Australia’s most advantaged and disadvantaged areas: how does your suburb compare?

Australia's most advantaged suburbs tend to be on or next to water and are clustered around Sydney's eastern suburbs and north shore, while regional areas dominate the list of the nation's most disadvantaged areas, new government data reveals.

Updated socioeconomic indexes based on 2021 census data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Thursday reveal that Woollahra in Sydney's inner-east is the nation's most advantaged local government area (LGA), and six of the top 10 most advantaged LGAs suburbs are in close proximity of Sydney's CBD.

The top 10 most advantaged LGAs in order are: Woollahra (NSW), Mosman (NSW), Ku-ring-gai (NSW), Darwin Waterfront Precinct (NT), North Sydney (NSW), Waverley (NSW), Lane Cove (NSW), Peppermint Grove (WA), Nedlands (WA) and Cottesloe (WA).

"Nine of the 10 most advantaged LGAs are on waterfronts or close to water, including Sydney Harbour, the Darwin waterfront, and the Swan River in Perth," the ABS said.

On the other end of the spectrum, Woorabinda, which is 170km south-west of Rockhampton in central Queensland is the most disadvantaged LGA, with the 10 most disadvantaged areas spread across Queensland and the Northern Territory.

The 10 most disadvantaged LGAs in order are: Woorabinda (Queensland), Cherbourg (Qld), Belyuen (NT), West Daly (NT), Yarrabah (Qld), Kowanyama (Qld), Wujal Wujal (Qld), East Arnhem (NT), Doomadgee (Qld) and Central Desert (NT).

The socioeconomic index takes into account census data on income, education, occupation, housing, employment and family structure, among other factors, to rank an area's advantage and disadvantage.