Willoughby

New South Wales · Sydney - North Sydney and Hornsby · 68,992 people · 14 suburbs · 7 postcodes

Willoughby at a glance

68,992
Population
#36 of 130 in NSW
20
km² area
3,392/km² density
39.5
Median age
-0.2 vs NSW
$2,844
Median HH income/wk
#7 of 130 in NSW
1141
SEIFA IRSAD
#8 of 130 in NSW
14
Schools
8 gov, 4 Cath, 2 indep
46.5%
Born overseas
39.1%
Renting

Map shows the Willoughby 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.

Willoughby is a metropolitan Local Government Area in New South Wales, in the Sydney region. It covers 14 suburbs across 7 postcodes and an area of 20 km². Willoughby has a population of 68,992 , ranking #36 most populous in NSW. The most populous suburb is Chatswood (25,553 residents), and the highest median household income is in Castlecrag at $4,675/week. The LGA-wide median household income is $2,844/week and median age is 39.5. About 46.5% of residents were born overseas and 41.3% speak a language other than English at home.

Who lives here

Age structure

0–14 (19.0%) 15–24 (10.9%) 25–44 (28.8%) 45–64 (25.3%) 65+ (15.9%)
Show counts
0–14 years13,141 (19.0%)
15–24 years7,523 (10.9%)
25–44 years19,886 (28.8%)
45–64 years17,492 (25.3%)
65+ years10,975 (15.9%)
46.5%
Born overseas
41.3%
Speak a language other than English at home
0.3%
First Nations
2.6
Avg household size

How they live

Housing tenure

Owned outright (33.3%) Mortgaged (27.5%) Renting (39.1%)

Dwelling type mix

Separate house (52.8%) Semi/townhouse (8.0%) Flat/apartment (39.2%)
$642
Median weekly rent
$3,352
Median monthly mortgage
61.5%
Households with 0-1 cars
38.5%
Households with 2+ cars

Work and learning

4.4%
Unemployment rate
21,156
In full-time work
9,735
In part-time work

Schools in Willoughby

14 schools across Willoughby: 57.1% Government, 28.6% Catholic, 14.3% Independent. The NSW average is 69.6% / 16.9% / 13.5%. Schools here have a median ICSEA of 1146 (range 1075 to 1181). NSW median is 1005; national mean is 1000.

Sector mix

NSW average for comparison
Government Catholic Independent

Type breakdown

Primary (57.1%) Secondary (21.4%) Combined (14.3%) Special (7.1%)

ICSEA range

700 National mean 1000 1300
LGA median 1146 NSW median 1005LGA range 1075 to 1181

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 Willoughby, sorted by enrolment:

School Sector Type Suburb Students ICSEA
Chatswood High School Government Secondary Chatswood 2,147 1137
St Pius X College Independent Combined Chatswood 1,183 1144
Chatswood Public School Government Primary Chatswood 1,083 1143
Artarmon Public School Government Primary Artarmon 1,063 1167
Willoughby Girls High School Government Secondary Willoughby 1,036 1152
Willoughby Public School Government Primary Willoughby 905 1143
Mercy Catholic College Catholic Secondary Chatswood 728 1134
Glenaeon Rudolf Steiner School Independent Combined Middle Cove 405 1148
Northbridge Public School Government Primary Northbridge 364 1181
Our Lady of Dolours Catholic Primary School Catholic Primary Chatswood 355 1144
St Thomas' Catholic Primary School Catholic Primary Willoughby 277 1161
Castle Cove Public School Government Primary Castle Cove 273 1167
St Philip Neri Catholic Primary School Catholic Primary Northbridge 102 1170
Naremburn School Government Special Naremburn 30 1075

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

IRSAD

Relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage

1141
Ranked #8 of 130 NSW LGAs

IRSD

Relative disadvantage only (lower = more disadvantaged)

1074

IER

Economic resources: income, wealth, housing

1034

IEO

Education and occupation: qualifications, skill levels

1161

Suburbs in Willoughby

Willoughby contains 14 suburbs and 7 postcodes. Sorted by population.

SuburbPostcodePopulationMedian incomeMedian age
Chatswood 2067 25,553 $2,158/wk 37
Artarmon 2064 9,417 $2,420/wk 37
Willoughby 2068 7,124 $2,995/wk 40
Northbridge 2063 6,493 $3,874/wk 44
Naremburn 2065 5,924 $3,272/wk 39
North Willoughby 2068 4,161 $2,488/wk 40
Castlecrag 2068 2,965 $4,675/wk 47
Castle Cove 2069 2,643 $3,439/wk 46
Willoughby East 2068 1,864 $4,536/wk 42
Chatswood West 2067 1,521 $3,121/wk 42
Middle Cove 2068 1,327 $4,446/wk 45
Gore Hill 2065
Royal North Shore Hospital 2065
Willoughby North 2068

Postcodes covered

1560, 2063, 2064, 2065, 2067, 2068, 2069

Compare Willoughby with neighbouring LGAs

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

LGA Population Median age Median HH income SEIFA IRSAD % renting % overseas-born
Willoughby (NSW) 68,992 39.5 $2,844/wk 1141 39.1% 46.5%
North Sydney 73,701 38.9 $2,589/wk 1164 54.1% 41.2%
Ku-ring-gai 131,179 42.4 $3,020/wk 1163 20.4% 42.5%
Lane Cove 39,313 38.9 $2,956/wk 1160 35.0% 37.4%
Northern Beaches 263,532 41.9 $2,767/wk 1125 27.8% 30.2%
Ryde 136,225 37.4 $2,144/wk 1099 42.8% 49.2%

Services and amenities

Frequently asked questions about Willoughby

What is the population of Willoughby?

The 2021 Census recorded 68,992 people living in Willoughby, across 14 suburbs.

What suburbs are in Willoughby?

Willoughby contains 14 suburbs. The most populous are Chatswood, Artarmon, Willoughby, Northbridge, Naremburn.See the full list in the Suburbs section above.

What postcodes are in Willoughby?

Willoughby covers 7 postcodes: 1560, 2063, 2064, 2065, 2067, 2068, 2069.

What is the median household income in Willoughby?

The population-weighted median household income across Willoughby is $2,844 per week (2021 Census), ranking #7 of 130 NSW LGAs.

How many schools are in Willoughby?

Willoughby has 14 schools, including 8 government, 4 Catholic, and 2 independent schools (ACARA 2025).

What is the SEIFA score for Willoughby?

Willoughby has a population-weighted SEIFA IRSAD score of 1141, 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.