suburb.guide

NT · Alice Springs Council

Ross, 0873

Est. population · Jun 2025

937

Growth (1 yr)

+0.6%

Growth (5 yr)

+8.9%

Median age

39

Median income

$1,881/wk

Employment rate

68.4%

University qualified

21.5%

Work from home

4.8%

Languages at home

14.5%non-English

Most common: Sinhalese, Australian Indigenous languages, French

2021 Census · usual residence

Desirability score

35/100
Below average

Top 46% of Northern Territory's suburbs

Verified 88% confidence

How this score is calculated
  • Holiday parks
  • Remote
What Ross is known for: Holiday parks, Remote

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Suburb Guide, “Ross, NT Suburb Guide”, updated 1 October 2026, https://suburb.guide/nt/ross-nt

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Suburb profile

Ross is a remote locality in the Northern Territory, in Alice Springs Council.

Local amenities is an exceptional strength, well above typical levels for remote localities. Local school ICSEA scores are among the highest in the peer group. Socio-economic advantage is among the highest in the peer group, and university qualifications are among the highest in the peer group, and population growth is an exceptional strength, with population growth 115% above the peer median. Public transport coverage is sparse, with public transport 33% below the peer median.

Overall, the suburb suits people prioritising school quality and socio-economic advantage over public transport.

Generated from the official metrics on this page. It can omit nuance or contain errors — check the tables and source notes before relying on it.

Strengths and weaknesses

Remote locality · compared with remote localities in Northern Territory (174)

Strengths

  • Local school ICSEA scores are among the highest in the peer group
  • Socio-economic advantage is among the highest in the peer group
  • University qualifications are among the highest in the peer group
  • Population growth is a relative strength
  • Local amenity access is stronger than in most comparable places

Weaknesses

  • Public transport coverage is sparse

What stands out

Nothing distinctive beyond the usual profile.

Who it suits

  • Families
  • Professionals
  • Retirees
  • Students
  • Budget buyers

Housing, growth and risk

How Ross compares

A quick read of housing, growth, livability, and risk

Median house price

—

No data available

Median rent (Census)

$300/wk

2021 Census median weekly rent

Population (ERP)

937

+0.6% annual growth

Dwelling vacancy

8.4%

Census unoccupied dwellings

Livability profile

Desirability pillars vs the peer median (50th percentile)

How it compares

Relative standing using percentiles, ranks, and national deciles

Desirability

#5

among Country & regional · Emerging

Pop. growth

39th

percentile in NT

Rented dwellings

42%

2021 Census tenure

Advantage (IRSAD)

6/10

national SEIFA decile

School ICSEA

80th

percentile among schools with ICSEA

Population growth

Recent ERP change over 1 and 5 years

Housing mix

Dwelling types from the 2021 Census

Risks & flags

Quick scan — open a section below for full context

Living here

Desirability

Ranks & confidence
Desirability score
35.0/100 — Below average
State standing
Top 46% of Northern Territory's suburbs
National rank
5619th in Australia
State rank
74th in NT
Peer rank
#5 among Country & regional · Emerging suburbs
Cohort rank
#20 among Country & regional suburbs
Data confidence
88%

Data sources & freshness

  • Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived) · current · Updated

Population

Estimated resident population

937(June 2025)

+0.6% annual · +8.9% over 5 years · 39th percentile in NT

Growth figures & methodology
Annual growth
+0.6%
5-year growth
+8.9%
Change in 1 year
+6
Change in 5 years
+77
Growth rank in NT
39th percentile

ABS Estimated Resident Population allocated to this suburb from SA2-level data. Not an official ABS suburb count.

Methodology

Figures are allocated from ABS Estimated Resident Population at Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2), using 2021 Census share within overlapping SA2 regions. Where Census data is unavailable, area overlap is used instead.

The dashed chart line is a simple growth-trend estimate to June 2030 (~1,000), extrapolated at +1.4% average annual growth since 2011. It is illustrative only — not an official ABS forecast.

