McLaren Vale
Statistical Area - sa2

McLaren Vale lies within the top quartile of areas nationally for population growth performance according to AreaSearch analysis of recent, and medium to long-term trends

McLaren Vale's population was approximately 8,721 as of August 2025. This figure reflects an increase of 1,377 people since the 2021 Census, which reported a population of 7,344. The growth is inferred from the estimated resident population of 8,441 in June 2024 and an additional 356 validated new addresses since the Census date. This results in a density ratio of 72 persons per square kilometer. McLaren Vale's 18.8% growth since the 2021 census exceeded the SA3 area's 4.8%, indicating significant growth compared to its region. Population growth was primarily driven by interstate migration, contributing approximately 81.4% of overall population gains during recent periods.

AreaSearch adopted ABS/Geoscience Australia projections for each SA2 area, released in 2024 with a base year of 2022. For areas not covered and years post-2032, the SA State Government's Regional/LGA projections by age category are used, based on 2021 data and adjusted employing weighted aggregation from LGA to SA2 levels. Future population trends project an above median growth for McLaren Vale, with an expected increase of 2,068 persons to 2041, reflecting a total increase of 20.5% over the 17 years.

The level of residential development activity in McLaren Vale was found to be higher than 90% of real estate markets across the country

McLaren Vale granted around 139 residential properties approval annually. Development approval data by ABS is on a financial year basis, with 698 homes over the past five years from FY21 to FY25, and 15 approvals so far in FY26. Each dwelling built gained an average of 2.5 new residents per year over these five years. Average construction value was $302,000, below regional averages, suggesting affordable housing options.

Commercial approvals this financial year totaled $11.5 million, indicating moderate commercial development. Compared to Greater Adelaide, McLaren Vale has 290% more development activity per person. Recent construction comprises 93% detached dwellings and 7% townhouses or apartments, maintaining low density housing. The area has approximately 94 people per dwelling approval, suggesting an expanding market. Future projections estimate McLaren Vale adding 1,788 residents by 2041.

At current development rates, new housing supply should meet demand comfortably, supporting growth conditions for buyers beyond current population projections.

McLaren Vale has emerging levels of nearby infrastructure activity, ranking in the 27thth percentile nationally

Changes to local infrastructure significantly influence an area's performance. AreaSearch has identified 22 projects likely to impact the area. Key projects include McLaren Vale Central Shopping Centre, Onkaparinga Heights Housing Development, Majors Road Interchange, and Willunga Basin Water Infrastructure Expansion. The following list details those most relevant.

Professional plan users can use the search below to filter and access additional projects.

AreaSearch analysis places McLaren Vale well above average for employment performance across multiple indicators

McLaren Vale has a skilled workforce with strong manufacturing and industrial sectors. Its unemployment rate in June 2025 was 2.5%, with an employment growth of 2.1% over the past year.

This is below Greater Adelaide's unemployment rate of 4.0%. Workforce participation is on par with Greater Adelaide at 61.7%. The dominant employment sectors are health care & social assistance, construction, and manufacturing. Agriculture, forestry & fishing has a high employment share, at 4.5 times the regional level.

However, health care & social assistance employs only 14.4% of local workers, below Greater Adelaide's 17.7%. Many residents commute elsewhere for work. In the 12-month period ending June 2025, employment increased by 2.1%, while labour force grew by 2.7%, causing unemployment to rise by 0.5 percentage points. State-level data to Sep-25 shows SA employment grew by 1.06% year-on-year, with an unemployment rate of 4.5%, in line with the national rate of 4.5%. Jobs and Skills Australia's forecasts from May 2025 project national employment growth of 6.6% over five years and 13.7% over ten years. Applying these projections to McLaren Vale's employment mix suggests local growth of approximately 6.0%% over five years and 12.8% over ten years.

The area's income profile falls below national averages based on AreaSearch analysis

AreaSearch's latest postcode level ATO data for financial year 2022 shows median income in McLaren Vale is $49,493 and average income is $61,173. This compares to Greater Adelaide's median of $52,592 and average of $64,886. Based on Wage Price Index growth of 10.83% since financial year 2022, current estimates for McLaren Vale are approximately $54,853 (median) and $67,798 (average) as of March 2025. Census 2021 income data shows household, family, and personal incomes in McLaren Vale rank modestly between the 44th and 44th percentiles. Income brackets indicate that 32.7% of individuals earn $1,500 - 2,999, mirroring the region where 31.8% fall into this bracket. After housing expenses, 85.7% of income remains for other expenses. The area's SEIFA income ranking places it in the 6th decile.

