Chatswood West

An assessment of population growth drivers in Chatswood West reveals an overall ranking slightly below national averages considering recent, and medium term trends

Based on analysis of ABS population updates, as of November 2025, the estimated population of Chatswood West is around 1,595. This reflects an increase of 74 people since the 2021 Census, which reported a population of 1,521. The change is inferred from AreaSearch's validation of new addresses following examination of the latest ERP data release by the ABS in June 2024, showing a resident population of 1,557 and an additional validated new address since the Census date. This results in a density ratio of 1,969 persons per square kilometer, above the average seen across national locations assessed by AreaSearch. Over the past decade, Chatswood West has demonstrated resilient growth patterns with a compound annual growth rate of 1.7%, outpacing the SA3 area. Population growth was primarily driven by overseas migration, contributing approximately 78.0% of overall population gains during recent periods.

AreaSearch is adopting ABS/Geoscience Australia projections for each SA2 area, released in 2024 with a base year of 2022. For areas not covered by this data, AreaSearch utilises the NSW State Government's SA2 level projections, released in 2022 with a base year of 2021. Growth rates by age group from these aggregations are applied to all areas for years 2032 to 2041. Examining future population trends, a population increase just below the median of Australian statistical areas is expected, with the area projected to grow by 244 persons to 2041 based on aggregated SA2-level projections, reflecting an increase of 20.4% in total over the 17 years.

Residential development activity is lower than average in Chatswood West according to AreaSearch's national comparison of local real estate markets

AreaSearch analysis of ABS building approval numbers shows Chatswood West had virtually no dwelling approvals in recent years. Between FY21-FY25, an estimated 2 homes were approved, with none so far in FY26.

This resulted in an average of 41 new residents per year arriving per dwelling constructed over the same period. Supply lagged demand significantly, indicating heightened buyer competition and pricing pressures. Compared to Greater Sydney, Chatswood West had notably lower building activity, reflecting its mature status and possible planning constraints. Nationally, this activity was also below average.

Chatswood West has very high levels of nearby infrastructure activity, ranking in the top 10% nationally

No infrastructure changes significantly affect an area's performance. AreaSearch identified zero projects impacting this region. Key projects include Sydney Metro City & Southwest Extension, North Sydney to Northern Beaches Capacity Improvements, 101 Eton Road Residential Development, and Lane Cove Tunnel, with the following list highlighting those most relevant.

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Employment performance in Chatswood West exceeds national averages across key labour market indicators

Chatswood West has a highly educated workforce, with the technology sector notably represented. Its unemployment rate was 3.3% as of June 2025, lower than Greater Sydney's rate of 4.2%.

Employment stability in the area remained relatively consistent over the past year. As of June 2025887 residents were employed, with an unemployment rate 0.9% below Greater Sydney's and workforce participation at 62.2%, close to Greater Sydney's 60.0%. Key industries for employment among residents include professional & technical, health care & social assistance, and finance & insurance. Chatswood West specializes in professional & technical jobs, with an employment share 1.6 times the regional level.

Conversely, transport, postal & warehousing is under-represented, at 2.2% of the workforce compared to Greater Sydney's 5.3%. The area appears to offer limited local employment opportunities, as indicated by the difference between Census working population and resident population. Between June 2024 and June 2025, labour force levels increased by 0.8%, while employment decreased by 0.1%, leading to a rise in unemployment rate of 0.9 percentage points. In comparison, Greater Sydney recorded employment growth of 2.6% over the same period. Jobs and Skills Australia's national employment forecasts from Sep-22 project that national employment will expand by 6.6% over five years and 13.7% over ten years. Applying these projections to Chatswood West's employment mix suggests local employment should increase by 7.4% over five years and 14.8% over ten years, though these are simple extrapolations for illustrative purposes and do not account for localized population projections.

Income metrics indicate excellent economic conditions, with the area achieving higher performance than 75% of national locations assessed by AreaSearch

Chatswood West has one of the highest income levels in Australia according to latest ATO data aggregated by AreaSearch. In financial year 2022, median income among taxpayers was $56,929 and average income stood at $93,355. These figures compare to Greater Sydney's median income of $56,994 and average income of $80,856 respectively. Based on Wage Price Index growth of 12.61% since financial year 2022, estimated current incomes are approximately $64,108 (median) and $105,127 (average) as of September 2025. Census data reveals household, family, and personal incomes all rank highly in Chatswood West, between the 83rd and 97th percentiles nationally. Data shows 41.7% of the population (665 individuals) fall within the $4000+ income range, differing from regional patterns where $1,500 - 2,999 dominates with 30.9%. Chatswood West demonstrates affluence with 52.6% earning over $3,000 per week, supporting premium retail and service offerings. Housing accounts for 15.0% of income while strong earnings rank residents within the 97th percentile for disposable income. The area's SEIFA income ranking places it in the 10th decile.

