Tahmoor, NSW
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Tahmoor is a town in the Macarthur region of New South Wales, in Wollondilly Shire roughly 97 kilometres south-west of Sydney. Originally known as Myrtle Creek, it took the name Tahmoor — said to come from a local Aboriginal word for the common bronzewing pigeon — when the railway station opened in 1919. Coal mining at the Tahmoor Colliery and poultry processing are among the area's larger employers, alongside local retail and services. For visitors, the Tahmoor Potholes Reserve offers bushwalking tracks to the Mermaid Pools, Bargo Falls and the sandstone gorge of the Bargo River. The surrounding bush was once the feared 'Bargo Brush', a haunt of escaped convicts and bushrangers on the old Great Southern Road south of Sydney.
Less advantaged than the national average
Tahmoor is more socio-economically advantaged than about 31% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 954, 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.
Tahmoor at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 5,777
- Median age
- 34
- Median weekly household income
- $1,739
- SEIFA score
- 954
- Coordinates
- -34.2292, 150.5907
Tahmoor demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Tahmoor 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 27%, 32% of homes are rented, and 12% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 1,340 | 23% |
| Youth (15–24) | 707 | 12% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 1,539 | 27% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 1,326 | 23% |
| Seniors (65+) | 873 | 15% |
Share of the 5,785 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 518 | 26% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 820 | 41% |
| Rented | 638 | 32% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,836 | 91% |
| Townhouses & semis | 156 | 8% |
| Flats & apartments | 17 | 1% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 2,013 occupied private dwellings in Tahmoor.
- Median weekly rent
- $410
- Median monthly mortgage
- $2,167
- Average household size
- 2.7 people
- Median weekly family income
- $2,030
- Median weekly personal income
- $792
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 662 (12%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 362 (7%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 396 (7%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 1,673 (39%)
- Labour-force participation
- 62.3%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.6%
- Employed full-time
- 1,535
- Employed part-time
- 811
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 Tahmoor
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Tahmoor is January (average daytime high around 26.9°C) and the coolest is July (around 14.2°C). The area receives roughly 867 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 26.9°C | 16.3°C | 98 mm |
| Feb | 25.5°C | 15.8°C | 100 mm |
| Mar | 23.5°C | 14.7°C | 119 mm |
| Apr | 20.6°C | 11.6°C | 62 mm |
| May | 17.2°C | 8.2°C | 39 mm |
| Jun | 14.3°C | 6.3°C | 50 mm |
| Jul | 14.2°C | 5.3°C | 53 mm |
| Aug | 15.2°C | 5.5°C | 55 mm |
| Sep | 18.7°C | 7.6°C | 41 mm |
| Oct | 21.7°C | 10.4°C | 76 mm |
| Nov | 23.6°C | 12.3°C | 79 mm |
| Dec | 25.8°C | 14.6°C | 95 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Common questions about Tahmoor
Where is Tahmoor?
Tahmoor is a suburb of New South Wales, Australia.
What is the population of Tahmoor?
At the 2021 Census, Tahmoor had a population of about 5,777.
Is Tahmoor an advantaged area?
Tahmoor has an ABS SEIFA score of 954, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 31 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 31% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Tahmoor?
Tahmoor has average daytime highs of about 20.6°C and overnight lows of about 10.7°C, with roughly 867 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
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