McLaren Vale is characterized by a predominantly suburban housing profile, with above-average rates of outright home ownership

The latest Census evaluated McLaren Vale's dwelling structure as 90.5% houses and 9.5% other dwellings (semi-detached, apartments, 'other' dwellings), compared to Adelaide metro's 89.2% houses and 10.7% other dwellings. Home ownership in McLaren Vale was 39.3%, with mortgaged dwellings at 44.8% and rented ones at 15.8%. The median monthly mortgage repayment was $1,733, higher than Adelaide metro's average of $1,452. The median weekly rent in McLaren Vale was $350, compared to Adelaide metro's $314. Nationally, McLaren Vale's mortgage repayments were lower than the Australian average of $1,863, and rents were less than the national figure of $375.

McLaren Vale has a typical household mix, with a fairly typical median household size

Family households comprise 76.8% of all households, including 32.3% couples with children, 35.1% couples without children, and 8.8% single parent families. Non-family households account for the remaining 23.2%, consisting of 21.9% lone person households and 1.2% group households. The median household size is 2.5 people, which aligns with the Greater Adelaide average.

McLaren Vale performs slightly above the national average for education, showing competitive qualification levels and steady academic outcomes

Educational qualifications in McLaren Vale trail national benchmarks, with 22.2% of residents aged 15+ holding university degrees compared to the Australian average of 30.4%. This gap indicates potential for educational development and skills enhancement. Bachelor degrees are most common at 15.4%, followed by postgraduate qualifications (3.9%) and graduate diplomas (2.9%). Trade and technical skills are prominent, with 40.1% of residents aged 15+ holding vocational credentials – advanced diplomas (11.8%) and certificates (28.3%).

Educational participation is high, with 26.4% of residents currently enrolled in formal education. This includes 10.6% in primary education, 7.0% in secondary education, and 3.8% pursuing tertiary education. McLaren Vale's schools had a combined enrollment of 1,829 students as of the latest data. The area functions as an education hub with 21.0 school places per 100 residents – significantly above the regional average of 13.6 – attracting students from surrounding communities.

Transport servicing is low compared to other areas nationally based on assessment of service frequency, route connectivity and accessibility

McLaren Vale has 34 active public transport stops, all of which are bus stops. These stops are served by six different routes that together offer 290 weekly passenger trips. The accessibility of the transport system is rated as good, with residents on average being located 333 meters from their nearest stop.

On average, there are 41 trips per day across all routes, which equates to approximately eight weekly trips per individual stop.

Health outcomes in McLaren Vale are marginally below the national average with common health conditions slightly more prevalent than average across both younger and older age cohorts

McLaren Vale shows below-average health indicators with some common conditions more prevalent than average across both younger and older age groups. Approximately 50% of its total population (~4,360 people) has private health cover, compared to the national average of 55.3%.

The most common medical conditions are arthritis (10.2%) and asthma (7.5%). 66.8% of residents report no medical ailments, higher than Greater Adelaide's 62.9%. McLaren Vale has a higher proportion of seniors aged 65 and over at 23.2% (2,019 people), compared to Greater Adelaide's 21.0%. Despite this, health outcomes among seniors are above average, better even than the general population in health metrics.

McLaren Vale ranks below the Australian average when compared to other local markets across a number of language and cultural background related metrics

McLaren Vale, as per the data, exhibited lower than average cultural diversity. The majority of its residents were born in Australia, with 76.0%, while 90.8% held citizenship and 94.7% spoke English exclusively at home. Christianity was the dominant religion, accounting for 39.4%.

Hinduism, though small, showed an overrepresentation at 0.4%, compared to Greater Adelaide's 0.6%. In terms of ancestry, the top three groups were English (38.7%), Australian (26.3%), and Scottish (8.2%). Some ethnicities like Welsh (0.8% vs regional 0.8%), German (5.2% vs 5.4%), and Dutch (1.5% vs 1.7%) also showed notable differences in representation compared to the regional averages.

McLaren Vale hosts an older demographic, ranking in the top quartile nationwide

The median age in McLaren Vale is 44 years, which is higher than Greater Adelaide's average of 39 and the Australian median of 38. The 55-64 age cohort is notably over-represented in McLaren Vale at 13.4%, compared to Greater Adelaide's average, while those aged 25-34 are under-represented at 11.3%. According to the 2021 Census, the population of children aged 0-4 has increased from 5.1% to 6.0%. Conversely, the percentage of people aged 45-54 has decreased from 13.5% to 11.2%. By 2041, demographic forecasts indicate that McLaren Vale's population aged 85 and over will increase significantly, with a projected expansion from 299 to 702 people, an increase of 402 people (135%).