Shoalhaven, NSW
fishing-harbour · seafood · working-port · surf-coast
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Drive to the coast
3 min
By road
Nearest major hospital
7 min
By road
Airport access
1h 10m
By road
Schools access
Moderate
Average daytime temp
20.7°C
Rainfall
Moderate rainfall
Ulladulla is a working coastal town with a real harbour economy beneath its holiday appeal. Around 14,400 people live here, the median age is 52 and population has grown by roughly 13% since 2016. The harbour, nearby surf beaches and seafood identity are central to the town, while Warden Head and the fossil walk add easy local outings.
Healthcare is strong, with the hospital only a few minutes away, but secondary-school choice and shopping are more limited than in a larger regional city. The local housing figure is around a $1.01 million median and three-bedroom rents near $610 a week. Holiday periods bring more traffic and visitors, though the town’s year-round function as a service and fishing centre keeps it from feeling entirely tourism-led.
The drive to the airport is about 1 hour 10 minutes away and Canberra just under three hours by road, so long-distance travel is manageable but not effortless. Ulladulla suits people who want the coast plus practical local services and do not need a major city nearby. It is less ideal for households seeking a large professional job market or a place that remains quiet through peak summer periods.
5 photos
Photo credits: 3. S O Shattuck · CC BY 2.0; 4. James Dennes · CC BY 2.0; 5. S O Shattuck · CC BY 2.0
Families, tradespeople, healthcare workers, retirees and remote workers who want beaches plus practical services are a good fit. It is particularly useful for people who like the South Coast but do not want every specialist appointment, major grocery shop or school need to require a long drive.
Shopping is only moderate and the town is busy in holiday periods. Canberra is about 2 hours 53 minutes away, so it is outside comfortable daily-commute range. Housing is still substantial at around nine-tenths of the NSW median, and the local economy is smaller than in a regional city.
Visit Ulladulla Harbour
Walk Warden Head Lighthouse
Swim at Mollymook Beach
Explore Gondwana Coast Fossil Walk
Median house price
$1,010,000
9% below the NSW median
Median attached price (townhouse/apartment)
$748,000
Median weekly rent (3-bed house)
$610
≈ $2,643/month
Houses here typically sell from $864,000 to $1,200,000 (25th–75th percentile).
Attached properties typically sell from $656,000 to $821,000.
Sourced from NSW Department of Communities and Justice · January - March 2026 quarter
Healthcare access
Excellent
Shopping & everyday services
Moderate
Supermarket within 10km, limited other retail
Internet connection
Fixed line
Job market by industry
Healthcare — 12.3%
Largest share of local jobs
Employment figures cover this town's wider statistical region, not the town alone — you'll see the same figures for Berry, Bowral, Kangaroo Valley, Robertson and Huskisson.
The score ranks this region against other regions for the same occupation, not against other jobs here — a low score means it isn't a regional stronghold for that field, not that there are no vacancies. Counts online job advertisements, so trades and farm work hired by word of mouth are undercounted, and outside capital cities this is published at a regional level larger than one town.
Ulladulla (UCL 113017) · 2021 Census
Older than the country as a whole: 31.9% are 65 or over against 17.2% nationally, and 15.3% are children against 18.2%. Among households, couples without children outnumber couples with them (52.8% of families against 29.5%), and home ownership is high at 73.9% of dwellings against 65.9% nationally.
Population
14,396
Population growth
+12.5%
Ulladulla (SA2 114011282)
Median age
52 years
Labour force participation
46.7%
Growth is measured across the wider area named under the figure, which can be a different size to the town.
Share of total population in each band — rounding means these won't land on exactly 100%.
Couples are a share of total families; lone-person households are a share of total households — different bases, not one breakdown.
Median personal income
$608
Per week · ≈ $31,616/year
Median family income
$1,426
Per week
Median household income
$1,133
Per week
Personal is one person's income; family and household cover everyone living together — a single-income household will show a lower household figure than its highest earner's personal one. Personal income also covers every resident aged 15 and over, retirees included, so it reads low in a town with an older population even where household income is solid.
Owner-occupied
73.9%
Rented
23.2%
Born in Australia
80.6%
Born overseas
13.2%
Doesn't sum to 100% — people who didn't state a birthplace are excluded rather than redistributed.