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East Arnhem
Northern Territory · Northern Territory - Outback · 12,791 people · 14 suburbs · 4 postcodes
East Arnhem at a glance
Map shows the East Arnhem 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.
Federal electorate boundaries can be toggled on the map. Boundary source: ABS ASGS 2021 CED boundaries.
East Arnhem is a Local Government Area in Northern Territory, in the Darwin region. It covers 14 suburbs across 4 postcodes and an area of 33,607 km². East Arnhem has a population of 12,791 , ranking #5 most populous in NT. The most populous suburb is Nhulunbuy (3,350 residents).About 6.2% of residents were born overseas and 64.3% speak a language other than English at home.
Who lives here
Age structure
Show counts
| 0–14 years | 3,159 (24.7%) |
| 15–24 years | 2,205 (17.2%) |
| 25–44 years | 4,323 (33.8%) |
| 45–64 years | 2,615 (20.4%) |
| 65+ years | 504 (3.9%) |
How they live
Housing tenure
Dwelling type mix
Work and learning
Schools in East Arnhem
16 schools across East Arnhem: 81.2% Government, 0% Catholic, 18.8% Independent. The NT average is 78.8% / 9.2% / 12.0%. Schools here have a median ICSEA of 652 (range 591 to 1056). NT median is 778; national mean is 1000.
Sector mix
Type breakdown
ICSEA range
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 16 schools in East Arnhem, sorted by enrolment:
| School | Sector | Type | Suburb | Students | ICSEA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shepherdson College | Government | Combined | Galiwinku | 458 | 664 |
| Nhulunbuy Primary School | Government | Primary | Nhulunbuy | 349 | 946 |
| Nhulunbuy High School | Government | Secondary | Nhulunbuy | 279 | 903 |
| Ramingining School | Government | Combined | Ramingining | 263 | 660 |
| Milingimbi School | Government | Combined | Milingimbi | 236 | 645 |
| Gapuwiyak School | Government | Combined | Gapuwiyak | 205 | 596 |
| Alyangula Area School | Government | Combined | Alyangula | 203 | 888 |
| Nhulunbuy Christian College | Independent | Combined | Nhulunbuy | 138 | 1056 |
| Yirrkala School | Government | Combined | Yirrkala | 132 | 624 |
| Laynhapuy Homelands School | Government | Combined | Yirrkala | 120 | 639 |
| Angurugu School | Government | Combined | Angurugu | 63 | 629 |
| Dhupuma Barker | Independent | Primary | East Arnhem | 58 | 612 |
| Gawa Christian School | Independent | Combined | Galiwinku | 53 | 661 |
| Alyarrmandumanja Umbakumba School | Government | Combined | Umbakumba | 49 | 591 |
| Baniyala Garrangali School | Government | Combined | East Arnhem | 22 | 608 |
| Milyakburra School | Government | Combined | Milyakburra | 17 | 659 |
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 East Arnhem. Higher scores indicate more advantage; the national mean is 1000.
IRSAD
Relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage
IRSD
Relative disadvantage only (lower = more disadvantaged)
IER
Economic resources: income, wealth, housing
IEO
Education and occupation: qualifications, skill levels
Suburbs in East Arnhem
East Arnhem contains 14 suburbs and 4 postcodes. Sorted by population.
| Suburb | Postcode | Population | Median income | Median age |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nhulunbuy | 0880 | 3,350 | $2,777/wk | 33 |
| Galiwinku | 0822 | 2,199 | $1,913/wk | 25 |
| East Arnhem | 0822 | 1,194 | $1,224/wk | 27 |
| Milingimbi | 0822 | 1,097 | $1,410/wk | 27 |
| Angurugu | 0822 | 883 | $1,037/wk | 26 |
| Ramingining | 0822 | 814 | $1,166/wk | 29 |
| Alyangula | 0885 | 751 | $3,333/wk | 34 |
| Gapuwiyak | 0880 | 705 | $1,766/wk | 30 |
| Yirrkala | 0880 | 657 | $1,679/wk | 32 |
| Umbakumba | 0822 | 419 | $436/wk | 29 |
| Anindilyakwa | 0822 | 375 | $1,583/wk | 31 |
| Gunyangara | 0880 | 241 | $1,424/wk | 29 |
| Milyakburra | 0822 | 106 | $575/wk | 33 |
| Gove | 0880 |
Postcodes covered
Compare East Arnhem with neighbouring LGAs
Side-by-side demographic and socio-economic snapshot of East Arnhem and its closest neighbouring LGAs.
| LGA | Population | Median age | SEIFA IRSAD | % renting | % overseas-born |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Arnhem (NT) | 12,791 | 29.4 | 808 | 94.3% | 6.2% |
| Roper Gulf | 6,477 | 29.0 | 711 | 82.0% | 4.0% |
| West Arnhem | 6,279 | 28.1 | 731 | 95.9% | 4.3% |
| Palmerston | 37,044 | 31.3 | 998 | 45.9% | 22.1% |
Services and amenities
Frequently asked questions about East Arnhem
What is the population of East Arnhem?
The 2021 Census recorded 12,791 people living in East Arnhem, across 14 suburbs.
What suburbs are in East Arnhem?
East Arnhem contains 14 suburbs. The most populous are Nhulunbuy, Galiwinku, East Arnhem, Milingimbi, Angurugu.See the full list in the Suburbs section above.
What postcodes are in East Arnhem?
East Arnhem covers 4 postcodes: 0822, 0880, 0881, 0885.
How many schools are in East Arnhem?
East Arnhem has 16 schools, including 13 government, 0 Catholic, and 3 independent schools (ACARA 2025).
What is the SEIFA score for East Arnhem?
East Arnhem has a population-weighted SEIFA IRSAD score of 808, 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.