Narooma, NSW
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Narooma lies on the far south coast of New South Wales, around 350 kilometres south of Sydney, where the Wagonga Inlet meets the sea. The Yuin people are the traditional custodians, with the Walbunja often identified as the local clan. The name is said to come from an Aboriginal word for clear blue waters, though sources hedge on the exact origin. Surveyed in 1883 as Noorooma, the town was renamed Narooma in 1972. Oyster farming began around 1900 and remains important alongside fishing and tourism. Offshore lies Montague Island, a nature reserve known for seals and seabirds, while Gulaga, also called Mount Dromedary, rises inland. The town is also famous for Australia Rock, a wave-cut hole shaped like the continent, and a clifftop golf course.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Narooma is more socio-economically advantaged than about 18% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 923, 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.
Narooma at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 2,731
- Median age
- 58
- Median weekly household income
- $926
- SEIFA score
- 923
- Coordinates
- -36.2424, 150.0594
Narooma demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Narooma 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 38%, 25% of homes are rented, and 16% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 326 | 12% |
| Youth (15–24) | 191 | 7% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 393 | 14% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 778 | 28% |
| Seniors (65+) | 1,047 | 38% |
Share of the 2,735 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 663 | 53% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 233 | 19% |
| Rented | 307 | 25% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 850 | 68% |
| Townhouses & semis | 200 | 16% |
| Flats & apartments | 107 | 9% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 1,249 occupied private dwellings in Narooma.
- Median weekly rent
- $260
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,517
- Average household size
- 2 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,299
- Median weekly personal income
- $551
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 409 (16%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 104 (4%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 160 (6%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 959 (41%)
- Labour-force participation
- 40.8%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.9%
- Employed full-time
- 407
- Employed part-time
- 438
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 Narooma
Where is Narooma?
Narooma is a suburb of New South Wales, Australia.
What is the population of Narooma?
At the 2021 Census, Narooma had a population of about 2,731.
Is Narooma an advantaged area?
Narooma has an ABS SEIFA score of 923, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 18 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 18% of Australian suburbs.
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