New South Wales · Postcode 2506

Berkeley postcode and suburb data

New South Wales · Phone area code 02 · 76 km from Sydney

Metro Bottom 20% SEIFA
7,798
Population (2021)
$1,217
Household income/wk
$290
Median rent/wk
40
Median age
1/10
SEIFA advantage

Suburb snapshot

Berkeley at a glance vs NSW

Fast facts and benchmark bars show the suburb's key postcode, Census, SEIFA, school and LGA signals in context.

Quick facts

2506 Postcode See every suburb sharing this postcode
7,798 People Resident population, Census 2021
Wollongong Council area 76 suburbs, 16 postcodes
40 Median age Years, Census 2021
$1,217/wk Household income Suburb median, Census 2021 dollars
Decile 1/10 SEIFA advantage Very low SEIFA advantage
3 Schools ACARA 2025 profiles in this suburb

Benchmarks against NSW

Household income
$1,217/wk
37% below NSW average
Suburb median, Census 2021
Weekly rent
$290/wk
35% below NSW average
Suburb median, Census 2021
SEIFA advantage
1/10
5.0 deciles below NSW average
IRSAD decile, higher means more advantage
Median age
40 years
5.0 years younger than NSW average
Resident median age
Unemployment
6.2%
1.2 pts above NSW average
Census labour-force rate

Income, rent and SEIFA figures are from the ABS 2021 Census and are reported in 2021 dollars, not adjusted for subsequent inflation.

Where Berkeley ranks: SEIFA decile 1 places it in the bottom 20% of Australia for socio-economic advantage.

ABS Census 2021 · SEIFA 2021

Detailed comparison table

Berkeley vs the NSW average and the national average, using population-weighted 2021 Census data.

MetricBerkeleyNSW avgAU avg
Household income/wk $1,217 -NSW $1,931 $1,836
Rent/wk $290 -NSW $445 $390
Mortgage/month $1,733 -NSW $2,247 $1,958
Median age 40 45.0 45.0
SEIFA decile 1/10 -NSW 6.0/10 6.0/10
Unemployment 6.2% +NSW 5.0% 5.0%

Green pill = at least 10% above the NSW average; red = at least 10% below; grey = within 10%. For unemployment, colour polarity is inverted: lower is better.

Postcode 2506 covers Berkeley, an inland suburb of Sydney about 76 km from the city centre. It forms part of the Illawarra region of New South Wales. Local government services are provided by Wollongong.

According to the 2021 Census, Berkeley has a population of 7,798 with a median age of 40. The median weekly household income is $1,217, below the NSW average. The unemployment rate is 6.2%, higher than the NSW average. The Indigenous population is 502 (6.4% of residents).

Housing in Berkeley includes a median weekly rent of $290, median monthly mortgage repayment of $1,733, with 2,875 total dwellings. Housing costs in the area sit below the NSW average. Owner-occupied dwellings (owned or mortgaged) make up 60.8% of housing.

On the SEIFA Index of Relative Socio-economic Advantage and Disadvantage, Berkeley scores in decile 1 out of 10, which is well below the national average.

Schools in Berkeley include Illawarra Sports High School, Berkeley Public School and Berkeley West Public School.

Berkeley is part of the Dapto - Port Kembla statistical area in New South Wales.

Berkeley details

Location, Census, housing, SEIFA and geography fields used across this profile.

Postcode2506
StateNew South Wales (NSW)
Phone Area Code02
Population (2021)7,798
Median Age40 years
Median Household Income (Census 2021)$1,217/week
Median Personal Income (Census 2021)$568/week
Median Weekly Rent (Census 2021)$290
Median Monthly Mortgage (Census 2021)$1,733
Average Household Size2.5 persons
Area7.3 km²
Population Density1065/km²
Total Dwellings2,875
Australian Citizens89.3%
Indigenous Population502 (6.4%)
Unemployment Rate6.2%
SEIFA IRSAD Decile1/10 (well below average)
Latitude-34.4793722
Longitude150.840584
Distance from Sydney76 km
Region (SA4)Illawarra
Area (SA3)Dapto - Port Kembla
Local GovernmentWollongong
Federal ElectorateWhitlam
State ElectorateWollongong
Time ZoneAEST (UTC+10), Australia/Sydney (standard time)

Age Profile

0–14 (19.0%) 15–24 (12.1%) 25–44 (24.3%) 45–64 (26.4%) 65+ (18.2%)
Show counts
0–14 years1,478 (19.0%)
15–24 years945 (12.1%)
25–44 years1,893 (24.3%)
45–64 years2,058 (26.4%)
65+ years1,417 (18.2%)

Housing Tenure

Owned outright (32.6%) Mortgaged (28.2%) Rented (39.2%)

SEIFA socio-economic index

Berkeley is in SEIFA IRSAD decile 1 of 10. Higher deciles indicate more relative socio-economic advantage. This is an area-level index, not a score for individual households.
More disadvantagedMiddle rangeMore advantaged

Health Conditions (2021 Census)

Arthritis913 (11.7%)
Asthma741 (9.5%)
Diabetes532 (6.8%)
Heart Disease358 (4.6%)
Lung Condition269 (3.4%)
Cancer244 (3.1%)
Dementia73 (0.9%)

Long-term health conditions self-reported in the 2021 Census. Persons may report more than one condition.

Motor Vehicles per Dwelling

No vehicle317 (11.3%)
1 vehicle1,010 (35.9%)
2 vehicles921 (32.7%)
3+ vehicles567 (20.1%)

Schools in Berkeley

ACARA 2025 school profiles for schools located in Berkeley. ICSEA is shown where ACARA publishes it.

Illawarra Sports High School
Secondary · Gov · ICSEA 937 · 926 students
Berkeley Public School
Primary · Gov · ICSEA 926 · 259 students
Berkeley West Public School
Primary · Gov · ICSEA 868 · 157 students

Suburbs Near Berkeley

More Berkeley Data

Page last reviewed . Data sources: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census (CC BY 4.0), SEIFA 2021 IRSAD, ACARA school profiles 2025. How this data is sourced.