Ingham, QLD
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Ingham is a sugar town in tropical north Queensland, set on the floodplain of the Herbert River about 110 kilometres north of Townsville and the main centre of the Hinchinbrook Shire. The Ingham area lies in the Warrgamay language region and was home to its Aboriginal people before European settlement. The town was named after William Bairstow Ingham, an early sugar planter on the Herbert, and was gazetted in 1879 as cane farming spread across the rich river country. Sugar still defines the district, which is served by two large mills, while the town is famous for its strong Italian-Australian community, often called Little Italy, and for the Australian-Italian Festival held each August. Nearby, the Tyto Wetlands draw birdwatchers to the edge of town.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Ingham is more socio-economically advantaged than about 8% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 879, 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.
Ingham at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 4,455
- Median age
- 49
- Median weekly household income
- $1,028
- SEIFA score
- 879
- Coordinates
- -18.6535, 146.1531
Ingham demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Ingham 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 29%, 33% of homes are rented, and 10% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 700 | 16% |
| Youth (15–24) | 455 | 10% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 850 | 19% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 1,168 | 26% |
| Seniors (65+) | 1,282 | 29% |
Share of the 4,455 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 782 | 43% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 342 | 19% |
| Rented | 595 | 33% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,567 | 86% |
| Townhouses & semis | 141 | 8% |
| Flats & apartments | 94 | 5% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 1,820 occupied private dwellings in Ingham.
- Median weekly rent
- $210
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,083
- Average household size
- 2.1 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,407
- Median weekly personal income
- $606
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 417 (10%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 304 (7%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 434 (10%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 1,359 (37%)
- Labour-force participation
- 49.5%
- Unemployment rate
- 5.9%
- Employed full-time
- 1,030
- Employed part-time
- 601
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 Ingham
Where is Ingham?
Ingham is a suburb of Queensland, Australia.
What is the population of Ingham?
At the 2021 Census, Ingham had a population of about 4,455.
Is Ingham an advantaged area?
Ingham has an ABS SEIFA score of 879, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 8 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 8% of Australian suburbs.
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