NT · Darwin Council
Nightcliff, 0810
Current weather
25.9°CClear sky
81% humidity · 10.5 km/h wind · 28.8° / 23.2° today · 1.3 mm rain
Updated
Desirability score
- Premium
- Transport
- Green space
- Schools
- Shops
Suburb profile
Nightcliff hums with inner-city energy, a mid-sized suburb where there is always something happening nearby. Set in the wider countryside, it offers distance from the capital and a strong sense of place. Tree-lined streets and leafy pockets give the suburb a noticeably green, settled character.
Residents are mostly families and working professionals, with a strong presence of young families throughout. Local shops and services cover the basics well, with more choice a short trip into neighbouring suburbs. Outdoor life is easy here, with generous parks and room for kids, dogs and weekend strolls.
Reasonable public transport access helps with commuting and getting around locally. Housing carries a premium, but residents tend to feel the lifestyle justifies the commitment.
On the desirability index, the suburb sits around average overall, mainly because housing affordability and local dining and lifestyle amenities lag similar metro suburbs, despite relative strength in parks and green space and community and employment.
Population
- Population
- 3,884
- Median age
- 34
- Median household income / week
- $2,051
- Dwelling vacancy
- 10.1%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 171 of 1,695
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,972
- Employment rate
- 71.8%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 112 / 137 / 837
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)
- 3,013
- Against the person
- 1,009
- Against property
- 2,004
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 775.7
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 4 residents
- State safety percentile
- 33.7th (lower crime is better)
- Decrease (daily rate, partial year)
- -31.9%
Reported offences are running lower than the same point last year.
Reported offences by period
Most common offence types
- 021 Serious Assault610
- 023 Common Assault150
- 061 Burglary - Dwelling (House Break-Ins), Actual129
- 07* Other Theft961
- 11 Property Damage Offences756
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Crime rate and year-on-year trend
Data sources & freshness
- NT Police crime statistics (reporting region / SA2) — Northern Territory Police · Period: Jan 2025 to Dec 2025 → Jan 2026 to Jul 2026; Jan 2026 to Jul 2026 · Updated on site · Monthly CSV; regional totals where suburb-level data unavailable
Schools & preschools
- Schools & preschools
- 2
- Median school ICSEA (2 schools)
- 1,024.5
- Nightcliff High SchoolSecondary
- Nightcliff Primary SchoolPrimary
Contributes to desirability score · Education (15%)
School and preschool counts, median school ICSEA
Data sources & freshness
- ACARA school locations — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · Period: 2025 · Updated on site · Annual ACARA release
- School ICSEA scores — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · Period: 2025 · Updated on site · Annual ACARA release
Public transport
11 public transport stops in this suburb
- 11 Bougainvilia Street
- 27 Bougainvilia Street
- 47 Bougainvilia Street
- Aralia St at Shops
- Aralia St before Jacaranda Ave
Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (15%)
Public transport stop coverage
Data sources & freshness
- GTFS public transport stops — State transport authority open-data feeds · Period: current · Updated on site · GTFS static feed
Amenities
64 nearby amenities within ~1.5 km
- Bbq (2)
- Jacaranda BBQBbq
- Bench (3)
- Bicycle Parking (5)
- Aralia Street (090)Bus stop
- Aralia Street (222)Bus stop
- Bougainvilia St (089)Bus stop
- Bougainvilia Street (087)Bus stop
- Bougainvilia Street (088)Bus stop
- Bougainvilia Street (223)Bus stop
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
Parks & reserves
5 parks and public open space in this suburb
- Alf Blaser ParkPark
- Grevillea ParkPark
- Kurrajong ParkPark
- Topsy Secretary Juwaning ParkPark
Data sources & freshness
- Parks & reserves — State government + ABS LGA boundaries · Period: current · Updated on site
Socio-economic (SEIFA)
- IRSAD decile (2021)
- 9/10
- IRSD decile (2021)
- 8/10
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
Childcare
1 childcare service from OpenStreetMap
- Nightcliff Community Early Learning CentreCunjevoi Crescentchildcare
Contributes to desirability score · Education (15%)
Childcare centre count
Data sources & freshness
- Childcare services — OpenStreetMap · Period: current · Updated on site
Green cover
- Parks & woodland (OSM)
- 27
- Parks (OSM)
- 7
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
- 48.3/100 — Average
- State standing
- Top 9% of Northern Territory's suburbs
- National rank
- 1972nd in Australia
- State rank
- 13th in NT
- Peer rank
- #10 among Metro Darwin · Established suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #11 among Metro Darwin suburbs
- Data confidence
- 80%
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived score) · Period: current · Updated on site · Derived from source metrics
Recent changes
- 021 Serious Assaultcrime610
- 023 Common Assaultcrime150
- 061 Burglary - Dwelling (House Break-Ins), Actualcrime129
- 07* Other Theftcrime961
- 11 Property Damage Offencescrime756
- Nightcliff Community Early Learning CentrechildcareCunjevoi Crescentchildcare
- Alf Blaser Parkgovernmentpark
- Grevillea Parkgovernmentpark
- Kurrajong Parkgovernmentpark
- Topsy Secretary Juwaning Parkgovernmentpark
Data sources & freshness
- Childcare services — OpenStreetMap · Updated on site
- NT Police crime statistics (reporting region / SA2) — Northern Territory Police · Updated on site · Monthly CSV; regional totals where suburb-level data unavailable
- Parks & reserves — State government + ABS LGA boundaries · Updated on site
More in Darwin Council
Other suburbs in the same local government area.
Comparable suburbs
Similar population and socio-economic profile in other parts of Northern Territory.