Living in Whyalla

In Whyalla, the median rent tenants pay is €495 a month (2021) and unemployment is 13.5% (2026).

Median personal income was A$641 per week in August 2021. In August 2021, Whyalla had a population of 21,154. Foreign-born residents accounted for 17.9% of the population in 2021.

Last checked 2026-10-077 sources

Population21,154people10 Aug 2021Official source · 2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia

Median gross salary (region)1,723EUR/month31 Dec 2021Official source · www.abs.gov.au

Median rent495.3EUR/month31 Dec 2021Official source · 2021 Census General Community Profile, SUA, G02

Unemployment rate13.5%country median 4.5% — 200% aboveIndependent source · DEWR — Small Area Labour Markets, smoothed unemployment rate by LGA, March quarter 2026

Which Australia-wide rules apply when you move to Whyalla?

National rules stay on the country page instead of being relabelled as city data.

Visa and entry rulesPassport-specific entry and national residence context.BenefitsCountry-wide eligibility and official application routes.Taxes in AustraliaNational rates and thresholds that apply in Whyalla.Healthcare eligibilityCountry-wide insurance and residence conditions.

Housing and cost

Median rent was A$180 per week, and median monthly mortgage repayment was A$1,083 in August 2021.

What recurs every month2 published recurring costs, € per month

€ / month

Internet, 60 Mbps€70

Mobile plan, 10 GB€46

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Internet, 60 Mbps unlimited	69.92 EUR/month	31 Jul 2026	Telstra nbn100⁴Official · national market
Mobile plan, 10 GB	45.79 EUR/month	31 Jul 2026	Telstra Upfront Basic⁵Official · national market
Dwellings	10,362 dwellings	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics¹Official
Main residence dwellings	8,952 dwellings	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics¹Official
Median weekly rent (AUD)	180 AUD/week	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia¹Official
Median monthly rent	495.3 EUR/month	31 Dec 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile, SUA, G02¹Official
Median monthly rent (whole dwelling)	495.3 EUR/month	31 Dec 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile, SUA, G02¹Official

Is Whyalla a good place to live?

There is no universal answer. The profile scores below show who the available published evidence may suit; they are a decision aid, not a personal recommendation.

Try your profile

Remote worker51%strong on work, weak on air quality · range 41–61%

Skilled employee58%strong on work, weak on safety · range 50–66%

Student57%strong on education, weak on safety · range 49–65%

Family55%strong on family, weak on safety · range 46–64%

Retirement60%strong on legal route, weak on admin · range 47–73%

Worked out from these numbers

How international is the population?

17.9% of residents hold a foreign nationality — 3,783 of 21,154 people. This counts nationality, not place of birth, so long-settled residents who naturalised are not in it.

Work and income

The unemployment rate was 13.5% in March 2026. Median household income was A$1,188 per week in August 2021.

Unemployment across cities in AustraliaUnemployment in Whyalla is 13.5%. Of 100 cities with data, 32 have unemployment of 4 to under 5%.

1–22–33–44–55–66–77–88–99–1013–14

Whyalla 13.5%

Unemployment rate (%)

Metric	Value	Period	Source
People in full-time employment	5,383 people	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics¹Official
Employment rate	50.9 %	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics¹Official
Median household income (AUD/week)	1,188 AUD/week	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia¹Official
Median personal income (AUD/week)	641 AUD/week	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia¹Official
Median gross salary (regional)	1,723 EUR/month	31 Dec 2021	www.abs.gov.au⁶Official
Unemployment rate	13.5 %country median 4.5%	31 Mar 2026	DEWR — Small Area Labour Markets, smoothed unemployment rate by LGA, March quarter 2026⁷Independent

What does a salary buy in Whyalla?

Take-home pay after tax, minus rent and the everyday bills this city publishes. Each line names its source.

Left over each month€0of €0 take-home

Rent
Internet
Mobile

Line-by-line breakdown and sources

Each month	€
Take-home payOECD Taxing Wages 2025, single, no children. Includes central and local income tax and employee social contributions; euro amounts at the ECB average for 2026-08.	outside the model's range
Rentmedian rent of a whole dwelling · official · 2021 Census General Community Profile, SUA, G02 · 2021-12-31	− €495
Internet€70 · official · Telstra nbn100 · 2026-07-31	− €70
Mobile plan€46 · official · Telstra Upfront Basic · 2026-07-31	− €46
Other everyday billsnot published for this city: public transport pass, utilities	—
Left overbefore the bills this city does not publish	—

Take-home pay for other salaries and households Compare with another city Check a job offer in Whyalla Salary needed to live in Whyalla

Public employment service

No exact public employment office is currently linked to Whyalla. The verified national service may still offer online registration, job search or an official office finder.

