Mount Isa

Queensland · Northern Territory - Outback · 17,959 people · 24 suburbs · 4 postcodes

Mount Isa at a glance

17,959
Population
#31 of 69 in QLD
50,756
km² area
0/km² density
31.7
Median age
-7.6 vs QLD
$2,260
Median HH income/wk
#3 of 69 in QLD
954
SEIFA IRSAD
#24 of 69 in QLD
14
Schools
10 gov, 4 Cath, 0 indep
15.9%
Born overseas
49.0%
Renting

Map shows the Mount Isa 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.

Mount Isa is a Local Government Area in Queensland, in the Brisbane region. It covers 24 suburbs across 4 postcodes and an area of 50,756 km². Mount Isa has a population of 17,959 , ranking #31 most populous in QLD. The most populous suburb is Pioneer (2,346 residents), and the highest median household income is in Mount Isa at $4,727/week. The LGA-wide median household income is $2,260/week and median age is 31.7. About 15.9% of residents were born overseas and 9.5% speak a language other than English at home.

Who lives here

Age structure

0–14 (23.8%) 15–24 (13.7%) 25–44 (32.0%) 45–64 (22.6%) 65+ (8.0%)
Show counts
0–14 years4,273 (23.8%)
15–24 years2,456 (13.7%)
25–44 years5,750 (32.0%)
45–64 years4,063 (22.6%)
65+ years1,444 (8.0%)
15.9%
Born overseas
9.5%
Speak a language other than English at home
21.7%
First Nations
2.6
Avg household size

How they live

Housing tenure

Owned outright (18.3%) Mortgaged (32.7%) Renting (49.0%)

Dwelling type mix

Separate house (87.4%) Semi/townhouse (9.9%) Flat/apartment (2.8%)
$297
Median weekly rent
$1,540
Median monthly mortgage
41.2%
Households with 0-1 cars
58.8%
Households with 2+ cars

Work and learning

4.5%
Unemployment rate
6,598
In full-time work
1,716
In part-time work

Schools in Mount Isa

14 schools across Mount Isa: 71.4% Government, 28.6% Catholic, 0% Independent. The QLD average is 69.8% / 17.1% / 13.1%. Schools here have a median ICSEA of 872 (range 723 to 1010). QLD median is 985; national mean is 1000.

Sector mix

QLD average for comparison
Government Catholic Independent

Type breakdown

Primary (64.3%) Secondary (14.3%) Combined (7.1%) Special (14.3%)

ICSEA range

700 National mean 1000 1300
LGA median 872 QLD median 985LGA range 723 to 1010

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 14 schools in Mount Isa, sorted by enrolment:

School Sector Type Suburb Students ICSEA
Spinifex State College - Mount Isa Education and Training Precinct Government Secondary Parkside 926 866
Good Shepherd Catholic College Catholic Secondary Mount Isa 434 978
Happy Valley State School Government Primary Happy Valley 387 927
St Joseph's Catholic School Catholic Primary Mount Isa 313 1010
Barkly Highway State School Government Primary Soldiers Hill 266 935
Sunset State School Government Primary Sunset 257 727
Healy State School Government Primary Healy 217 887
Mount Isa Central State School Government Primary Mount Isa 211 791
Townview State School Government Primary Townview 209 776
Mount Isa School of the Air Government Combined Pioneer 175 1009
St Kieran's Catholic School Catholic Primary Mount Isa 140 858
Mount Isa Flexible School Catholic Special Sunset 53 736
Mount Isa Special School Government Special Pioneer 35 877
Camooweal State School Government Primary Camooweal 32 723

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 Mount Isa. Higher scores indicate more advantage; the national mean is 1000.

IRSAD

Relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage

954
Ranked #24 of 69 QLD LGAs

IRSD

Relative disadvantage only (lower = more disadvantaged)

972

IER

Economic resources: income, wealth, housing

941

IEO

Education and occupation: qualifications, skill levels

926

Suburbs in Mount Isa

Mount Isa contains 24 suburbs and 4 postcodes. Sorted by population.

SuburbPostcodePopulationMedian incomeMedian age
Pioneer 4825 2,346 $1,664/wk 27
Sunset 4825 2,137 $2,325/wk 31
Townview 4825 2,067 $2,144/wk 31
Mornington 4825 1,846 $1,925/wk 35
Healy 4825 1,824 $3,024/wk 33
Soldiers Hill 4825 1,796 $2,483/wk 31
Parkside 4807 1,530 $2,347/wk 31
Winston 4825 1,084 $2,177/wk 33
Menzies 4825 824 $1,862/wk 32
Happy Valley 4655 733 $2,629/wk 30
Miles End 4825 280 $2,412/wk 31
Camooweal 4828 236 $1,339/wk 36
Breakaway 4825 187 $3,799/wk 32
Mica Creek 4825 182 $2,437/wk 41
Mount Isa 4825 172 $4,727/wk 35
Mount Isa City 4825 170 $2,437/wk 31
Ryan 4825 105 $2,083/wk 39
Gunpowder 4825 104 $417/wk 34
Lanskey 4825 101 $1,906/wk 42
Fisher 4825 65 $1,625/wk 55
Lawn Hill 4825 63 $1,875/wk 43
Spreadborough 4825 55 $2,374/wk 32
Kalkadoon 4825 27 $3,250/wk 31
Barkly 4825 25 $2,750/wk 23

Postcodes covered

4655, 4807, 4825, 4828

Compare Mount Isa with neighbouring LGAs

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

LGA Population Median age Median HH income SEIFA IRSAD % renting % overseas-born
Mount Isa (QLD) 17,959 31.7 $2,260/wk 954 49.0% 15.9%
Carpentaria 2,087 36.1 $1,545/wk 863 58.2% 6.5%
Burdekin 16,642 45.3 $1,363/wk 922 26.8% 8.9%

Services and amenities

Frequently asked questions about Mount Isa

What is the population of Mount Isa?

The 2021 Census recorded 17,959 people living in Mount Isa, across 24 suburbs.

What suburbs are in Mount Isa?

Mount Isa contains 24 suburbs. The most populous are Pioneer, Sunset, Townview, Mornington, Healy.See the full list in the Suburbs section above.

What postcodes are in Mount Isa?

Mount Isa covers 4 postcodes: 4655, 4807, 4825, 4828.

What is the median household income in Mount Isa?

The population-weighted median household income across Mount Isa is $2,260 per week (2021 Census), ranking #3 of 69 QLD LGAs.

How many schools are in Mount Isa?

Mount Isa has 14 schools, including 10 government, 4 Catholic, and 0 independent schools (ACARA 2025).

What is the SEIFA score for Mount Isa?

Mount Isa has a population-weighted SEIFA IRSAD score of 954, 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.