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Lake Macquarie vs Singleton

Name: Lake Macquarie vs Singleton — 2021 Census comparison
Creator: Australian Bureau of Statistics
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Council (LGA) comparison ≈ 65 km apart · Lake Macquarie profile · Singleton profile

Lake Macquarie Singleton

Lake Macquarie and Singleton are two New South Wales areas with very different layouts and workforces. Lake Macquarie is a more urban environment where 52.8% of homes have a 15-minute-city walkshed and a walkability score of 4.9 (somewhat walkable). In contrast, Singleton is mostly car-dependent with a score of 2.9, and only 26.9% of homes have similar walking access to amenities. These differences extend to their jobs and skills; Lake Macquarie has far higher education and job skills ratings, and far more people working as professionals. Singleton has a much stronger link to the mining industry, where 21.6% of people work.

Both areas share a similar overall advantage level and very similar typical weekly incomes of around $760 to $820. They also have almost identical proportions of people who speak little or no English and nearly the same rate of population growth since 2021. While Lake Macquarie has a noticeably older population, the 5-year age gap between the two has narrowed slightly since 2011. Meanwhile, the gap in adults with a bachelor degree or higher has widened, with Lake Macquarie now well higher at 19.0% compared to 11.7% in Singleton.

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Where they differ most

Population: 189,268 larger in Lake Macquarie Aged 65+: 7.6 pts higher in Lake Macquarie Full-time: 5.7 pts higher in Singleton Median age: 5 yrs older in Lake Macquarie Needs assistance: 1.8 pts higher in Lake Macquarie

Demographics & Identity

Population in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +189,268 larger in Lake Macquarie gap widening

213,845 87th pct 24,577 62nd pct

Median age in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +5 yrs older in Lake Macquarie gap narrowing

42 yrs 50th pct 37 yrs 24th pct

Age structure

25.3% Older adults (45–64) +0.8 pts ▸ 26.1%

23.4% Young adults (25–44) +2.0 pts ▸ 25.4%

22.0% Seniors (65+) ◂ +7.6 pts 14.4%

18.1% Children (0–14) +2.5 pts ▸ 20.7%

11.2% Youth (15–24) +2.2 pts ▸ 13.4%

Marital status

47.7% Married +0.1 pts ▸ 47.8%

32.5% Never married +3.9 pts ▸ 36.4%

9.9% Divorced ◂ +1.8 pts 8.1%

6.5% Widowed ◂ +2.0 pts 4.4%

3.3% Separated ◂ +0.1 pts 3.2%

Age & sex structure

Lake Macquarie Singleton

Bars show the share of each area's own population, so differently sized areas stay comparable.

Ancestry & Birthplace

Country of birth

85.5% Australia ◂ +0.1 pts 85.4%

2.5% England ◂ +0.9 pts 1.6%

1.2% New Zealand +0.6 pts ▸ 1.8%

0.4% Philippines +0.4 pts ▸ 0.8%

0.5% South Africa +0.1 pts ▸ 0.5%

0.5% India ◂ +0.2 pts 0.3%

0.3% China ◂ +0.1 pts 0.2%

0.2% Italy ◂ +0.1 pts 0.1%

0.1% Vietnam even 0.1%

0.1% Nepal ◂ +0.1 pts 0.0%

Ancestry

42.7% Australian +3.5 pts ▸ 46.2%

43.9% English ◂ +2.0 pts 41.8%

11.8% Scottish ◂ +1.7 pts 10.1%

10.9% Irish ◂ +0.4 pts 10.5%

4.2% German +0.6 pts ▸ 4.8%

2.2% Italian ◂ +0.7 pts 1.5%

1.4% Dutch even 1.5%

1.1% Chinese ◂ +0.5 pts 0.6%

0.7% Filipino +0.4 pts ▸ 1.1%

0.7% Indian ◂ +0.3 pts 0.4%

0.6% Greek ◂ +0.4 pts 0.2%

0.2% Vietnamese even 0.2%

Language

Language used at home

90.9% English only ◂ +0.3 pts 90.6%

0.1% Tagalog +0.2 pts ▸ 0.4%

0.3% Mandarin ◂ +0.1 pts 0.2%

0.2% Italian ◂ +0.2 pts 0.1%

0.2% Cantonese ◂ +0.1 pts 0.1%

0.1% Vietnamese +0.1 pts ▸ 0.2%

0.2% Greek ◂ +0.1 pts 0.0%

0.1% Arabic ◂ +0.1 pts 0.1%

0.1% Hindi even 0.1%

0.1% Punjabi ◂ +0.1 pts 0.1%

Religion

Religious affiliation

50.0% Christianity +5.9 pts ▸ 55.9%

42.5% No religion ◂ +7.1 pts 35.5%

5.4% Not stated +1.8 pts ▸ 7.2%

0.7% Buddhism ◂ +0.2 pts 0.6%

0.6% Hinduism ◂ +0.2 pts 0.3%

0.4% Islam ◂ +0.1 pts 0.2%

0.4% Other religions ◂ +0.1 pts 0.3%

0.1% Judaism even 0.0%

Education & Qualifications

Schools in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +79 more in Lake Macquarie