Country-level information

Workforce Australia — Public employment service

Australian Government Department of Employment and Workplace Relations

Job Search

Open official service

Open the Australia service overview

Country-level service information is not treated as proof of a physical office in Whyalla. Sources checked through 11 Aug 2026.

Family and education

Metric	Value	Period	Source
People who speak a language other than English at home	6.43 %	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia¹Official

Language courses and integration

No exact city-level course record is currently published for Whyalla. These verified national programmes may still apply; use the official programme page to check local availability.

Country-level information

Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) — State Language Course

Australian Government Department of Home Affairs

For eligible migrants, humanitarian entrants.

EnglishIn Person, Online, HybridFree

Open official information

Humanitarian Settlement Program (HSP) — Newcomer Adaptation

Australian Government Department of Home Affairs

For humanitarian entrants.

In Person, HybridFree

Open official information

Open the full Australia section

National programme information is not treated as proof of a course location in Whyalla.

Find courses near Whyalla

Population and city profile

The city covered 40.9 km² in 2021. Population density was 529.5 people per km² in 2025.

Who lives hereResidents by nationality, % of population

By nationality

National passport82.1%
Foreign residents17.9%

Calculated from the population and foreign-resident facts on this page.

Metric	Value	Period	Source
City area	40.87 km²	31 Dec 2021	Official ASGS2016 SUA area from ABS ArcGIS attributes, area albers sqkm. Exact queue geography; not GCCSA or LGA.²Official
Foreign-resident share	17.88 %	31 Dec 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile DataPacks — Significant Urban Areas, Australia¹Official
Foreign residents	3,783 people	31 Dec 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile DataPacks — Significant Urban Areas, Australia¹Official
Population density	529.5 people/km²	31 Dec 2025	Reproducible exact-ASGS2016-SUA density: ABS ERP at 30 June 2021 divided by ABS ASGS2016 SUA area. Existing local population baseline is only a recovered cross-check; no GCCSA/LGA observation.³Official
Female residents	10,531 people	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics¹Official
Male residents	10,617 people	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics¹Official
Population	21,154 people	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia¹Official

Population over time25 published observations, 2001–2025

21,036

21,605

22,173

22,742

21,641200120052011201520212025

Population fell 1.6% between 2001 and 2025, from 22,003 to 21,641.

International community in Whyalla

Named groups from exact city-grain official distributions. Citizenship, birthplace, language and ancestry answer different questions and stay separate.

Country of birth

Persons usually resident in the ABS Significant Urban Area; 2021 Census G09 PERSONS total across age groups and sex · 2021 Census

Published group	People	Share
Total	21,154	100.0%
Australia	15,951	75.4%
Country of birth not stated	1,420	6.7%
England	1,361	6.4%
Scotland	461	2.2%
Philippines	324	1.5%
Born elsewhere(d)	311	1.5%
India	194	0.9%
South Africa	157	0.7%
New Zealand	142	0.7%
Germany	120	0.6%

Show 33 more groups

Published group	People	Share
Netherlands	86	0.4%
Italy	59	0.3%
Wales	54	0.3%
China (excludes SARs and Taiwan)(c)	43	0.2%
Croatia	42	0.2%
Greece	42	0.2%
Zimbabwe	40	0.2%
Ireland	33	0.2%
Sri Lanka	26	0.1%
Poland	24	0.1%
Chile	21	0.1%
Fiji	19	0.1%
Thailand	19	0.1%
Indonesia	18	0.1%
United States of America	17	0.1%
Malaysia	15	0.1%
Canada	14	0.1%
France	14	0.1%
Malta	14	0.1%
Papua New Guinea	13	0.1%
Bosnia and Herzegovina	12	0.1%
Egypt	12	0.1%
Pakistan	11	0.1%
Vietnam	10	0.0%
Bangladesh	9	0.0%
Nepal	9	0.0%
Singapore	9	0.0%
Korea, Republic of (South)	8	0.0%
Taiwan	6	0.0%
Iran	4	0.0%
North Macedonia	4	0.0%
Japan	3	0.0%
Lebanon	3	0.0%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source¹

Country of birth

Persons usually resident in the ABS Significant Urban Area; 2021 Census G01 total persons denominator · 2021 Census

Published group	People	Share
Total persons	21,154	100.0%
Australia	15,951	75.4%
Elsewhere (excludes country of birth not stated)	3,782	17.9%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source¹

Citizenship

Persons usually resident in the ABS Significant Urban Area; 2021 Census G01 total persons denominator · 2021 Census

Published group	People	Share
Total persons	21,154	100.0%
Australian citizen	18,454	87.2%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source¹

Additional context

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Residents born abroad	17.88 %	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia¹Official
Households	8,952 households	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics¹Official
Labour force participation rate	55.2 %	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics¹Official
Median age	41 years	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia¹Official
Median monthly mortgage repayment (AUD)	1,083 AUD/month	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia¹Official

Alternatives for people set on Whyalla

Three places for the three reasons people leave a city on the shortlist: stay in the region, stay in the country, or keep the budget and change the country. A percentage appears only where both cities publish that metric from the same source, period and grain. Distances are straight lines — travel times are not collected yet.

