Shoalhaven

New South Wales · Southern Highlands and Shoalhaven · 108,180 people · 135 suburbs · 9 postcodes

Shoalhaven at a glance

108,180

Population

#25 of 130 in NSW

4,239

km² area

26/km² density

48.1

Median age

+8.4 vs NSW

949

SEIFA IRSAD

#75 of 130 in NSW

Schools

30 gov, 3 Cath, 4 indep

13.5%

Born overseas

25.3%

Renting

Map shows the Shoalhaven 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.

Shoalhaven is a Local Government Area in New South Wales, in the Sydney region. It covers 135 suburbs across 9 postcodes and an area of 4,239 km². Shoalhaven has a population of 108,180 , ranking #25 most populous in NSW. The most populous suburb is Nowra (9,956 residents).About 13.5% of residents were born overseas and 4.9% speak a language other than English at home.

Who lives here

Age structure

16.0%

9.4%

20.4%

26.2%

28.0%

0–14 (16.0%) 15–24 (9.4%) 25–44 (20.4%) 45–64 (26.2%) 65+ (28.0%)

Show counts

0–14 years	17,269 (16.0%)
15–24 years	10,168 (9.4%)
25–44 years	22,082 (20.4%)
45–64 years	28,321 (26.2%)
65+ years	30,291 (28.0%)

13.5%

Born overseas

4.9%

Speak a language other than English at home

6.5%

First Nations

2.3

Avg household size

How they live

Housing tenure

46.6%

28.2%

25.3%

Owned outright (46.6%) Mortgaged (28.2%) Renting (25.3%)

Dwelling type mix

92.7%

Separate house (92.7%) Semi/townhouse (5.9%) Flat/apartment (1.5%)

$357

Median weekly rent

$1,736

Median monthly mortgage

42.8%

Households with 0-1 cars

57.2%

Households with 2+ cars

Work and learning

5.0%

Unemployment rate

22,195

In full-time work

16,530

In part-time work

Schools in Shoalhaven

37 schools across Shoalhaven: 81.1% Government, 8.1% Catholic, 10.8% Independent. The NSW average is 69.6% / 16.9% / 13.5%. Schools here have a median ICSEA of 971 (range 784 to 1094). NSW median is 1005; national mean is 1000.

Sector mix

81.1%

8.1%

10.8%

NSW average for comparison

69.6%

16.9%

13.5%

Government Catholic Independent

Type breakdown

67.6%

16.2%

10.8%

Primary (67.6%) Secondary (16.2%) Combined (5.4%) Special (10.8%)

ICSEA range

700 National mean 1000 1300

LGA median 971 NSW median 1005LGA range 784 to 1094

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 37 schools in Shoalhaven, sorted by enrolment:

School	Sector	Type	Suburb	Students	ICSEA
Ulladulla High School	Government	Secondary	Ulladulla	1,159	993
Nowra Anglican College	Independent	Combined	Bomaderry	1,152	1094
St John the Evangelist Catholic High School	Catholic	Secondary	Nowra	935	1028
Vincentia High School	Government	Secondary	Vincentia	927	933
Milton Public School	Government	Primary	Milton	823	1024
Nowra High School	Government	Secondary	Nowra	777	944
Bomaderry High School	Government	Secondary	Bomaderry	707	955
Ulladulla Public School	Government	Primary	Ulladulla	689	978
Shoalhaven High School	Government	Secondary	Nowra	610	862
Nowra Christian School	Independent	Combined	Nowra	572	1033
St Michael's Catholic Primary School	Catholic	Primary	Nowra	537	994
Nowra Public School	Government	Primary	Nowra	517	904
Illaroo Road Public School	Government	Primary	North Nowra	451	992
Nowra East Public School	Government	Primary	Nowra East	420	784
Sanctuary Point Public School	Government	Primary	Sanctuary Point	408	909
Bomaderry Public School	Government	Primary	Bomaderry	406	908
St Georges Basin Public School	Government	Primary	Basin View	365	959
Berry Public School	Government	Primary	Berry	268	1067
Sussex Inlet Public School	Government	Primary	Sussex Inlet	255	956
Vincentia Public School	Government	Primary	Vincentia	251	1012
North Nowra Public School	Government	Primary	North Nowra	223	908
Culburra Public School	Government	Primary	Culburra Beach	219	952
Cambewarra Public School	Government	Primary	Cambewarra	216	1029
Shoalhaven Heads Public School	Government	Primary	Shoalhaven Heads	180	1021
Huskisson Public School	Government	Primary	Huskisson	163	1004
Callala Public School	Government	Primary	Callala Bay	151	971
Nowra Hill Public School	Government	Primary	Nowra	131	986
St Mary's Star of the Sea Catholic Primary School	Catholic	Primary	Milton	125	1044
Tomerong Public School	Government	Primary	Tomerong	116	973
Greenwell Point Public School	Government	Primary	Greenwell Point	106	943
Terara Public School	Government	Primary	Terara	96	1009
Kangaroo Valley Public School	Government	Primary	Kangaroo Valley	83	1073
Havenlee School	Government	Special	North Nowra	67	849
Falls Creek Public School	Government	Primary	Falls Creek	59	921
Shoalhaven River College	Independent	Special	Bomaderry	48	931
Budawang School	Government	Special	Milton	44	909
William Campbell College	Independent	Special	Nowra Hill	28	881