2021 Census figures

2021 Census

Population
806
Median age
39
Median household income / week
$1,881
Dwelling vacancy
8.4%
Unoccupied private dwellings
28 of 334
Median monthly mortgage
$2,167
Median weekly rent (2021 Census)
$300
Tenure (owned / mortgaged / rented)
34.3% / 24.1% / 41.6%
Employment rate
68.4%
Travel to work (WFH / public transport / car)
4.8% / 0% / 73.9%
Walked or cycled to work
8.5%
Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
144 / 42 / 40 (+ 64 other)

Contributes to desirability score · Community (12%) · Accessibility (12%) · Future Growth (6%)

Employment, household income and owned-outright tenure (2021 Census) Work-from-home and public-transport commute shares (2021 Census) Five-year population change as a healthy-growth band, not a boom bonus

Data sources & freshness

  • 2021 Census — General Community Profile (including method of travel to work and educational attainment) — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Updated

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

  • Estimated Resident Population — Australian Bureau of Statistics · 2025 · Updated · SA2 ERP allocated to suburb boundaries

Qualifications

21.5% of adults have a university degree, compared with 21.4% across Northern Territory. 21.8% have a trade or vocational qualification.

  • University qualified21.5% · 21.4% NT
  • Diploma qualified7.1% · 7.5% NT
  • Trade / vocational21.8% · 16.1% NT
  • Year 12 or below49.6% · 55% NT

Highest qualification field

Main field of the highest non-school qualification (2021 Census).

  • Engineering and related technologies21.8%
  • Society and culture17.3%
  • Management and commerce14.2%
  • Health13.1%
  • Architecture and building8.7%
  • Education7.3%
How these groups are defined
MeasureDefinition
University qualifiedBachelor degree or higher
Diploma qualifiedAdvanced Diploma / Diploma
Trade / vocationalCertificate III + IV
Year 12Year 12 as highest attainment
Below Year 12Year 11 / 10 / 9 or below

People aged 15 years and over, 2021 Census. University, diploma and trade shares match ABS highest educational attainment (HEAP). Year 12 and below Year 12 are combined in the chart because the General Community Profile reports school-only attainment as a residual.

Contributes to desirability score · Community (12%)

University qualifications from the 2021 Census

Data sources & freshness

  • 2021 Census — General Community Profile (including method of travel to work and educational attainment) — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Updated

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

Tax & income

Median taxable income (2023–24)
$70,302

65th percentile in NT · +20% vs Australia

Median salary / wages (2023–24)
$75,000

68th percentile in NT · +15% vs Australia

Residents with rental investments
21.0%

91st percentile in NT · +52% vs Australia

Median super balance (2023–24)
$55,756

65th percentile in NT · -12% vs Australia

Residents with business income
7.0%

53rd percentile in NT · -33% vs Australia

Australian Taxation Office Taxation Statistics 2023–24, individuals Table 25. Figures describe taxpayers who live in postcode 0873 — not a suburb-level official statistic. Rental investment is the share of local taxpayers reporting rental income or loss, not the share of local properties owned by investors.

Counts, net rent & state comparison
Taxpayers in this postcode
895
Taxpayers reporting net rent
187
Median net rent
-$610
Taxpayers reporting business income
66
Taxable income vs state median
+4%
Salary / wages vs state median
+5%
Rental investment vs state median
+50%
Super vs state median
+4%
Business income vs state median
0%

Percentiles rank this postcode among unique postcodes in NT, so suburbs that share a postcode are not counted twice. Dollar figures are compared with Australia-wide ATO medians from the same release. Median net rent is among taxpayers who reported the rent label and can be negative.

Data sources & freshness

  • Taxation Statistics 2023–24 — individuals by postcode (Table 25) — Australian Taxation Office · Updated · Annual release; taxpayer residential postcode, not suburb boundary

Community & culture

14.5% speak a language other than English at home; 24.6% born overseas

Language at home
608 English only · 103 other
Non-English at home
14.5%
Born overseas
175 (24.6%)
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
56 (6.9%)
Australian citizens
629
Languages spoken at home (other than English)
8

Top languages other than English

Share of residents who speak a language other than English at home (2021 Census).

  • Sinhalese12 · 29.3%
  • Australian Indigenous languages8 · 19.5%
  • French4 · 9.8%
  • Portuguese4 · 9.8%
  • Tagalog4 · 9.8%
  • Filipino3 · 7.3%
  • Malayalam3 · 7.3%
  • Vietnamese3 · 7.3%

Religion

42.7%Most common religion · Christianity

Christianity is the most common response at 42.7%, while 39.8% reported no religion.

