Surf Coast

Victoria · Geelong · 37,037 people · 31 suburbs · 11 postcodes

Surf Coast at a glance

37,037
Population
#47 of 79 in VIC
1,542
km² area
24/km² density
42.9
Median age
+3.8 vs VIC
1076
SEIFA IRSAD
#9 of 79 in VIC
14
Schools
11 gov, 2 Cath, 1 indep
11.9%
Born overseas
18.9%
Renting

Map shows the Surf Coast 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.

Surf Coast is a Local Government Area in Victoria, in the Melbourne region. It covers 31 suburbs across 11 postcodes and an area of 1,542 km². Surf Coast has a population of 37,037 , ranking #47 most populous in VIC. The most populous suburb is Torquay (18,534 residents).About 11.9% of residents were born overseas and 4.2% speak a language other than English at home.

Who lives here

Age structure

0–14 (19.7%) 15–24 (9.6%) 25–44 (24.1%) 45–64 (26.8%) 65+ (19.8%)
Show counts
0–14 years7,297 (19.7%)
15–24 years3,546 (9.6%)
25–44 years8,907 (24.1%)
45–64 years9,889 (26.8%)
65+ years7,317 (19.8%)
11.9%
Born overseas
4.2%
Speak a language other than English at home
0.6%
First Nations
2.6
Avg household size

How they live

Housing tenure

Owned outright (40.9%) Mortgaged (40.2%) Renting (18.9%)

Dwelling type mix

Separate house (95.3%) Semi/townhouse (4.3%) Flat/apartment (0.4%)
$439
Median weekly rent
$2,113
Median monthly mortgage
29.6%
Households with 0-1 cars
70.4%
Households with 2+ cars

Work and learning

2.7%
Unemployment rate
10,003
In full-time work
6,920
In part-time work

Schools in Surf Coast

14 schools across Surf Coast: 78.6% Government, 14.3% Catholic, 7.1% Independent. The VIC average is 68.6% / 21.4% / 10.0%. Schools here have a median ICSEA of 1093 (range 978 to 1119). VIC median is 1027; national mean is 1000.

Sector mix

VIC average for comparison
Government Catholic Independent

Type breakdown

Primary (85.7%) Secondary (7.1%) Combined (7.1%) Special (0%)

ICSEA range

700 National mean 1000 1300
LGA median 1093 VIC median 1027LGA range 978 to 1119

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 Surf Coast, sorted by enrolment:

School Sector Type Suburb Students ICSEA
Surf Coast Secondary College Government Secondary Torquay 879 1060
Torquay Coast Primary School Government Primary Torquay 678 1099
Torquay P-6 College Government Primary Torquay 617 1092
Bellbrae Primary School Government Primary Bellbrae 492 1119
Lisieux Catholic Primary School Catholic Primary Torquay 333 1106
St Therese School Catholic Primary Torquay 332 1119
Moriac Primary School Government Primary Moriac 232 1041
Big Hill Primary School Government Primary Big Hill 221 980
Lorne P-12 College Government Combined Lorne 167 1038
Anglesea Primary School Government Primary Anglesea 162 1099
Freshwater Creek Steiner School Independent Primary Freshwater Creek 144 1094
Winchelsea Primary School Government Primary Winchelsea 141 978
Aireys Inlet Primary School Government Primary Aireys Inlet 73 1112
Deans Marsh Primary School Government Primary Deans Marsh 52 1045

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

IRSAD

Relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage

1076
Ranked #9 of 79 VIC LGAs

IRSD

Relative disadvantage only (lower = more disadvantaged)

1086

IER

Economic resources: income, wealth, housing

1076

IEO

Education and occupation: qualifications, skill levels

1074

Suburbs in Surf Coast

Surf Coast contains 31 suburbs and 11 postcodes. Sorted by population.

SuburbPostcodePopulationMedian incomeMedian age
Torquay 3228 18,534 $2,295/wk 39
Jan Juc 3228 4,151 $2,360/wk 40
Anglesea 3230 3,208 $1,701/wk 54
Winchelsea 3241 2,456 $1,442/wk 41
Bellbrae 3228 1,346 $1,556/wk 52
Lorne 3232 1,327 $1,525/wk 56
Aireys Inlet 3231 979 $1,642/wk 57
Moriac 3240 852 $2,486/wk 38
Freshwater Creek 3216 454 $2,087/wk 45
Gherang 3240 391 $2,025/wk 44
Fairhaven 3231 390 $2,023/wk 56
Deans Marsh 3235 368 $1,731/wk 47
Gnarwarre 3221 297 $2,187/wk 43
Modewarre 3240 277 $2,250/wk 44
Mount Moriac 3240 251 $2,463/wk 42
Barrabool 3221 247 $2,562/wk 44
Buckley 3240 228 $2,166/wk 40
Winchelsea South 3241 171 $1,958/wk 47
Paraparap 3240 167 $2,312/wk 44
Bells Beach 3228 151 $2,600/wk 48
Wurdiboluc 3241 147 $2,028/wk 49
Moggs Creek 3231 120 $2,062/wk 54
Bambra 3241 115 $1,875/wk 51
Pennyroyal 3235 110 $1,916/wk 47
Wensleydale 3241 95 $1,937/wk 47
Ombersley 3241 93 $1,792/wk 35
Eastern View 3231 47 $2,250/wk 65
Big Hill 3231 38 $1,875/wk 56
Boonah 3235 18 $1,125/wk 46
Benwerrin 3235 9 $1,375/wk 41
Deakin University 3217

Postcodes covered

3216, 3217, 3221, 3228, 3230, 3231, 3232, 3235, 3240, 3241, 3555

Compare Surf Coast with neighbouring LGAs

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

LGA Population Median age SEIFA IRSAD % renting % overseas-born
Surf Coast (VIC) 37,037 42.9 1076 18.9% 11.9%
Greater Geelong 268,725 39.9 989 29.0% 17.7%
Colac Otway 22,228 45.2 938 22.3% 10.3%
Golden Plains 25,556 39.2 998 7.5% 9.3%
Whitehorse 167,539 39.4 1066 30.2% 41.9%
Monash 191,721 38.8 1065 31.0% 50.5%

Services and amenities

NDIS Providers NDIS provider directory for Surf Coast Climate & weather Climate data for Torquay

Frequently asked questions about Surf Coast

What is the population of Surf Coast?

The 2021 Census recorded 37,037 people living in Surf Coast, across 31 suburbs.

What suburbs are in Surf Coast?

Surf Coast contains 31 suburbs. The most populous are Torquay, Jan Juc, Anglesea, Winchelsea, Bellbrae.See the full list in the Suburbs section above.

What postcodes are in Surf Coast?

Surf Coast covers 11 postcodes: 3216, 3217, 3221, 3228, 3230, 3231, 3232, 3235, 3240, 3241, 3555.

How many schools are in Surf Coast?

Surf Coast has 14 schools, including 11 government, 2 Catholic, and 1 independent schools (ACARA 2025).

What is the SEIFA score for Surf Coast?

Surf Coast has a population-weighted SEIFA IRSAD score of 1076, 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.