Merewether, NSW

By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan · Updated 1 June 2026

Merewether is a beachside suburb of Newcastle, about three kilometres south of the city centre, reaching from the sand of Merewether Beach in the east across to Adamstown in the west. Once part of the Burwood Estate, it takes its name from the estate's owner, Edward Christopher Merewether, and grew into a self-governing municipality in 1885 before being folded into the City of Greater Newcastle in 1938. For its first century the district ran on coal: the Newcastle Coal Mining Company worked collieries here until the last pits closed in 1954, served by a private line that slipped past the beach through what are said to be Australia's first two railway tunnels, cut in 1861 and 1862. Today its beachfront is the heart of the suburb.

95/100

Suburb Score

Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs

Merewether is more socio-economically advantaged than about 95% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 1100, 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.

Merewether at a glance

Population (2021): 11,788
Median age: 39
Median weekly household income: $2,287
SEIFA score: 1100
Coordinates: -32.9482, 151.7423

Merewether demographics (2021 Census)

The figures below profile Merewether 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 mid-life (45–64) at 27%, 33% of homes are rented, and 13% of residents were born overseas.

Age profile

Age group	People	Share
Children (0–14)	1,929	16%
Youth (15–24)	1,668	14%
Young adults (25–44)	3,095	26%
Mid-life (45–64)	3,207	27%
Seniors (65+)	1,886	16%

Share of the 11,785 people counted by age.

Housing and households

Tenure	Dwellings	Share
Owned outright	1,615	35%
Owned with a mortgage	1,356	30%
Rented	1,528	33%

Dwelling type	Dwellings	Share
Houses	2,795	61%
Townhouses & semis	881	19%
Flats & apartments	904	20%

Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 4,587 occupied private dwellings in Merewether.

Median weekly rent: $420
Median monthly mortgage: $2,457
Average household size: 2.4 people
Median weekly family income: $3,013
Median weekly personal income: $1,102

Community and culture

Born overseas: 1,449 (13%)
Speaks a language other than English at home: 721 (6%)
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander: 259 (2%)

Work and education

Completed Year 12: 6,648 (71%)
Labour-force participation: 68.9%
Unemployment rate: 3.1%
Employed full-time: 3,793
Employed part-time: 2,345

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 Merewether

Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Merewether is January (average daytime high around 27.1°C) and the coolest is July (around 17.3°C). The area receives roughly 898 mm of rain across the year.

Month	Avg high	Avg low	Rain
Jan	27.1°C	20.7°C	75 mm
Feb	26.2°C	20.5°C	92 mm
Mar	25.1°C	19.6°C	149 mm
Apr	22.7°C	16.5°C	76 mm
May	20°C	13.2°C	44 mm
Jun	17.3°C	11.1°C	79 mm
Jul	17.3°C	9.9°C	56 mm
Aug	18.2°C	10.3°C	48 mm
Sep	20.7°C	12.7°C	59 mm
Oct	22.7°C	15.2°C	79 mm
Nov	24°C	17°C	71 mm
Dec	25.9°C	19°C	70 mm

Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).

Common questions about Merewether

Where is Merewether?

Merewether is a suburb of New South Wales, Australia.

What is the population of Merewether?

At the 2021 Census, Merewether had a population of about 11,788.

Is Merewether an advantaged area?

Merewether has an ABS SEIFA score of 1100, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 95 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 95% of Australian suburbs.

What is the weather like in Merewether?

Merewether has average daytime highs of about 22.3°C and overnight lows of about 15.5°C, with roughly 898 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).