Harvey, WA
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Harvey sits in the South West of Western Australia, about 140 kilometres south of Perth on the South Western Highway between Pinjarra and Bunbury, on the river that shares its name. The Pindjarup and Wardandi Noongar people are recorded as the original inhabitants of the district. European settlement spread slowly through the 1800s; a railway station opened in 1893, the place developed as a privately promoted town, and the townsite was gazetted in 1938. The name comes from the Harvey River, which Governor James Stirling named in 1829 and which is most likely linked to a British naval officer. Today Harvey is a centre of Western Australia's dairy country, also known for its oranges, beef and the recreational waters of the Harvey Dam.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Harvey is more socio-economically advantaged than about 14% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 908, 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.
Harvey at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 3,462
- Median age
- 44
- Median weekly household income
- $1,425
- SEIFA score
- 908
- Coordinates
- -33.0744, 115.9176
Harvey demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Harvey 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 25%, 30% of homes are rented, and 29% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 606 | 18% |
| Youth (15–24) | 318 | 9% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 849 | 25% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 864 | 25% |
| Seniors (65+) | 824 | 24% |
Share of the 3,461 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 492 | 37% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 383 | 29% |
| Rented | 397 | 30% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,216 | 93% |
| Townhouses & semis | 83 | 6% |
| Flats & apartments | 0 | 0% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 1,308 occupied private dwellings in Harvey.
- Median weekly rent
- $280
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,517
- Average household size
- 2.5 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,832
- Median weekly personal income
- $742
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 942 (29%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 725 (22%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 128 (4%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 1,098 (40%)
- Labour-force participation
- 55.9%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.8%
- Employed full-time
- 977
- Employed part-time
- 479
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 Harvey
Where is Harvey?
Harvey is a suburb of Western Australia, Australia.
What is the population of Harvey?
At the 2021 Census, Harvey had a population of about 3,462.
Is Harvey an advantaged area?
Harvey has an ABS SEIFA score of 908, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 14 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 14% of Australian suburbs.
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