Latrobe, TAS
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Latrobe is a town in north-western Tasmania, on the Mersey River about eight kilometres south-east of Devonport along the Bass Highway. The district was first settled by B. B. Thomas in 1826, and in 1861 the growing settlement was named after Charles Joseph La Trobe, a colonial administrator. Latrobe today is known for the Australian Axeman's Hall of Fame, which celebrates the sport of competitive woodchopping, and for the Big Platypus that stands outside it as one of the country's big things. Each Australia Day the town hosts the Henley-on-Mersey carnival, a riverside gathering of woodchopping, ferret racing and other contests that has long drawn visitors from across the north-west coast.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Latrobe is more socio-economically advantaged than about 10% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 893, 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.
Latrobe at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 5,030
- Median age
- 43
- Median weekly household income
- $1,173
- SEIFA score
- 893
- Coordinates
- -41.2477, 146.4285
Latrobe demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Latrobe 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 25%, 28% of homes are rented, and 10% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 841 | 17% |
| Youth (15–24) | 530 | 11% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 1,196 | 24% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 1,222 | 24% |
| Seniors (65+) | 1,233 | 25% |
Share of the 5,022 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 717 | 36% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 683 | 34% |
| Rented | 553 | 28% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,874 | 93% |
| Townhouses & semis | 119 | 6% |
| Flats & apartments | 3 | 0% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 2,012 occupied private dwellings in Latrobe.
- Median weekly rent
- $250
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,300
- Average household size
- 2.3 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,476
- Median weekly personal income
- $628
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 471 (10%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 239 (5%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 392 (8%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 1,213 (30%)
- Labour-force participation
- 54.8%
- Unemployment rate
- 5.6%
- Employed full-time
- 1,263
- Employed part-time
- 761
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 Latrobe
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Latrobe is January (average daytime high around 23°C) and the coolest is July (around 11.8°C). The area receives roughly 898 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 23°C | 12.4°C | 62 mm |
| Feb | 21.9°C | 11.9°C | 51 mm |
| Mar | 20.2°C | 10.9°C | 69 mm |
| Apr | 17.3°C | 8.2°C | 62 mm |
| May | 14.2°C | 6.2°C | 86 mm |
| Jun | 12.4°C | 4.7°C | 85 mm |
| Jul | 11.8°C | 4.3°C | 108 mm |
| Aug | 12.4°C | 3.8°C | 84 mm |
| Sep | 14.3°C | 5°C | 73 mm |
| Oct | 16.4°C | 6.7°C | 99 mm |
| Nov | 18.6°C | 8.8°C | 55 mm |
| Dec | 20.8°C | 10.4°C | 64 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Common questions about Latrobe
Where is Latrobe?
Latrobe is a suburb of Tasmania, Australia.
What is the population of Latrobe?
At the 2021 Census, Latrobe had a population of about 5,030.
Is Latrobe an advantaged area?
Latrobe has an ABS SEIFA score of 893, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 10 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 10% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Latrobe?
Latrobe has average daytime highs of about 16.9°C and overnight lows of about 7.8°C, with roughly 898 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
How big is Latrobe?
Latrobe is one of the most populous suburbs in Tasmania — the 21st-largest by usual resident population at the 2021 Census (about 5,030 usual residents).
Where Latrobe ranks
Latrobe appears in these data-driven guides — each a transparent sort on a single ABS figure shown on this page.
- Largest suburbs in Tasmania#21 of 25
Nearby suburbs in Tasmania
More suburb guides in Tasmania
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.