MeasureSuburbState
No religion39.8%38.1%
Christianity42.7%40.5%
Other / not stated17.5%21.5%
Christian denominations
DenominationSuburbState
Catholic22.8%16.9%
Anglican5.5%6%
Christian (not further defined)4%3.2%
Uniting Church3.2%3.7%
Lutheran2.9%2.3%

2021 Census — languages spoken at home, birthplace, Indigenous status, and religious affiliation (usual residence). Religion is optional on the Census form.

Data sources & freshness

  • 2021 Census — General Community Profile (including method of travel to work and educational attainment) — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Updated

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

Crime & safety

Figures are for the Alice Springs reporting region, not this suburb alone.

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

Offence counts & rates
Total offences (Jan 2026 to Sep 2026)
3,174
Against the person
1,330
Against property
1,844
Rate per 1,000 residents (annualised)
122.9
State crime-rate percentile
73.1th (higher = more crime)
Decrease (daily rate, partial year)
-39.5%

Most common offence types

  • 021 Serious Assault
  • 023 Common Assault
  • 061 Burglary - Dwelling (House Break-Ins), Actual
  • 07* Other Theft
  • 11 Property Damage Offences

Contributes to desirability score · Safety (22%)

Crime rate, offences against the person, year-on-year trend and recorded road crash rates

Data sources & freshness

  • NT Police crime statistics (reporting region / SA2) — Northern Territory Police · Jan 2025 to Dec 2025 → Jan 2026 to Sep 2026; Jan 2026 to Sep 2026 · Updated · Monthly CSV; regional totals where suburb-level data unavailable

Family & Lifestyle

Schools & preschools

Schools within 2 km
1
Median school ICSEA
1,085
Median ICSEA percentile
80th
School list
  • Alice Springs Steiner SchoolCombined · Independent · ICSEA 1085 · 80th percentile · LBOTE 15% · 162 students · Top SEA quarter 45%View on My School →

Contributes to desirability score · Education (14%)

Median school ICSEA first, then school and catchment counts

Data sources & freshness

Public transport

2 public transport stops in this suburb

  • Palm Cct after Bonanni Cct
  • Palm Cct after Palm Pl

Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (12%)

Public transport stops per 1,000 residents and walkability

Data sources & freshness

Amenities

9 mapped amenities

3 caravan parks

Local character & venue list

Local character

  • Limited walkable amenities nearby
Walkability proxy
3/100
Cafés per 1,000 residents
0
Food & drink per 1,000 residents
0
Parks per 1,000 residents
0
Wineries & breweries(1)
  • Alice Springs Brewing Co.Brewery
Camping & holiday parks(3)
  • Alice Springs Heritage Caravan ParkCaravan park

    40 Ragonesi Road

  • Discovery Parks - Alice SpringsCaravan park

    25 Palm Place, Ross

  • G'day Mate Tourist ParkCaravan park
Places to stay(5)
  • Guest house (4)
  • Outback In Alice Frontier HomesteadGuest house

Names and addresses from OpenStreetMap. Unnamed venues show as their type (e.g. Cafe). Transport stops are summarised by type rather than listed individually. Campgrounds, beaches, wineries and local trails are included when they sit inside the suburb boundary.

Contributes to desirability score · Lifestyle (12%)

Food, shopping, recreation and sport per 1,000 residents (OpenStreetMap)

Data sources & freshness

  • Local amenity insights — Suburb Guide (derived) · current · Updated
  • OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · current · Updated

Green cover

Green cover of suburb area
0%
Woodland / forest cover
0%
Parks & woodland features (OSM)
0
Parks (OSM)
0
Typical summer maximum
36°C

Green cover is the share of this suburb's boundary overlapping OpenStreetMap parks, woodland and forest polygons — not a satellite tree-canopy product. Summer maximum is the WorldClim / Open-Meteo seasonal normal already collected for Weather.

Contributes to desirability score · Environment (12%)

Tree canopy first, then green-cover area and parks per 1,000

Data sources & freshness

  • OpenStreetMap green cover and tree canopy — OpenStreetMap contributors · current · Updated · Park/woodland polygons intersected with suburb boundaries

Health access

Nearest hospital
Alice Springs Hospital (5.0 km)
Nearest hospital type
Hospital
Nearest hospital emergency
Emergency department
GP clinics in suburb
0

GP clinic counts from OpenStreetMap. Bulk-billing figures only include clinics tagged in OSM (sparse and unofficial — not a Medicare list).

Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (12%)

Hospitals, GPs and aged care

Data sources & freshness

NDIS participation

NDIS participants (31 March 2026)
23
Participants per 1,000 residents
24.5

Active NDIS participants allocated from NDIA Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2, ASGS 2016) counts to this suburb boundary. Not an official suburb-level NDIS figure · as at 31 March 2026.

For NDIS spend and service-demand exploration by SA2 or postcode, see the Care Sector Demand Map.

Data sources & freshness

Weather

Typical conditions by season for suburbs in the same ~44 km climate area. Rainfall totals are summed from monthly WorldClim layers; rainy-day counts are approximate.

Summer (Dec–Feb)

Usual max / min
36° / 21°
Rainfall
117 mm · ~15 rainy days

Autumn (Mar–May)

Usual max / min
29° / 14°
Rainfall
78 mm · ~10 rainy days

Winter (Jun–Aug)

Usual max / min
21° / 5°
Rainfall
37 mm · ~5 rainy days

Spring (Sep–Nov)

Usual max / min
31° / 15°
Rainfall
56 mm · ~7 rainy days

Contributes to desirability score · Lifestyle (12%)

Temperature and humidity comfort

Data sources & freshness

  • Seasonal climate normals — WorldClim 2.1 · Updated

Future & Planning

Hazards

Bushfire planning zone
No overlay at centroid

Bushfire overlay checked at suburb centroid via state planning hazard mapping. Flood cover uses inundation polygons against the suburb boundary where published.

Contributes to desirability score · Safety (22%)

Bushfire and flood hazard overlays

Data sources & freshness

Politics & representation

Federal electorate
Lingiari
Member of Parliament
Marion SCRYMGOUR (Australian Labor Party)
Results from
2025 federal election
Electorate enrolment (2025)
76,817
Turnout (2025)
62.2%
Swing since 2022 (2025)
+6.5 pp toward Labor

Two-party preferred (2025)

Coalition 41.9%Labor 58.1%

Estimated suburb voting profile

Estimated from 8 nearby ordinary polling places (up to 1044.6 km away).

Coalition 46.3%Labor 53.7%

4.5 percentage points more Coalition-leaning than the electorate

Estimated swing since 2022: +6.6 pp toward Labor

Nearest polling places

  • IlparpaLabor 36.2% · Coalition 63.8% TPP (2025)4.7 km away
  • Alice SpringsLabor 64.0% · Coalition 36.0% TPP (2025)5.4 km away
  • SadadeenLabor 64.2% · Coalition 35.8% TPP (2025)5.4 km away
  • GillenLabor 54.8% · Coalition 45.2% TPP (2025)5.7 km away
  • BraitlingLabor 53.2% · Coalition 46.8% TPP (2025)8.5 km away

Federal electorate from AEC federal division boundaries (2025 redistribution). Division-level results are official AEC figures from the latest general election, with by-election updates where applicable. The estimated suburb profile blends up to eight nearest ordinary polling booths in the same electorate using inverse-distance weighting from the suburb centroid — an approximation, not official AEC data. Nearest polling places are shown for reference.

Data sources & freshness

Socio-economic

IRSAD decile (2021)
6/10
IRSD decile (2021)
4/10

ABS Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA), 2021 release — the latest available, derived from the 2021 Census. Deciles rank suburbs nationally from 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest).

What do IRSAD and IRSD measure?

IRSAD — Index of Relative Socio-economic Advantage and Disadvantage. Combines indicators of advantage (e.g. high income, skilled occupations) and disadvantage. Higher decile = more advantaged relative to other Australian areas.

IRSD — Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage. Focuses on disadvantage only (e.g. low income, unemployment, limited education). Higher decile = less disadvantage nationally.

A new SEIFA edition typically follows each census; the ABS has not announced a release date beyond 2021.

Contributes to desirability score · Community (12%)

Socio-economic advantage (IRSAD and IRSD deciles)

Data sources & freshness

Compare with

Similar suburbs to weigh up side by side — scores, safety, schools, and lifestyle.

More in Alice Springs Council

Other suburbs in the same local government area.

Comparable suburbs

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