Tully, QLD
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Tully lies on the Bruce Highway in the Cassowary Coast region of Far North Queensland, about 140 kilometres south of Cairns and 210 kilometres north of Townsville, in the Dyirbal language area. It is often called one of the wettest towns in Australia, with average annual rainfall above four metres; a giant golden gumboot in the main street marks a record year in 1950 when more than seven metres of rain fell. The town grew around a government sugar mill built in the mid 1920s, after the railway reached the district, and takes its name from the nearby Tully River, generally said to honour the colonial official William Alcock Tully. Sugar cane and bananas remain the mainstays of the surrounding farmland.
Among Australia's less advantaged suburbs
Tully is more socio-economically advantaged than about 9% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 886, 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.
Tully at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 2,368
- Median age
- 38
- Median weekly household income
- $1,270
- SEIFA score
- 886
- Coordinates
- -17.9412, 145.9216
Tully demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Tully 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 28%, 39% of homes are rented, and 22% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 381 | 16% |
| Youth (15–24) | 288 | 12% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 665 | 28% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 557 | 24% |
| Seniors (65+) | 475 | 20% |
Share of the 2,366 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 286 | 34% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 181 | 21% |
| Rented | 328 | 39% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 703 | 83% |
| Townhouses & semis | 11 | 1% |
| Flats & apartments | 118 | 14% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 843 occupied private dwellings in Tully.
- Median weekly rent
- $250
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,100
- Average household size
- 2.4 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,528
- Median weekly personal income
- $727
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 445 (22%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 363 (18%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 346 (15%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 758 (40%)
- Labour-force participation
- 55.9%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.6%
- Employed full-time
- 686
- Employed part-time
- 313
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 Tully
Where is Tully?
Tully is a suburb of Queensland, Australia.
What is the population of Tully?
At the 2021 Census, Tully had a population of about 2,368.
Is Tully an advantaged area?
Tully has an ABS SEIFA score of 886, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 9 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 9% of Australian suburbs.
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