What are the best beach lifestyle in New South Wales?

The top-ranked suburbs are Wollongong, Manly, Avalon Beach, Cronulla, Mona Vale, and more, ordered by a category-specific composite score from official government and open data.

lifestyle

Best Beach Lifestyle in New South Wales

Q: What does the index column mean on ranking pages?

The index shows relative strength within the ranking list. 100 is the top-ranked suburb; lower values are further from the leader. It is not an overall suburb rating out of 100.

Coastal suburbs ranked for beach access, outdoor recreation and the lifestyle amenities that define seaside living.

Rank	Suburb	Index
#1	Wollongong	100
#2	Manly	97
#3	Avalon Beach	97
#4	Cronulla	96
#5	Mona Vale	96
#6	Dee Why	96
#7	Maroubra	95
#8	Kiama	94
#9	Freshwater	92
#10	Coogee	91
#11	Newcastle	91
#12	Umina Beach	90
#13	Bateau Bay	90
#14	Narrabeen	89
#15	Bondi Beach	89
#16	Byron Bay	87
#17	Thirroul	87
#18	Warriewood	87
#19	Collaroy	85
#20	Shellharbour	85
#21	Bondi	84
#22	Kingscliff	83
#23	Newport	83
#24	North Bondi	83
#25	Ulladulla	82
#26	North Narrabeen	82
#27	Fairy Meadow	81
#28	Lennox Head	81
#29	Malabar	80
#30	Vaucluse	79
#31	Woonona	79
#32	Gerringong	77
#33	The Entrance	74
#34	Pottsville	74
#35	Clovelly	74
#36	Sawtell	74
#37	Avoca Beach	73
#38	Ettalong Beach	73
#39	Watsons Bay	72
#40	Bronte	72
#41	Redhead	72
#42	Vincentia	72
#43	Merewether	71
#44	Bulli	71
#45	North Wollongong	71
#46	Swansea	70
#47	Shell Cove	69
#48	North Curl Curl	67
#49	Bogangar	66
#50	Toukley	66

Index shows relative strength within this list. 100 is the top-ranked suburb; lower values are further from the leader, not an overall suburb rating.

Last updated 17 August 2026 at 1:39 am AEST

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