State Electorate · Area profile
Balmain
13 km²
A walker's paradise where almost every home is within a 15-minute stroll of health services and groceries, Balmain is a wealthy and highly educated inner-city hub. It is a professional community where more than half of the adults hold a university degree and typical incomes are far above the national figure. The area is defined by high-earning young adults and a significant number of people living alone in apartments or terrace homes. This creates a sophisticated, urban atmosphere with a population that is increasingly secular and mobile.
An affluent area whose schools serve an equally well-off community.
Explore Balmain by topic
The community is largely made up of young and middle-aged adults, with children and seniors appearing in numbers well below the state average. A striking 18.6% of residents are in de facto relationships, a figure well above the national average.
International influence is strong here, with 33.9% of people born overseas, which is well above the national figure. English, Australian, and Irish are the most common ancestries.
About 21% of residents use a language other than English at home, though this is still below the New South Wales average. English remains the dominant tongue for 74% of the population.
Secularism is very high in Balmain, with 53.2% of people reporting no religion. This is far above the national average and has risen by 19 percentage points since 2011.
The area is exceptionally well-qualified, as 53% of adults have a bachelor degree or higher, far above the national figure. This is reflected in the high school completion rate, with 79.8% of residents finishing Year 12.
Earnings are among the highest at this level, with a typical family bringing in $3,642 a week. Around 31% of individuals earn $2,000 or more weekly, which is far above the state and national averages.
Residents generally enjoy good health, with the rate of people needing help for daily activities being much lower than most areas. Long-term health conditions are also slightly below the state average.
Volunteering is more common here than in most other areas, though the number of people providing unpaid care or looking after children is well below the national figure.
Small households are the norm, with 33.4% of people living alone—a rate well above the national average. Consequently, there are typically only 2.2 people per home.
Rentals are very common, with 47.7% of households renting, far above the state average. Homes are typically small, with only 41.4% having three or more bedrooms, and weekly rents are well above the national figure at $550.
Working from home is incredibly common, with 56.3% of the workforce doing so, far above the national average. This is consistent with 20.7% of homes having no motor vehicle, which is far above the state figure.
The population is very mobile, with nearly half of all residents moving home in the last five years. Recent arrivals from overseas also make up 18.1% of the community, well above the national average.
Professional work dominates the local economy, with 43.1% of workers in professional roles and 68.3% of adults working or looking for work, which is well above the national average.
Everything is within reach, with a walkability score of 9.2. Every single home is within a 15-minute walk of a park, a school, and public transport.