90 88th pct 11 54th pct

Schools/1k kids in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +0.16 more in Lake Macquarie

2.32 28th pct 2.17 25th pct

Students in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +26,631 more in Lake Macquarie

30,326 87th pct 3,695 60th pct

Avg size in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +1 larger in Lake Macquarie

337 65th pct 336 65th pct

ICSEA in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +68 higher in Lake Macquarie

1,007 71st pct 938 30th pct

Highest year of school

45.2% Year 12 ◂ +6.7 pts 38.5%

31.3% Year 10 +3.0 pts ▸ 34.3%

11.8% Year 9 or below ◂ +0.2 pts 11.6%

6.6% Year 11 +2.1 pts ▸ 8.7%

Highest qualification level

36.4% Certificate III / IV +9.7 pts ▸ 46.1%

21.3% Bachelor degree ◂ +6.8 pts 14.6%

15.5% Advanced diploma / diploma ◂ +2.5 pts 12.9%

6.1% Postgraduate degree ◂ +2.9 pts 3.2%

3.1% Graduate diploma / certificate ◂ +1.1 pts 2.0%

2.3% Certificate I / II +0.6 pts ▸ 2.8%

Field of qualification

18.2% Engineering & related +9.3 pts ▸ 27.5%

18.1% Management & commerce ◂ +1.3 pts 16.8%

12.0% Health ◂ +3.8 pts 8.2%

11.0% Society & culture ◂ +2.4 pts 8.6%

9.4% Education ◂ +3.1 pts 6.4%

6.9% Architecture & building ◂ +2.8 pts 4.1%

5.0% Food, hospitality & personal services +0.8 pts ▸ 5.7%

2.8% Creative arts ◂ +1.0 pts 1.8%

1.6% Agriculture & environment +1.0 pts ▸ 2.6%

2.2% Natural & physical sciences ◂ +0.6 pts 1.5%

1.7% Information technology ◂ +0.8 pts 1.0%

Income

Personal income in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +$60 higher in Singleton gap narrowing

$759 54th pct $819 67th pct

Household income in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +$393 higher in Singleton gap narrowing

$1,623 67th pct $2,016 86th pct

Family income in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +$265 higher in Singleton gap narrowing

$2,050 71st pct $2,315 83rd pct

Household income distribution

29.0% $1,500–$2,999 +0.1 pts ▸ 29.1%

27.2% $650–$1,499 ◂ +5.3 pts 22.0%

17.0% Under $650 ◂ +3.1 pts 13.8%

9.7% $4,000 or more +4.3 pts ▸ 14.0%

10.7% $3,000–$3,999 +2.2 pts ▸ 12.9%

Personal income distribution

41.6% Under $650 ◂ +3.7 pts 37.9%

32.0% $650–$1,499 ◂ +3.3 pts 28.7%

17.3% $1,500–$2,999 +2.4 pts ▸ 19.7%

3.5% $3,000 or more +2.4 pts ▸ 5.9%

Health & Disability

Long-term health conditions reported

12.0% Mental health ◂ +2.4 pts 9.6%

11.9% Arthritis ◂ +1.9 pts 10.0%

10.2% Asthma ◂ +1.1 pts 9.1%

9.3% Other condition ◂ +1.7 pts 7.6%

5.6% Diabetes ◂ +1.0 pts 4.6%

5.5% Heart disease ◂ +1.7 pts 3.7%

3.8% Cancer ◂ +1.2 pts 2.6%

2.5% Lung condition ◂ +0.6 pts 1.9%

1.3% Stroke ◂ +0.4 pts 0.9%

1.1% Dementia ◂ +0.4 pts 0.7%

Number of long-term health conditions

57.4% None +4.0 pts ▸ 61.4%

23.0% One condition ◂ +3.0 pts 20.0%

8.0% Two conditions ◂ +2.0 pts 6.0%

4.6% Three or more ◂ +1.1 pts 3.4%

Community Participation

First Nations

First Nations people in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +9,726 larger in Lake Macquarie

11,759 92nd pct 2,033 79th pct

Median age in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +1 yrs older in Lake Macquarie

22 yrs 21st pct 21 yrs 14th pct

Median income in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +$74 higher in Singleton

$610 65th pct $684 77th pct

Household income in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +$216 higher in Singleton

$1,761 78th pct $1,977 87th pct

Family & Households

Household size in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +0.2 larger in Singleton gap steady

