Heyfield, VIC
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Heyfield sits in the West Gippsland region of Victoria, in the Shire of Wellington roughly 200 kilometres east of Melbourne, near the irrigation waters of Lake Glenmaggie. Early settler James McFarlane is said to have called the district 'Hayfield' in 1841, likening the waving grass to a field of corn; the spelling had drifted to 'Heyfield' by the 1860s, though exactly when and why is unclear. The surrounding country supported pastoral runs — pastoralist James Tyson, often described as Australia's first self-made millionaire, took up land here in 1866 — and timber later became central to the town, home to one of the largest hardwood mills in the southern hemisphere. Author Mary Grant Bruce wrote part of her Billabong series here.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Heyfield is more socio-economically advantaged than about 9% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 885, 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.
Heyfield at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 2,050
- Median age
- 47
- Median weekly household income
- $1,007
- SEIFA score
- 885
- Coordinates
- -37.9719, 146.7661
Heyfield demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Heyfield 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 28%, 18% of homes are rented, and 9% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 328 | 16% |
| Youth (15–24) | 224 | 11% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 412 | 20% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 522 | 25% |
| Seniors (65+) | 572 | 28% |
Share of the 2,058 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 343 | 44% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 259 | 33% |
| Rented | 144 | 18% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 743 | 94% |
| Townhouses & semis | 3 | 0% |
| Flats & apartments | 41 | 5% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 791 occupied private dwellings in Heyfield.
- Median weekly rent
- $210
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,088
- Average household size
- 2.3 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,390
- Median weekly personal income
- $530
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 158 (9%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 50 (3%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 46 (2%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 459 (28%)
- Labour-force participation
- 46.5%
- Unemployment rate
- 4%
- Employed full-time
- 432
- Employed part-time
- 270
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 Heyfield
Where is Heyfield?
Heyfield is a suburb of Victoria, Australia.
What is the population of Heyfield?
At the 2021 Census, Heyfield had a population of about 2,050.
Is Heyfield an advantaged area?
Heyfield has an ABS SEIFA score of 885, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 9 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 9% of Australian suburbs.
Nearby suburbs in Victoria
More suburb guides in Victoria
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.