Kirribilli, NSW
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Kirribilli is a harbourside suburb on Sydney's Lower North Shore, about three kilometres north of the central business district, sitting at the northern end of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. It is one of the city's oldest and most established neighbourhoods. The name is thought to come from an Aboriginal word recorded as Kiarabilli, said to mean a good fishing spot, though another account traces it to an early colonist's house. Its two most famous residences stand side by side above the harbour: Kirribilli House, the Sydney home of the Prime Minister, and Admiralty House, the residence of the Governor-General, whose oldest sections date to the 1840s. Beyond these, the suburb mixes Victorian terraces, Federation villas and twentieth-century apartments, and is home to the Ensemble Theatre, a long-running company set in a converted boatshed.
Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs
Kirribilli is more socio-economically advantaged than about 98% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 1135, 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.
Kirribilli at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 3,629
- Median age
- 44
- Median weekly household income
- $2,267
- SEIFA score
- 1135
- Coordinates
- -33.8475, 151.2161
Kirribilli demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Kirribilli 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 38%, 64% of homes are rented, and 41% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 225 | 6% |
| Youth (15–24) | 230 | 6% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 1,386 | 38% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 902 | 25% |
| Seniors (65+) | 887 | 24% |
Share of the 3,630 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 436 | 23% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 203 | 11% |
| Rented | 1,198 | 64% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 105 | 6% |
| Townhouses & semis | 128 | 7% |
| Flats & apartments | 1,637 | 87% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 1,883 occupied private dwellings in Kirribilli.
- Median weekly rent
- $520
- Median monthly mortgage
- $3,033
- Average household size
- 1.7 people
- Median weekly family income
- $3,744
- Median weekly personal income
- $1,598
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 1,371 (41%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 690 (21%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 22 (1%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 2,662 (79%)
- Labour-force participation
- 61.5%
- Unemployment rate
- 4.3%
- Employed full-time
- 1,446
- Employed part-time
- 442
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.
Weather and climate in Kirribilli
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Kirribilli is January (average daytime high around 25.7°C) and the coolest is July (around 16.5°C). The area receives roughly 1084 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 25.7°C | 19.3°C | 104 mm |
| Feb | 25.1°C | 19°C | 119 mm |
| Mar | 24°C | 18°C | 186 mm |
| Apr | 21.9°C | 15°C | 100 mm |
| May | 19.2°C | 11.7°C | 56 mm |
| Jun | 16.5°C | 9.8°C | 74 mm |
| Jul | 16.5°C | 8.7°C | 70 mm |
| Aug | 17.3°C | 9.2°C | 67 mm |
| Sep | 19.6°C | 11.3°C | 55 mm |
| Oct | 21.8°C | 13.7°C | 92 mm |
| Nov | 22.8°C | 15.5°C | 78 mm |
| Dec | 24.7°C | 17.5°C | 83 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Common questions about Kirribilli
Where is Kirribilli?
Kirribilli is a suburb of New South Wales, Australia.
What is the population of Kirribilli?
At the 2021 Census, Kirribilli had a population of about 3,629.
Is Kirribilli an advantaged area?
Kirribilli has an ABS SEIFA score of 1135, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 98 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 98% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Kirribilli?
Kirribilli has average daytime highs of about 21.3°C and overnight lows of about 14.1°C, with roughly 1,084 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
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