2.5 71st pct 2.7 86th pct

Family composition

54.9% Couples with children +5.9 pts ▸ 60.9%

28.4% Couples without children ◂ +3.2 pts 25.2%

15.7% One-parent families ◂ +2.7 pts 13.1%

0.9% Other families ◂ +0.1 pts 0.8%

Household size

35.4% 2 people ◂ +2.2 pts 33.3%

24.8% 1 person ◂ +2.3 pts 22.5%

15.5% 4 people +0.6 pts ▸ 16.1%

15.5% 3 people +0.3 pts ▸ 15.7%

6.1% 5 people +2.1 pts ▸ 8.3%

2.6% 6 or more +1.5 pts ▸ 4.1%

Housing & Dwellings

Rent in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +$37 higher in Lake Macquarie gap widening

$375 82nd pct $338 73rd pct

Mortgage in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +$33 higher in Lake Macquarie gap narrowing

$1,950 80th pct $1,917 79th pct

People / bedroom in Lake Macquarie in Singleton even gap steady

0.80 43rd pct 0.80 43rd pct

How homes are owned or rented

36.3% Owned with a mortgage +4.4 pts ▸ 40.8%

37.1% Owned outright ◂ +5.5 pts 31.6%

23.2% Rented +1.6 pts ▸ 24.8%

2.1% Other tenure ◂ +0.5 pts 1.6%

1.2% Not stated even 1.2%

Types of homes

85.2% Separate house +3.4 pts ▸ 88.6%

9.7% Townhouse / semi-detached ◂ +2.4 pts 7.3%

4.4% Flat or apartment ◂ +1.7 pts 2.7%

0.5% Other dwelling +0.6 pts ▸ 1.1%

Bedrooms per home

41.5% 3 bedrooms ◂ +4.3 pts 37.2%

30.0% 4 bedrooms +8.1 pts ▸ 38.0%

16.3% 2 bedrooms ◂ +5.5 pts 10.8%

7.3% 5 or more +2.4 pts ▸ 9.7%

3.5% 1 bedroom ◂ +0.7 pts 2.8%

0.2% Studio / none +0.1 pts ▸ 0.3%

Weekly rent distribution

48.9% $350–$549 ◂ +6.6 pts 42.3%

23.5% $200–$349 +14.6 pts ▸ 38.0%

14.6% Under $200 ◂ +2.7 pts 11.9%

8.4% $550–$749 ◂ +5.1 pts 3.3%

1.0% $750 or more ◂ +0.6 pts 0.4%

Monthly mortgage distribution

39.3% $1,800–$2,999 ◂ +3.4 pts 35.9%

27.7% $1,000–$1,799 +4.0 pts ▸ 31.8%

13.6% $3,000 or more +1.5 pts ▸ 15.2%

14.0% Under $1,000 ◂ +2.0 pts 12.0%

Transport & Vehicles

PT stops in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +1,386 more in Lake Macquarie

1,463 88th pct 77 59th pct

Stops/1k in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +3.71 more in Lake Macquarie

6.84 88th pct 3.13 48th pct

Departures/1k in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +831.3 more in Lake Macquarie

977.7 79th pct 146.3 58th pct

PT routes in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +34 more in Lake Macquarie

