suburb.guide

QLD · Fraser Coast Council

River Heads, 4655

Current weather

17.8°CMainly clear

93% humidity · 9.7 km/h wind · 22.5° / 15.8° today · 2.2 mm rain

Updated

Desirability score

34/100
Below average

1066th in QLD

62% data confidence

How this score is calculated
  • River access
  • Green suburb
  • High desirability
What River Heads is known for: River access, Green suburb, High desirability

Suburb profile

In Fraser Coast, River Heads keeps a rural calm, a smaller community with room to breathe and a strong local rhythm. The community is self-contained in the best sense. Local life comes first, with the region opening up beyond. The landscape itself is part of the lifestyle: open paddocks, big skies and room to breathe.

A mature community gives the area a calm, settled social fabric, with families and grandchildren still a visible part of community life. Everyday life leans local, with a handful of trusted shops, a familiar main street and neighbours who know your name. Housing remains accessible compared with many parts of the state.

The streetscape feels settled and established, with older homes giving the area a familiar, lived-in look.

The desirability score is below average, weighed down by weaker local dining and lifestyle amenities and community and employment against similar regional towns, even with safety holding up better. Limited access to some essential local services also trimmed the result.

Population

Population
2,044
Median age
54
Median household income / week
$1,243
Dwelling vacancy
10.2%
Unoccupied private dwellings
90 of 880
Median monthly mortgage
$1,400
Employment rate
44.1%
Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
75 / 6 / 0

Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)

Employment, household income and age diversity (2021 Census)

Data sources & freshness

  • 2021 Census — General Community Profile — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Period: 2021 · Updated on site · 2021 Census release

    The 2026 Census runs in August 2026; suburb-level updates are expected from mid-2027.

Housing

All types (Mar 2026)
$650

Median weekly rent from Queensland RTA rental bond data. Figures can be unreliable where few bonds were lodged in the quarter.

Contributes to desirability score · Housing (15%) · Future Growth (7%)

Median price, rental yield and vacancy Recent price momentum

Data sources & freshness

Crime & safety

Total offences (Jan 2026 to Jul 2026)
76
Against the person
16
Against property
38
Rate per 1,000 residents
37.2
Person-crime prevalence
About 1 in 128 residents
State safety percentile
45.6th (lower crime is better)
Decrease (daily rate, partial year)
-4.1%

Reported offences are running lower than the same point last year.

Reported offences by period

Most common offence types

  • Drug Offences300
  • Good Order Offences272
  • Other Property Damage231
  • Other Theft (Excl. Unlawful Entry)655
  • Traffic And Related Offences273

Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)

Crime rate and year-on-year trend

Data sources & freshness

  • QPS Online Crime Map — Queensland Police Service · Period: Jan 2025 to Dec 2025 → Jan 2026 to Jul 2026; Jan 2026 to Jul 2026 · Updated on site · Calendar-year aggregates

Amenities

No OpenStreetMap amenities mapped for this suburb yet.

Contributes to desirability score · Lifestyle (15%)

Food, shopping, recreation and sport (OpenStreetMap)

Data sources & freshness

  • OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site · Weekly refresh

Parks & reserves

1 parks and public open space in this suburb

  • River Heads ReservePark

Data sources & freshness

Health access

Hospitals & GP clinics
1
Emergency department
Not in suburb
  • River Heads PharmacyAriadne Streetpharmacy

Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (15%)

Hospitals and GP clinics

Data sources & freshness

Socio-economic (SEIFA)

IRSAD decile (2021)
2/10
IRSD decile (2021)
2/10

SEIFA indexes from ABS 2021. Decile 10 = most advantaged / least disadvantaged in Australia.

Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)

Socio-economic advantage (IRSAD decile)

Data sources & freshness

Hazards

Bushfire planning zone
No overlay at centroid

Bushfire overlay checked at suburb centroid via Queensland Bushfire Prone Area mapping.

Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)

Bushfire hazard overlays

Data sources & freshness

  • Hazard planning overlays — State government hazard layers · Period: current · Updated on site

Green cover

Parks & woodland (OSM)
5
Parks (OSM)
1

OpenStreetMap parks and natural woodland features mapped within the suburb boundary.

Contributes to desirability score · Environment (10%)

Parks and green cover (OpenStreetMap)

Data sources & freshness

  • OpenStreetMap green cover features — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site · Weekly refresh

Desirability Index

Desirability score
34.0/100 — Below average
National rank
4593rd in Australia
State rank
1066th in QLD
Peer rank
#239 among Country & regional · Mature suburbs
Cohort rank
#596 among Country & regional suburbs
Data confidence
62%

Data sources & freshness

  • Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived score) · Period: current · Updated on site · Derived from source metrics

Recent changes

  • Drug Offencescrime300
  • Good Order Offencescrime272
  • Other Property Damagecrime231
  • Other Theft (Excl. Unlawful Entry)crime655
  • Traffic And Related Offencescrime273
  • River Heads PharmacyhealthAriadne Streetpharmacy
  • River Heads Reservegovernmentpark

Data sources & freshness

More in Fraser Coast Council

Other suburbs in the same local government area.

Comparable suburbs

Similar population and socio-economic profile in other parts of Queensland.