Ballina

New South Wales · Richmond - Tweed · 46,147 people · 40 suburbs · 5 postcodes

Ballina at a glance

46,147
Population
#50 of 130 in NSW
471
km² area
98/km² density
48.3
Median age
+8.6 vs NSW
$1,535
Median HH income/wk
#64 of 130 in NSW
997
SEIFA IRSAD
#36 of 130 in NSW
22
Schools
14 gov, 4 Cath, 4 indep
12.7%
Born overseas
28.0%
Renting

Map shows the Ballina LGA boundary in blue with a marker per suburb. Hover for suburb name, click for details.

Marker colour reflects SEIFA IRSAD decile: ● 1-2 (most disadvantaged), ● 3-4, ● 5-6, ● 7-8, ● 9-10 (most advantaged).

Boundary source: ABS ASGS 2021. Map tiles: OpenStreetMap contributors.

Ballina is a Local Government Area in New South Wales, in the Sydney region. It covers 40 suburbs across 5 postcodes and an area of 471 km². Ballina has a population of 46,147 , ranking #50 most populous in NSW. The most populous suburb is Ballina (9,735 residents), and the highest median household income is in Knockrow at $2,343/week. The LGA-wide median household income is $1,535/week and median age is 48.3. About 12.7% of residents were born overseas and 4.7% speak a language other than English at home.

Who lives here

Age structure

0–14 (16.2%) 15–24 (9.2%) 25–44 (20.5%) 45–64 (26.9%) 65+ (27.1%)
Show counts
0–14 years7,484 (16.2%)
15–24 years4,263 (9.2%)
25–44 years9,470 (20.5%)
45–64 years12,393 (26.9%)
65+ years12,488 (27.1%)
12.7%
Born overseas
4.7%
Speak a language other than English at home
3.7%
First Nations
2.4
Avg household size

How they live

Housing tenure

Owned outright (43.5%) Mortgaged (28.5%) Renting (28.0%)

Dwelling type mix

Separate house (79.4%) Semi/townhouse (16.8%) Flat/apartment (3.8%)
$443
Median weekly rent
$1,919
Median monthly mortgage
42.0%
Households with 0-1 cars
58.0%
Households with 2+ cars

Work and learning

3.5%
Unemployment rate
10,574
In full-time work
8,729
In part-time work

Schools in Ballina

22 schools across Ballina: 63.6% Government, 18.2% Catholic, 18.2% Independent. The NSW average is 69.6% / 16.9% / 13.5%. Schools here have a median ICSEA of 1032 (range 869 to 1113). NSW median is 1005; national mean is 1000.

Sector mix

NSW average for comparison
Government Catholic Independent

Type breakdown

Primary (63.6%) Secondary (13.6%) Combined (13.6%) Special (9.1%)

ICSEA range

700 National mean 1000 1300
LGA median 1032 NSW median 1005LGA range 869 to 1113

ICSEA (Index of Community Socio-Educational Advantage) summarises the socio-economic background of each school's families. Higher values indicate more advantage. Source: ACARA 2025.

All 22 schools in Ballina, sorted by enrolment:

School Sector Type Suburb Students ICSEA
Xavier Catholic College Ballina Catholic Secondary Skennars Head 884 1081
Emmanuel Anglican College Independent Combined Ballina 878 1113
Ballina Coast High School Government Secondary Ballina 722 952
Alstonville High School Government Secondary Alstonville 522 990
Holy Family Catholic Primary School Catholic Primary Skennars Head 446 1102
Lennox Head Public School Government Primary Lennox Head 424 1064
St Francis Xavier Primary School Catholic Primary Ballina 398 1045
Southern Cross Public School Government Primary East Ballina 388 1053
Richmond Christian College Independent Combined Ballina 327 1069
Alstonville Public School Government Primary Alstonville 280 1001
Ballina Public School Government Primary Ballina 254 869
Wollongbar Public School Government Primary Wollongbar 243 1028
St Joseph's Primary School Catholic Primary Alstonville 187 1045
Teven-Tintenbar Public School Government Primary Tintenbar 133 1057
Rous Public School Government Primary Alstonville 85 1031
Southern Cross School of Distance Education Government Combined East Ballina 79 896
Newrybar Public School Government Primary Newrybar 61 1082
Biala Special School Independent Special Ballina 33 898
Fernleigh Public School Government Primary Fernleigh 33 1032
North Coast Pathway Independent Special Alstonville 26 998
Wardell Public School Government Primary Wardell 24 952
Empire Vale Public School Government Primary Empire Vale 18 941

Source: ACARA School Profiles 2025. ICSEA shown where reported; some schools (notably small primaries) do not publish ICSEA.

