Southern Mallee

South Australia · South Australia - South East · 1,981 people · 10 suburbs · 5 postcodes

Southern Mallee at a glance

1,981
Population
#58 of 72 in SA
6,758
km² area
0/km² density
44.6
Median age
+3.3 vs SA
$1,338
Median HH income/wk
#33 of 72 in SA
962
SEIFA IRSAD
#26 of 72 in SA
2
Schools
2 gov, 0 Cath, 0 indep
13.6%
Born overseas
20.3%
Renting

Map shows the Southern Mallee 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.

Southern Mallee is a Local Government Area in South Australia, in the Adelaide region. It covers 10 suburbs across 5 postcodes and an area of 6,758 km². Southern Mallee has a population of 1,981 , ranking #58 most populous in SA. The most populous suburb is Lameroo (857 residents), and the highest median household income is in Ngarkat at $2,250/week. The LGA-wide median household income is $1,338/week and median age is 44.6. About 13.6% of residents were born overseas and 8.1% speak a language other than English at home.

Who lives here

Age structure

0–14 (16.6%) 15–24 (9.3%) 25–44 (23.9%) 45–64 (26.7%) 65+ (23.5%)
Show counts
0–14 years328 (16.6%)
15–24 years185 (9.3%)
25–44 years472 (23.9%)
45–64 years528 (26.7%)
65+ years466 (23.5%)
13.6%
Born overseas
8.1%
Speak a language other than English at home
1.5%
First Nations
2.2
Avg household size

How they live

Housing tenure

Owned outright (54.7%) Mortgaged (25.0%) Renting (20.3%)

Dwelling type mix

Separate house (99.3%) Semi/townhouse (0.0%) Flat/apartment (0.7%)
$157
Median weekly rent
$735
Median monthly mortgage
33.2%
Households with 0-1 cars
66.8%
Households with 2+ cars

Work and learning

2.8%
Unemployment rate
650
In full-time work
294
In part-time work

Schools in Southern Mallee

2 schools across Southern Mallee: 100.0% Government, 0% Catholic, 0% Independent. The SA average is 70.8% / 14.3% / 14.9%. Schools here have a median ICSEA of 995 (range 991 to 999). SA median is 999; national mean is 1000.

Sector mix

SA average for comparison
Government Catholic Independent

Type breakdown

Primary (50.0%) Secondary (0%) Combined (50.0%) Special (0%)

ICSEA range

700 National mean 1000 1300
LGA median 995 SA median 999LGA range 991 to 999

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 2 schools in Southern Mallee, sorted by enrolment:

School Sector Type Suburb Students ICSEA
Lameroo Regional Community School Government Combined Lameroo 196 999
Pinnaroo Primary School Government Primary Pinnaroo 63 991

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

IRSAD

Relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage

962
Ranked #26 of 72 SA LGAs

IRSD

Relative disadvantage only (lower = more disadvantaged)

997

IER

Economic resources: income, wealth, housing

985

IEO

Education and occupation: qualifications, skill levels

944

Suburbs in Southern Mallee

Southern Mallee contains 10 suburbs and 5 postcodes. Sorted by population.

SuburbPostcodePopulationMedian incomeMedian age
Lameroo 5302 857 $1,364/wk 45
Pinnaroo 5304 768 $1,257/wk 43
Parilla 5303 159 $1,687/wk 40
Geranium 5301 83 $1,156/wk 58
Parrakie 5301 78 $1,375/wk 53
Karte 5304 32 $1,125/wk 39
Ngarkat 5302 4 $2,250/wk 60
Kulkami 5307
Lowaldie 5307
Mootatunga 5307

Postcodes covered

5301, 5302, 5303, 5304, 5307

Compare Southern Mallee with neighbouring LGAs

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

LGA Population Median age Median HH income SEIFA IRSAD % renting % overseas-born
Southern Mallee (SA) 1,981 44.6 $1,338/wk 962 20.3% 13.6%
Loxton Waikerie 11,322 47.2 $1,200/wk 924 25.0% 8.3%
Coorong 5,481 48.1 $1,103/wk 911 25.7% 8.5%
Karoonda East Murray 952 51.8 $950/wk 931 12.3% 6.3%
Tatiara 6,903 41.7 $1,507/wk 950 23.7% 13.1%

Services and amenities

Frequently asked questions about Southern Mallee

What is the population of Southern Mallee?

The 2021 Census recorded 1,981 people living in Southern Mallee, across 10 suburbs.

What suburbs are in Southern Mallee?

Southern Mallee contains 10 suburbs. The most populous are Lameroo, Pinnaroo, Parilla, Geranium, Parrakie.See the full list in the Suburbs section above.

What postcodes are in Southern Mallee?

Southern Mallee covers 5 postcodes: 5301, 5302, 5303, 5304, 5307.

What is the median household income in Southern Mallee?

The population-weighted median household income across Southern Mallee is $1,338 per week (2021 Census), ranking #33 of 72 SA LGAs.

How many schools are in Southern Mallee?

Southern Mallee has 2 schools, including 2 government, 0 Catholic, and 0 independent schools (ACARA 2025).

What is the SEIFA score for Southern Mallee?

Southern Mallee has a population-weighted SEIFA IRSAD score of 962, 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.