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

IRSAD

Relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage

949

Ranked #75 of 130 NSW LGAs

IRSD

Relative disadvantage only (lower = more disadvantaged)

980

IER

Economic resources: income, wealth, housing

992

IEO

Education and occupation: qualifications, skill levels

939

Suburbs in Shoalhaven

Shoalhaven contains 135 suburbs and 9 postcodes. Sorted by population.

Suburb	Postcode	Population	Median income	Median age
Nowra	2541	9,956	$1,037/wk	40
Sanctuary Point	2540	7,874	$1,068/wk	47
Ulladulla	2539	7,262	$1,007/wk	51
Bomaderry	2541	6,738	$1,119/wk	45
North Nowra	2541	5,856	$1,411/wk	39
Worrigee	2540	5,384	$1,586/wk	33
Sussex Inlet	2540	3,888	$887/wk	61
Vincentia	2540	3,870	$1,550/wk	50
Shoalhaven Heads	2535	3,248	$1,066/wk	56
St Georges Basin	2540	3,215	$1,113/wk	53
South Nowra	2541	3,165	$1,789/wk	33
Berry	2535	3,098	$1,495/wk	57
Culburra Beach	2540	2,946	$1,247/wk	54
Mollymook Beach	2539	2,531	$1,247/wk	57
Callala Bay	2540	2,234	$1,289/wk	51
Nowra Hill	2540	2,141	$1,902/wk	37
Milton	2538	1,801	$1,325/wk	55
Burrill Lake	2539	1,782	$1,183/wk	48
Basin View	2540	1,583	$1,244/wk	48
West Nowra	2541	1,504	$1,493/wk	33
Narrawallee	2539	1,487	$1,309/wk	50
Greenwell Point	2540	1,245	$1,096/wk	58
Cambewarra Village	2540	1,211	$2,188/wk	43
Mollymook	2539	1,195	$1,346/wk	55
Tomerong	2540	1,194	$1,868/wk	42
Old Erowal Bay	2540	1,080	$1,246/wk	40
Falls Creek	2540	939	$1,508/wk	49
Kangaroo Valley	2577	856	$1,578/wk	54
Bawley Point	2539	844	$1,240/wk	56
Huskisson	2540	840	$1,294/wk	56
Bangalee	2541	818	$2,181/wk	46
Callala Beach	2540	777	$1,146/wk	58
Worrowing Heights	2540	713	$767/wk	77
Lake Tabourie	2539	689	$983/wk	53
Lake Conjola	2539	687	$869/wk	66
Manyana	2539	670	$1,095/wk	55
Woollamia	2540	653	$1,625/wk	51
Erowal Bay	2540	652	$1,407/wk	49
Orient Point	2540	629	$985/wk	52
Tapitallee	2540	625	$2,062/wk	52
Kings Point	2539	609	$1,383/wk	48
Fishermans Paradise	2539	491	$1,016/wk	50
Currarong	2540	479	$1,197/wk	61
Meroo Meadow	2540	474	$2,116/wk	50
Jaspers Brush	2535	362	$1,890/wk	55
Wandandian	2540	359	$1,718/wk	45
Dolphin Point	2539	354	$1,488/wk	47
Berrara	2540	333	$1,269/wk	59
Coolangatta	2535	324	$2,058/wk	51
Terara	2540	305	$825/wk	59
Conjola Park	2539	298	$1,181/wk	51
Kioloa	2539	292	$989/wk	58
Cudmirrah	2540	284	$1,093/wk	56
Termeil	2539	273	$1,390/wk	53
Cambewarra	2540	234	$2,295/wk	55
Morton	2538	225	$1,542/wk	45
Barrengarry	2577	214	$2,062/wk	50
Far Meadow	2535	209	$1,930/wk	60
Swanhaven	2540	196	$809/wk	65
Yatte Yattah	2539	189	$1,625/wk	57
Little Forest	2538	185	$1,218/wk	59
Broughton Vale	2535	180	$2,143/wk	62
Croobyar	2539	174	$1,516/wk	57
Parma	2540	167	$1,624/wk	53
Upper Kangaroo River	2577	151	$1,781/wk	58
Conjola	2539	148	$1,624/wk	52
Hyams Beach	2540	137	$1,850/wk	65
Wrights Beach	2540	137	$1,680/wk	49
Bendalong	2539	135	$1,224/wk	55
Numbaa	2540	122	$1,541/wk	45
Beaumont	2577	117	$1,875/wk	63
Bellawongarah	2535	116	$2,187/wk	62
Cunjurong Point	2539	111	$1,337/wk	60
Pyree	2540	110	$1,958/wk	46
Bolong	2540	94	$1,625/wk	46
East Lynne	2536	94	$1,325/wk	56
Myola	2540	94	$979/wk	65
Woodhill	2535	94	$1,875/wk	57
Back Forest	2535	91	$1,374/wk	56
Budgong	2577	87	$1,562/wk	56
Broughton	2535	85	$2,550/wk	57
Mundamia	2540	85	$1,406/wk	53
Bewong	2540	80	$1,774/wk	41
Longreach	2540	72	$2,125/wk	51
Wattamolla	2232	71	$2,750/wk	61
Burrier	2540	70	$1,958/wk	39
Jerrawangala	2540	60	$1,906/wk	48
Durras North	2536	50	$1,812/wk	59
Brogers Creek	2535	49	$2,625/wk	58
Brundee	2540	49	$1,791/wk	36
Yerriyong	2540	46	$2,333/wk	40
Illaroo	2540	41	$1,624/wk	50
Watersleigh	2540	40	$1,624/wk	46
Bamarang	2540	35	$949/wk	53
Bundewallah	2535	34	$3,083/wk	68
Depot Beach	2536	34	$1,937/wk	40
Comberton	2540	31	$1,562/wk	46
Barringella	2540	30	$2,624/wk	52
Berringer Lake	2539	30	$900/wk	49
Berry Mountain	2535	29	$2,250/wk	65
Wollumboola	2540	28	$1,875/wk	53
Brooman	2538	26	$1,062/wk	59
Cockwhy	2539	25	$2,624/wk	33
Mogood	2538	21	$900/wk	59
Browns Mountain	2540	20	$1,249/wk	65
Comerong Island	2540	19	$1,875/wk	67
Sassafras	2622	18	$900/wk	61
Mount Kingiman	2539	14	$3,250/wk	36
Pointer Mountain	2539	14	$1,624/wk	48
Bream Beach	2540	9	$2,999/wk	45
Mondayong	2540	9	$2,750/wk	30
Yadboro	2539	8	$1,875/wk	58
Quiera	2622	7	$2,750/wk	32
Tianjara	2622	7	$1,749/wk	49
Coolumburra	2622	3	$725/wk	70
Red Rocks	2577	3	$3,250/wk	58
Beecroft Peninsula	2540		$725/wk	66
Boolijah	2540
Buangla	2540
Bulee	2622
Endrick	2622
Ettrema	2540			27
Kinghorne	2540
Moollattoo	2540
Nowra East	2541
Nowra North	2541
Pebbly Beach	2536		$75/wk	70
Porters Creek	2538
St George	2622
Tallowal	2540
Tolwong	2622
Touga	2622
Tullarwalla	2540		$2,750/wk	76
Twelve Mile Peg	2540
Yalwal	2540			63

