Mount Magnet, WA
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Mount Magnet is a gold-mining town in the Mid West of Western Australia, about 573 kilometres north-east of Perth and 341 kilometres east-north-east of the coastal city of Geraldton. The explorer Robert Austin named the nearby hill West Mount Magnet in 1854, after the iron in its rock that disturbed his compass; the hill's Aboriginal name, Warramboo, recorded as meaning campfire camping place, was reinstated in 1972. Alluvial gold was found at Poverty Flats in 1891, and mining still drives the local economy. Visitors can explore the Mining and Pastoral Museum and the Wirnda Barna art centre, and in spring the surrounding plains turn colourful with everlastings and other wildflowers.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Mount Magnet is more socio-economically advantaged than about 5% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 858, 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.
Mount Magnet at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 583
- Median age
- 43
- Median weekly household income
- $1,192
- SEIFA score
- 858
- Coordinates
- -28.0635, 117.8846
Mount Magnet demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Mount Magnet 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 32%, 31% of homes are rented, and 21% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 120 | 21% |
| Youth (15–24) | 45 | 8% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 138 | 24% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 189 | 32% |
| Seniors (65+) | 93 | 16% |
Share of the 585 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 52 | 41% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 18 | 14% |
| Rented | 39 | 31% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 114 | 91% |
| Townhouses & semis | 6 | 5% |
| Flats & apartments | 0 | 0% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 125 occupied private dwellings in Mount Magnet.
- Median weekly rent
- $175
- Median monthly mortgage
- $535
- Average household size
- 2 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,357
- Median weekly personal income
- $703
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 60 (21%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 15 (5%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 54 (9%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 90 (19%)
- Labour-force participation
- 30.8%
- Unemployment rate
- 5.6%
- Employed full-time
- 102
- Employed part-time
- 23
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 Mount Magnet
Where is Mount Magnet?
Mount Magnet is a suburb of Western Australia, Australia.
What is the population of Mount Magnet?
At the 2021 Census, Mount Magnet had a population of about 583.
Is Mount Magnet an advantaged area?
Mount Magnet has an ABS SEIFA score of 858, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 5 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 5% of Australian suburbs.
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