.
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