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

Chatswood West's dwelling structure, as per the latest Census, consisted of 93.9% houses and 6.1% other dwellings (semi-detached, apartments, 'other' dwellings). This compared to Sydney metro's 41.1% houses and 58.9% other dwellings. Home ownership in Chatswood West was 46.5%, with mortgaged dwellings at 37.6% and rented ones at 16.0%. The median monthly mortgage repayment was $4,000, higher than Sydney metro's average of $3,033. Median weekly rent in Chatswood West was $750, compared to Sydney metro's $560. Nationally, Chatswood West's mortgage repayments were significantly higher at $1,863 and rents substantially above the national figure of $375.

Chatswood West features high concentrations of family households, with a higher-than-average median household size

Family households account for 83.8% of all households, including 49.1% couples with children, 24.4% couples without children, and 8.1% single parent families. Non-family households constitute the remaining 16.2%, with lone person households at 12.9% and group households comprising 3.6%. The median household size is 3.0 people, larger than the Greater Sydney average of 2.5.

Chatswood West demonstrates exceptional educational outcomes, ranking among the top 5% of areas nationally based on AreaSearch's comprehensive analysis of qualification and performance metrics

Chatswood West has a higher educational attainment than Australian and NSW averages. 54.8% of residents aged 15+ have university qualifications, compared to 30.4% nationally and 32.2% in NSW. Bachelor degrees are the most common at 33.2%, followed by postgraduate qualifications (18.4%) and graduate diplomas (3.2%). Vocational pathways account for 21.5%.

Educational participation is high, with 31.7% of residents currently enrolled in formal education. This includes 11.1% in primary, 8.1% in secondary, and 6.6% in tertiary education. Schools are located outside immediate catchment boundaries, requiring families to access them in neighboring areas.

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

Chatswood West has 20 active public transport stops in operation, all of which are bus stops. These stops are served by four different routes that together facilitate 419 weekly passenger trips. The accessibility to these transport services is rated as excellent, with residents located on average 97 meters from the nearest stop.

On average, there are 59 trips per day across all routes, equating to approximately 20 weekly trips per individual stop.

Chatswood West's residents boast exceedingly positive health performance metrics with very low prevalence of common health conditions across all age groups

Health outcomes data shows excellent results across Chatswood West, with very low prevalence of common health conditions across all age groups. The rate of private health cover is exceptionally high at approximately 64% of the total population (1,016 people), compared to 78.2% across Greater Sydney and a national average of 55.3%. The most prevalent medical conditions in the area are arthritis and asthma, affecting 6.4 and 5.3% of residents respectively, while 76.9% of residents report being completely clear of medical ailments, compared to 78.0% across Greater Sydney.

As of 2021, 20.3% of Chatswood West's residents are aged 65 and over (323 people), which is higher than the 15.7% in Greater Sydney. Health outcomes among seniors are particularly strong, broadly aligning with the general population's health profile.

Chatswood West is among the most culturally diverse areas in the country based on AreaSearch assessment of a range of language and cultural background related metrics

Chatswood West has high cultural diversity, with 37.7% speaking a language other than English at home and 43.7% born overseas. Christianity is the main religion, comprising 45.8%. Judaism is overrepresented at 1.2%, compared to Greater Sydney's 1.0%.

Top ancestry groups are English (22.0%), Chinese (19.7%), and Australian (15.9%). French (1.0%), Hungarian (0.5%), and Dutch (2.3%) are notably overrepresented compared to regional averages of 0.7%, 0.4%, and 0.9% respectively.

Chatswood West hosts an older demographic, ranking in the top quartile nationwide

The median age in Chatswood West is 42 years, which is significantly higher than Greater Sydney's average of 37 years and Australia's average of 38 years. The 65-74 age group comprises 10.6% of the population in Chatswood West, compared to a lower percentage in Greater Sydney. Conversely, the 25-34 age group makes up 7.8% of the population, which is less prevalent than in Greater Sydney. According to post-2021 Census data, the 0-4 age group has decreased from 5.0% to 3.9%. Population forecasts for 2041 suggest substantial demographic changes in Chatswood West. Notably, the 75-84 age group is projected to grow by 74%, reaching 189 people from an initial 108. Conversely, the 0-4 age group is expected to decline by 2 people.