Paralowie, SA
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Paralowie is a largely residential suburb in Adelaide's northern reaches. It was officially named in 1980, the name said to combine words from Aboriginal languages — 'para', thought to mean river, and 'owie', taken to mean water. European settlement dates from the late nineteenth century, when the land was given over mainly to market gardens and farms; significant growth did not arrive until after the Second World War, with the suburb expanding rapidly from the 1980s through the mid-1990s. Among its heritage landmarks is Paralowie House, a villa on Waterloo Corner Road built in 1894 and listed on the South Australian Heritage Register. It survives as a reminder of the era before Salisbury North was absorbed into metropolitan Adelaide, when the district was still a semi-rural landscape of larger estates. The former farmhouse known as Judd's Homestead, tied to the Burdett family and their cattle stud, is likewise recognised for its heritage value.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Paralowie is more socio-economically advantaged than about 8% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 880, 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.
Paralowie at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 17,504
- Median age
- 35
- Median weekly household income
- $1,479
- SEIFA score
- 880
- Coordinates
- -34.7571, 138.6120
Paralowie demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Paralowie 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 29%, 24% of homes are rented, and 31% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 3,714 | 21% |
| Youth (15–24) | 2,462 | 14% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 5,043 | 29% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 4,484 | 26% |
| Seniors (65+) | 1,813 | 10% |
Share of the 17,516 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 1,418 | 24% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 2,923 | 50% |
| Rented | 1,430 | 24% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 5,549 | 94% |
| Townhouses & semis | 274 | 5% |
| Flats & apartments | 55 | 1% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 5,888 occupied private dwellings in Paralowie.
- Median weekly rent
- $305
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,300
- Average household size
- 2.9 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,657
- Median weekly personal income
- $678
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 5,305 (31%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 5,453 (32%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 532 (3%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 6,068 (46%)
- Labour-force participation
- 62.8%
- Unemployment rate
- 7.9%
- Employed full-time
- 4,764
- Employed part-time
- 2,781
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 Paralowie
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Paralowie is January (average daytime high around 28.7°C) and the coolest is July (around 14.6°C). The area receives roughly 542 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 28.7°C | 17.4°C | 32 mm |
| Feb | 27.6°C | 17°C | 23 mm |
| Mar | 25.6°C | 15.8°C | 18 mm |
| Apr | 22.4°C | 13.5°C | 48 mm |
| May | 18.1°C | 11°C | 63 mm |
| Jun | 15.4°C | 8.8°C | 67 mm |
| Jul | 14.6°C | 8°C | 64 mm |
| Aug | 15.3°C | 8.1°C | 69 mm |
| Sep | 17.9°C | 9.6°C | 49 mm |
| Oct | 21.6°C | 11.7°C | 42 mm |
| Nov | 23.9°C | 13.4°C | 41 mm |
| Dec | 26.7°C | 15.4°C | 26 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Common questions about Paralowie
Where is Paralowie?
Paralowie is a suburb of South Australia, Australia.
What is the population of Paralowie?
At the 2021 Census, Paralowie had a population of about 17,504.
Is Paralowie an advantaged area?
Paralowie has an ABS SEIFA score of 880, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 8 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 8% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Paralowie?
Paralowie has average daytime highs of about 21.5°C and overnight lows of about 12.5°C, with roughly 542 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
How big is Paralowie?
Paralowie is one of the most populous suburbs in South Australia — the 6th-largest by usual resident population at the 2021 Census (about 17,504 usual residents).
Where Paralowie ranks
Paralowie appears in these data-driven guides — each a transparent sort on a single ABS figure shown on this page.
Nearby suburbs in South Australia
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Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.