Postcodes covered

2232, 2535, 2536, 2538, 2539, 2540, 2541, 2577, 2622

Compare Shoalhaven with neighbouring LGAs

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

LGA	Population	Median age	SEIFA IRSAD	% renting	% overseas-born
Shoalhaven (NSW)	108,180	48.1	949	25.3%	13.5%
Unincorp. Other Territories	2,188	50.0	958	30.9%	26.1%
Kiama	23,019	48.4	1061	18.5%	14.6%
Eurobodalla	39,836	54.0	945	23.5%	13.7%
Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional	62,327	38.4	1062	27.1%	18.4%
Wingecarribee	51,296	48.4	1032	20.3%	18.1%

Services and amenities

NDIS Providers NDIS provider directory for Shoalhaven Climate & weather Climate data for Nowra

Frequently asked questions about Shoalhaven

What is the population of Shoalhaven?

The 2021 Census recorded 108,180 people living in Shoalhaven, across 135 suburbs.

What suburbs are in Shoalhaven?

Shoalhaven contains 135 suburbs. The most populous are Nowra, Sanctuary Point, Ulladulla, Bomaderry, North Nowra.See the full list in the Suburbs section above.

What postcodes are in Shoalhaven?

Shoalhaven covers 9 postcodes: 2232, 2535, 2536, 2538, 2539, 2540, 2541, 2577, 2622.

How many schools are in Shoalhaven?

Shoalhaven has 37 schools, including 30 government, 3 Catholic, and 4 independent schools (ACARA 2025).

What is the SEIFA score for Shoalhaven?

Shoalhaven has a population-weighted SEIFA IRSAD score of 949, where the national average is 1000. Higher scores indicate more relative advantage.

Page last reviewed June 2026. 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.