47 86th pct 13 61st pct

Stop walk in Lake Macquarie in Singleton

47 75th pct —

Drive to city in Lake Macquarie in Singleton

115 81st pct —

How people get to work

56.0% Car (driver) +4.3 pts ▸ 60.3%

20.5% Worked at home ◂ +7.8 pts 12.6%

1.1% Walked +3.1 pts ▸ 4.2%

3.4% Car (passenger) +0.1 pts ▸ 3.5%

0.5% Bus ◂ +0.3 pts 0.2%

0.2% Bicycle ◂ +0.1 pts 0.1%

0.1% Train ◂ +0.1 pts 0.0%

Motor vehicles per home

39.9% 2 vehicles +0.3 pts ▸ 40.2%

33.3% 1 vehicle ◂ +6.8 pts 26.4%

13.5% 3 vehicles +4.3 pts ▸ 17.8%

8.1% 4 or more +3.9 pts ▸ 12.0%

5.2% No vehicle ◂ +1.6 pts 3.6%

Migration & Movement

Jobs & Industry

Industries people work in

2.6% Mining +19.0 pts ▸ 21.6%

19.1% Health care & social assistance ◂ +10.4 pts 8.8%

11.2% Construction ◂ +4.0 pts 7.2%

9.4% Retail trade ◂ +1.6 pts 7.9%

9.2% Education & training ◂ +3.4 pts 5.8%

5.6% Public administration & safety +1.4 pts ▸ 7.0%

6.3% Accommodation & food +0.5 pts ▸ 6.8%

5.8% Manufacturing ◂ +1.6 pts 4.2%

5.7% Professional & technical ◂ +2.7 pts 3.0%

3.1% Administrative & support +1.4 pts ▸ 4.5%

4.1% Other services +0.2 pts ▸ 4.4%

3.8% Transport & warehousing ◂ +1.0 pts 2.9%

Occupations people work in

21.5% Professionals ◂ +9.4 pts 12.1%

15.8% Technicians & trades +2.2 pts ▸ 18.0%

6.4% Machinery operators & drivers +9.6 pts ▸ 16.0%

13.2% Community & personal service ◂ +0.2 pts 13.0%

13.1% Clerical & administrative ◂ +2.3 pts 10.8%

10.9% Managers ◂ +0.1 pts 10.8%

9.1% Labourers +0.7 pts ▸ 9.8%

8.6% Sales workers ◂ +0.8 pts 7.8%

Economy & Advantage

IRSAD decile in Lake Macquarie in Singleton even

7 64th pct 7 64th pct

IRSD decile in Lake Macquarie in Singleton even

7 64th pct 7 64th pct

IER decile in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +1 higher in Singleton

8 71st pct 9 86th pct

IEO decile in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +4 higher in Lake Macquarie

7 64th pct 3 29th pct

IRSAD score in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +16 higher in Lake Macquarie

981 70th pct 965 60th pct

ERP in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +198,699 higher in Lake Macquarie

224,540 87th pct 25,841 61st pct

Growth in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +0.4 pts higher in Lake Macquarie

4.9% 62nd pct 4.5% 59th pct

Businesses in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +12,846 higher in Lake Macquarie

15,181 86th pct 2,335 60th pct

Approvals in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +1,252 higher in Lake Macquarie

1,308 87th pct 56 50th pct

Environment & Climate

Rainfall in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +273 higher in Lake Macquarie

1,197 85th pct 924 73rd pct

Max temp in Lake Macquarie in Singleton even

24.0 47th pct 23.9 47th pct

Min temp in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +1.9 higher in Lake Macquarie

11.8 60th pct 9.9 30th pct

Crime & Safety

Crime rate in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +500 higher in Lake Macquarie

7,181 40th pct 6,681 35th pct

Assault/100k in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +145 higher in Singleton

901 45th pct 1,046 55th pct

Sexual/100k in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +19 higher in Singleton

298 59th pct 317 65th pct

Robbery/100k in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +11 higher in Singleton

9 15th pct 20 43rd pct

Burglary/100k in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +93 higher in Singleton

334 28th pct 427 39th pct

Theft/100k in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +239 higher in Lake Macquarie

793 27th pct 553 13th pct

Vehicle theft/100k in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +105 higher in Lake Macquarie

663 79th pct 557 72nd pct

Property damage/100k in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +196 higher in Singleton

642 41st pct 838 59th pct

Drugs/100k in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +99 higher in Lake Macquarie

323 36th pct 224 25th pct

5-yr change in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +20.7 pts higher in Lake Macquarie

7.9% 49th pct -12.8% 16th pct

Walkability

Walk score in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +2.0 higher in Lake Macquarie

4.9 73rd pct 2.9 27th pct

Types ≤15 min in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +2.1 more in Lake Macquarie

4.8 72nd pct 2.7 20th pct

15-min city in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +25.8 pts higher in Lake Macquarie

52.8% 58th pct 26.9% 15th pct

Walk to shops in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +21.3 pts higher in Lake Macquarie

44.1% 43rd pct 22.8% 13th pct

Walk to transit in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +35.6 pts higher in Lake Macquarie

88.8% 81st pct 53.2% 56th pct

Walk to school in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +30.3 pts higher in Lake Macquarie

67.1% 70th pct 36.8% 22nd pct

Walk to a park in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +27.3 pts higher in Lake Macquarie

87.6% 71st pct 60.2% 35th pct

Walk to health in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +10.4 pts higher in Lake Macquarie

32.7% 40th pct 22.2% 22nd pct

Amenities/1k in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +1.6 more in Lake Macquarie

12.8 22nd pct 11.2 13th pct

Intersections/km² in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +31 higher in Lake Macquarie

32 75th pct 1 44th pct

Mean slope in Lake Macquarie in Singleton +1.8 pts higher in Lake Macquarie

7.7% 86th pct 6.0% 69th pct

Compare Lake Macquarie with nearby areas

Newcastle Cessnock Maitland Central Coast Port Stephens Singleton Dungog Northern Beaches

Compare Singleton with nearby areas

Cessnock Muswellbrook Maitland Hawkesbury Lake Macquarie Central Coast Dungog Newcastle

Cite this page

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2021). Lake Macquarie vs Singleton [Census of Population and Housing]. CensusAtlas, used under CC BY 4.0. https://censusatlas.au/compare/lga/LGA14650/lake-macquarie/vs/LGA17000/singleton