QLD · Townsville Council
Saunders Beach, 4818
Current weather
21.6°CMainly clear
88% humidity · 4.7 km/h wind · 26.2° / 15.9° today · 0 mm rain
Updated
Desirability score
- High desirability
- Green suburb
Suburb profile
Saunders Beach offers a slower smaller community life in Townsville, with open surrounds and a close-knit community feel. Set in the wider countryside, it offers distance from the capital and a strong sense of place. The landscape itself is part of the lifestyle: open paddocks, big skies and room to breathe.
An older demographic makes it especially popular with retirees, with multiple generations sharing the same neighbourhood. Life here is grounded in local routine rather than big-city choice, and that is part of the charm. Housing remains accessible compared with many parts of the state.
Tree-lined streets and established homes set the tone, with little pressure to reinvent the neighbourhood.
On the desirability index, the suburb sits below average overall, with local dining and lifestyle amenities and housing affordability the main drags compared with similar regional towns. Limited access to some essential local services also trimmed the result.
Population
- Population
- 385
- Median age
- 49
- Median household income / week
- $1,483
- Dwelling vacancy
- 19%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 39 of 205
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,400
- Employment rate
- 58%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 25 / 11 / 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.
Crime & safety
- Total offences (Jan 2026 to Jul 2026)
- 15
- Against the person
- 3
- Against property
- 8
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 39
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 128 residents
- State safety percentile
- 49.5th (lower crime is better)
- Increase (daily rate, partial year)
- +6.9%
Reported offences are running lower than the same point last year.
Reported offences by period
Most common offence types
- Drug Offences173
- Other Property Damage123
- Other Theft (Excl. Unlawful Entry)217
- Traffic And Related Offences159
- Unlawful Entry168
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
7 nearby amenities within ~1.5 km
- Bbq (2)
- Bus stop
- Parking
- Playground
- Public toilets
- Sports field
Names and addresses from OpenStreetMap. Unnamed venues show as their type (e.g. Cafe).
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
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
- SEIFA 2021 (IRSAD / IRSD) — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Period: 2021 · Updated on site · 2021 SEIFA release
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)
- 1
- 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
- 24.7/100 — Below average
- National rank
- 6115th in Australia
- State rank
- 1413th in QLD
- Peer rank
- #411 among Country & regional · Mature suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #897 among Country & regional suburbs
- Data confidence
- 58%
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived score) · Period: current · Updated on site · Derived from source metrics
Recent changes
- Bbqamenitiesbbq
- Bbqamenitiesbbq
- Bus stopamenitiesbus_stop
- Parkingamenitiesparking
- Playgroundamenitiesplayground
- Public toiletsamenitiestoilets
- Sports fieldamenitiespitch
- Drug Offencescrime173
- Other Property Damagecrime123
- Other Theft (Excl. Unlawful Entry)crime217
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
- QPS Online Crime Map — Queensland Police Service · Updated on site · Calendar-year aggregates
More in Townsville Council
Other suburbs in the same local government area.
Comparable suburbs
Similar population and socio-economic profile in other parts of Queensland.