Darwin as a Whyalla alternative in the same country

Better on 3 of 4 metrics measured the same way, worse on 0.

Residents: 127,215 Darwin vs 21,154 Whyalla+501%
Median gross pay, region: €3,017 Darwin vs €1,723 Whyalla+75%
Unemployment: 3.3% Darwin vs 13.5% Whyalla−76%
Foreign residents: 37.4% Darwin vs 17.9% Whyalla+109%

Full comparison More about Darwin

Alternative cities in Australia

Other cities in Australia to compare with Whyalla, nearest in population first.

All Australia cities

Forster - Tuncurry21,272 residents Griffith20,569 residents Moe - Newborough21,997 residents Gisborne22,200 residents St Georges Basin - Sanctuary Point20,105 residents Gympie22,424 residents

How does Whyalla compare?

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Whyalla in rankings

#1 of 30 in Cheapest cities to rent in Australia

Yes — migrants can receive medical care in Whyalla when the national insurance or residence conditions are met.

Healthcare access follows the country-wide insurance rules; local capacity facts remain city data and are not used as proof of eligibility.

Open the official coverage guide

Country rule verified 2026-08-03.

Put Whyalla's key facts on your site — a card with this page's figures and a link back, free under CC BY 4.0.

Common questions

Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.

What is the typical salary around Whyalla?

The median gross salary is 1,723 EUR/month. Source: www.abs.gov.au.

What is the unemployment rate in Whyalla?

The unemployment rate is 13.5 %. Source: DEWR — Small Area Labour Markets, smoothed unemployment rate by LGA, March quarter 2026.

How many people live in Whyalla?

The published population is 21,154 people. Source: 2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia.

How many foreign residents live in Whyalla?

3,783 residents hold a foreign nationality. Source: 2021 Census General Community Profile DataPacks — Significant Urban Areas, Australia.

Is Whyalla a good place to live?

Whyalla may suit different people for different reasons. The page's profile scores compare published cost, work, housing, safety, healthcare and other available factors; they are a decision aid, not a universal recommendation.

How many people born in Australia live in Whyalla?

The official country of birth distribution records 15,951 people (75.4%) in the source-defined population for 2021 Census. This is a country of birth measure, not a general estimate of ethnicity or migration status.

Cite this page

Open a format to select or copy this ImmigrationDB compilation citation. The native disclosure and text fallback work without JavaScript.

APA citation

ImmigrationDB. (2026, October 16). Whyalla, Australia: population, rent, salary, cost of living [ImmigrationDB compilation; version fee125f9d439c5ae139f44494a504b3f]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/cities/au/whyalla/ Retrieved 2026-10-16. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

BibTeX citation

@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_whyalla-australia-population-rent-salary-cost-of-living_e3362c18fc22,
  author = {ImmigrationDB},
  title = {Whyalla, Australia: population, rent, salary, cost of living},
  publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
  year = {2026},
  date = {2026-10-16},
  version = {fee125f9d439c5ae139f44494a504b3f},
  url = {https://immigrationdb.com/cities/au/whyalla/},
  note = {Retrieved 2026-10-16. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}

Markdown citation

[Whyalla, Australia: population, rent, salary, cost of living](https://immigrationdb.com/cities/au/whyalla/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; version fee125f9d439c5ae139f44494a504b3f; retrieved 2026-10-16; built 2026-10-16.

This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.

Sources

JSON Markdown

2021 Census General Community Profile DataPacks — Significant Urban Areas, Australia 2021 Census General Community Profile DataPacks · abs.gov.au · checked 2026-09-25
Official ASGS2016 SUA area from ABS ArcGIS attributes, area albers sqkm. Exact queue geography; not GCCSA or LGA. geo.abs.gov.au · checked 2016-07-01
Reproducible exact-ASGS2016-SUA density: ABS ERP at 30 June 2021 divided by ABS ASGS2016 SUA area. Existing local population baseline is only a recovered cross-check; no GCCSA/LGA observation. abs.gov.au · checked 2021-06-30
Telstra nbn100 telstra.com.au · checked 2026-09-15
Telstra Upfront Basic telstra.com.au · checked 2026-09-15
www.abs.gov.au abs.gov.au · checked 2026-08-27
DEWR — Small Area Labour Markets, smoothed unemployment rate by LGA, March quarter 2026 DEWR · dewr.gov.au · checked 2026-07-26

Spotted a number that looks wrong? Every value here carries its source and date — tell us what you found and we will re-check it against the source.