SEIFA socio-economic indexes

SEIFA 2021 ranks Australian areas across four dimensions. Scores are population-weighted averages of suburb-level SEIFA scores within Ballina. Higher scores indicate more advantage; the national mean is 1000.

IRSAD

Relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage

997
Ranked #36 of 130 NSW LGAs

IRSD

Relative disadvantage only (lower = more disadvantaged)

1016

IER

Economic resources: income, wealth, housing

1012

IEO

Education and occupation: qualifications, skill levels

990

Suburbs in Ballina

Ballina contains 40 suburbs and 5 postcodes. Sorted by population.

SuburbPostcodePopulationMedian incomeMedian age
Ballina 2478 9,735 $1,013/wk 56
Lennox Head 2478 7,687 $2,081/wk 42
Alstonville 2477 5,912 $1,312/wk 51
East Ballina 2478 5,882 $1,554/wk 48
Wollongbar 2477 3,261 $1,639/wk 40
West Ballina 2478 3,230 $1,015/wk 54
Cumbalum 2478 2,211 $2,170/wk 37
Skennars Head 2478 1,303 $1,674/wk 47
Wardell 2477 830 $1,254/wk 47
Tintenbar 2478 618 $1,896/wk 46
Newrybar 2479 532 $1,843/wk 47
Alstonvale 2477 431 $2,038/wk 53
Meerschaum Vale 2477 372 $1,968/wk 47
Pimlico 2478 358 $1,625/wk 41
East Wardell 2477 312 $1,550/wk 44
Teven 2478 306 $1,825/wk 46
Fernleigh 2479 298 $2,024/wk 50
Tuckombil 2477 285 $2,027/wk 43
Uralba 2477 266 $1,812/wk 55
Brooklet 2479 253 $2,083/wk 51
Rous 2477 230 $1,687/wk 48
Dalwood 2335 218 $2,181/wk 50
Lynwood 2477 215 $1,946/wk 50
Pearces Creek 2477 210 $2,285/wk 42
Rous Mill 2477 204 $1,562/wk 49
Kinvara 2478 193 $1,812/wk 50
Knockrow 2479 186 $2,343/wk 53
Empire Vale 2478 185 $1,428/wk 48
Keith Hall 2478 156 $1,286/wk 46
Coolgardie 2478 132 $2,250/wk 44
Bagotville 2477 60 $1,749/wk 50
Patchs Beach 2478 45 $1,833/wk 49
South Ballina 2478 27 $1,124/wk 56
Goat Island 2477 4 43
Clovass 2480
Gundurimba 2480
Missingham 2480
Pimlico Island 2478
Steve Kings Plains 2480
Tuntable Falls 2480

Postcodes covered

2335, 2477, 2478, 2479, 2480

Compare Ballina with neighbouring LGAs

Side-by-side demographic and socio-economic snapshot of Ballina and its closest neighbouring LGAs.

LGA Population Median age Median HH income SEIFA IRSAD % renting % overseas-born
Ballina (NSW) 46,147 48.3 $1,535/wk 997 28.0% 12.7%
Lismore 44,369 43.3 $1,369/wk 945 28.1% 10.4%
Byron 36,337 42.8 $1,655/wk 1027 31.4% 21.8%
Richmond Valley 23,437 45.4 $1,185/wk 892 26.6% 6.0%
Coffs Harbour 78,743 43.9 $1,417/wk 954 30.5% 15.6%
Bathurst Regional 43,580 39.1 $1,680/wk 965 31.3% 9.9%

Services and amenities

NDIS Providers NDIS provider directory for Ballina Climate & weather Climate data for Ballina

Frequently asked questions about Ballina

What is the population of Ballina?

The 2021 Census recorded 46,147 people living in Ballina, across 40 suburbs.

What suburbs are in Ballina?

Ballina contains 40 suburbs. The most populous are Ballina, Lennox Head, Alstonville, East Ballina, Wollongbar.See the full list in the Suburbs section above.

What postcodes are in Ballina?

Ballina covers 5 postcodes: 2335, 2477, 2478, 2479, 2480.

What is the median household income in Ballina?

The population-weighted median household income across Ballina is $1,535 per week (2021 Census), ranking #64 of 130 NSW LGAs.

How many schools are in Ballina?

Ballina has 22 schools, including 14 government, 4 Catholic, and 4 independent schools (ACARA 2025).

What is the SEIFA score for Ballina?

Ballina has a population-weighted SEIFA IRSAD score of 997, where the national average is 1000. Higher scores indicate more relative advantage.

Page last reviewed . Data sources: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census (CC BY 4.0), SEIFA 2021 (IRSD, IRSAD, IER, IEO), ACARA School Profiles 2025, ABS ASGS 2021 LGA boundaries. How this data is sourced.