Kelvin Grove - Herston is well-off — but unemployment is higher
Kelvin Grove - Herston 4059 · Brisbane Inner - North, Greater Brisbane, QLD
Kelvin Grove - Herston is among the more advantaged parts of Australia (SEIFA decile 8 of 10); growing fast, up 2.95% in the latest year against 1.76% for Queensland. The trade-offs: unemployment runs above the Brisbane norm, at 7.7%; most of the growth is high-rise — over half the homes are now flats or units.
Mostly apartments, with a median age of 29 and households on a median $1,759 a week at the 2021 Census.
Compiled from ABS regional population (SA2), the 2021 Census, SEIFA 2021, OpenStreetMap and Queensland Open Data · figures current to August 2026.
How the population has changed
Kelvin Grove - Herston against the Queensland average, both set to 100 in the first year shown so the growth rates compare.
Kelvin Grove - Herston population grew from 10,718 in 2016 to 12,531 in 2025, a change of 16.9% over the period, against the Queensland average.
Show the data table
| Year | Kelvin Grove - Herston | Queensland average |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 10,718 | 4,845,152 |
| 2017 | 10,955 | 4,926,380 |
| 2018 | 11,054 | 5,006,623 |
| 2019 | 11,120 | 5,088,847 |
| 2020 | 10,915 | 5,165,613 |
| 2021 | 10,381 | 5,215,814 |
| 2022 | 10,796 | 5,310,905 |
| 2023 | 11,605 | 5,450,235 |
| 2024 | 12,172 | 5,571,890 |
| 2025 | 12,531 | 5,669,764 |
Where the growth is coming from
Kelvin Grove - Herston gained 1,171 residents from internal migration and 1,324 from overseas in the year to June 2025, while 2,182 people moved away — a net addition of 313 before natural increase.
- Internal migration in+1,171
- Internal migration out+1,363
- Overseas migration in+1,324
- Natural increase+46
Components of population change over the sample year. Natural increase is shown apart from migration so the two are not read as one figure.
How it has changed
Census · five-yearlyThe 2016 Census against 2021. Older figures are mapped onto today's boundaries via the ABS Time Series Profile, so comparisons are approximate where borders moved.
| Measure | 2016 | 2021 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 10,079 | 10,165 | +0.9% |
| Median age | 27 | 29 | +2 yrs |
| Median household income | $1,458/wk | $1,759/wk | +21% |
| Median weekly rent | $420/wk | $400/wk | -4.8% |
| Born overseas | 47.4% | 40.9% | -6.6 pts |
Who lives here
Census · five-yearlyFrom the 2021 Census. Each figure carries its definition, so you know what is being counted.
People
Income
Housing
Work
How homes are held
- Owned outright 13.5%
- Mortgaged 21.0%
- Rented 63.0%
- Other / not stated 2.4%
How well-off the area is
Census · five-yearlyThe ABS SEIFA indexes rank every area by relative advantage and disadvantage. Decile 1 is the lowest tenth of Australia; decile 10 is the highest.
- Relative disadvantage (IRSD)Lower decile means more relative disadvantageDecile 5score 1,011
- Advantage & disadvantage (IRSAD)Higher decile means more relative advantageDecile 8score 1,061
- Economic resources (IER)Income and housing capacityDecile 1score 892
- Education & occupation (IEO)Education and occupational skill levelsDecile 10score 1,134
Getting around, and what's nearby
OpenStreetMap · quarterlyWhat OpenStreetMap records inside the suburb boundary. Counts reflect what is tagged in OSM and can undercount a real but less-mapped area.
Within the Kelvin Grove - Herston SA2, OpenStreetMap records 5 schools, 6 childcare and kindergarten centres, 1 hospital, 1 GP or clinic location, 2 supermarkets and 18 parks. For families: 9 playgrounds. Eating out and socialising: 17 cafés and 5 restaurants. Staying active: 1 gym and 31 sports fields. The nearest train station, Exhibition, is about 1,400 m from the suburb centre. OpenStreetMap also maps 59 bus stops here.
List every mapped place
Schools
- Kelvin Grove State College - Senior School
- Kelvin Grove State College - Junior School
- Queensland Academy for Creative Industries
- Queensland Academy of Creative Industries
- Brisbane Grammar School Playing Fields
Childcare & kindergartens
- Kindy Land
- C&K Kelvin Grove
- Herston First Steps
- The Grove Early Learning
- Lady Ramsay Childcare
Gyms & fitness
- WINKfit Gym
Hospitals
- Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital
GPs & clinics
- Herston Health
Supermarkets
- Woolworths Metro
- Aldi
Parks
- Kelvin Grove Reserve
- Grey Gums Park
- Kundu Park
- Kulgun Park
- McCaskie Park
- Marshall Park
- Victoria Park / Barrambin
- Gould Park
Schools
Every open Queensland school whose campus sits inside the SA2 boundary, with the average ICSEA across them. Open a school for its own ICSEA, student background and a link to My School.
The Kelvin Grove - Herston SA2 contains 2 schools — 1 secondary school and 1 combined school, all government. NAPLAN results for each school are on its My School profile (ACARA). For area context, Kelvin Grove - Herston sits in decile 10 of the ABS SEIFA index of education and occupation nationally and 89% of adults here completed Year 12 (Census 2021).
The centre of this SA2 is zoned for Kelvin Grove State College (primary), Kelvin Grove State College (junior secondary), Kelvin Grove State College (senior secondary).
Parts of the SA2 also fall in the catchment of Petrie Terrace State School (primary), Wilston State School (primary), Newmarket State School (primary), Brisbane Central State School (primary), Windsor State School (primary), Fortitude Valley State Secondary College (junior secondary), Fortitude Valley State Secondary College (senior secondary).
Catchments can divide a suburb — confirm your address on EdMap.
Show school list
- Queensland Academy for Creative Industries · State · 10–12
- Kelvin Grove State College · State · Prep–12
School list & catchments: Queensland Government Open Data (Department of Education), licensed CC BY 4.0. ICSEA: ACARA School Profile. NAPLAN: myschool.edu.au (ACARA).
Nearby, in Brisbane Inner - North
Others in the same ABS district, by population growth. If this one doesn't fit, one of these might.
- HereKelvin Grove - Herston+3.0%
- 01Albion+4.4%
- 02Newstead - Bowen Hills+2.8%
- 03Ascot+2.2%
- 04Clayfield+1.6%
- 05Hamilton (Qld)+1.5%
- 06Wooloowin - Lutwyche+1.5%
- 07Windsor+1.4%
- 08Newmarket+1.4%
- 09Alderley+1.0%
- 10Wilston+0.8%
- 11Hendra+0.6%
- 12Grange+0.6%
Dots place each suburb's growth on the same scale, slowest at left.
Weighing up another suburb?
Type a name, then pick from the list. Every suburb is compared to the Queensland average.