Chinchilla, QLD
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Chinchilla is a town on the Western Downs of southern Queensland, on the Warrego Highway near Charleys Creek and the Condamine River, about 300 kilometres west-north-west of Brisbane and roughly 81 kilometres north-west of Dalby. It lies on the country of the Baranggum people. Despite the name, the town is not called after the animal: it is generally said to come from an Aboriginal word, recorded as tintinchilla or jinchilla, referring to the cypress pines of the area. Chinchilla styles itself the Melon Capital of Australia, growing a large share of the national crop and celebrating it at a biennial Melon Festival in February. The settlement began in 1877 as a railway construction camp. Farming, horticulture, coal and gas drive the local economy.
Less advantaged than the national average
Chinchilla is more socio-economically advantaged than about 20% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 927, 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.
Chinchilla at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 7,068
- Median age
- 33
- Median weekly household income
- $1,549
- SEIFA score
- 927
- Coordinates
- -26.7471, 150.6273
Chinchilla demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Chinchilla 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 29%, 42% of homes are rented, and 11% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 1,606 | 23% |
| Youth (15–24) | 839 | 12% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 2,062 | 29% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 1,512 | 21% |
| Seniors (65+) | 1,049 | 15% |
Share of the 7,068 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 626 | 26% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 673 | 28% |
| Rented | 1,021 | 42% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 2,016 | 83% |
| Townhouses & semis | 342 | 14% |
| Flats & apartments | 46 | 2% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 2,421 occupied private dwellings in Chinchilla.
- Median weekly rent
- $250
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,300
- Average household size
- 2.5 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,918
- Median weekly personal income
- $810
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 694 (11%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 376 (6%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 537 (8%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 2,268 (43%)
- Labour-force participation
- 59.6%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.8%
- Employed full-time
- 2,041
- Employed part-time
- 880
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 Chinchilla
Where is Chinchilla?
Chinchilla is a suburb of Queensland, Australia.
What is the population of Chinchilla?
At the 2021 Census, Chinchilla had a population of about 7,068.
Is Chinchilla an advantaged area?
Chinchilla has an ABS SEIFA score of 927, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 20 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 20% of Australian suburbs.
Nearby suburbs in Queensland
More suburb guides in Queensland
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.