📈 Suburbs With the Fastest-Growing Incomes in Northern Territory
Incomes across Australia rose sharply between the 2019-20 and 2023-24 financial years, driven by wage growth, inflation and a tight labour market. But the gains were far from even — some postcodes saw median taxable incomes climb by more than 40%, while others barely moved. This ranking lists the 19 postcodes in Northern Territory where median taxable income grew the fastest, using the ATO's Taxation Statistics 2023-24 (Individuals — Table 8).
Virginia leads with median taxable income rising 29.9% — from $57,144 in 2019-20 to $74,213 in 2023-24. Across the top 19, the midpoint suburb still grew 20.3%. Fast growth tends to cluster in sea-change and tree-change areas that attracted higher earners over the period, resource-town postcodes riding a commodities cycle, and outer-metro suburbs where new higher-income households moved in.
ATO figures are reported by postcode and cover every individual who lodged a tax return, so they describe the whole postcode rather than a single suburb. Only postcodes with a representative suburb of at least 200 residents are included, and the ATO suppresses any postcode with fewer than 200 lodgments. Taxable income differs from ABS Census household and personal income, which can rank areas differently.
Virginia NT 834
Virginia is a spacious rural locality in the Litchfield Municipality, located approximately 31 kilometres southeast of Darwin CBD in the Northern Territory. With a population of 1,811 (2021 Census) across a large 32.6 km² area, it is characterised by acreage properties and a semi-rural lifestyle on the outskirts of Greater Darwin. The suburb sits at a low elevation of 19 metres and experiences the tropical climate typical of the Top End. Virginia has a notably high median income, reflecting the prevalence of defence and government workers in the area.
Holtze NT 829
Holtze is a semi-rural locality situated approximately 25 kilometres south-east of Darwin's CBD within the Litchfield Municipality, part of Greater Darwin. With a population of 1,940 spread across a substantial 41 square kilometres, it is a low-density residential and rural-residential area at an elevation of 39 metres above sea level. The suburb attracts a relatively young population, with a median age of just 31 years, and higher-than-average household incomes reflecting the professional and defence-related workforce common to Darwin's outer suburbs.
Larapinta NT 875
Larapinta is a residential suburb of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory, located approximately 5 kilometres south-west of the town centre. With a population of around 2,370 (2021 Census) and a median age of 33, it is one of the newer suburban developments in Alice Springs. The suburb has a diverse community including a significant Indigenous population (approximately 30%) alongside families attracted by government and service-sector employment in the region.
Nhulunbuy NT 880
Nhulunbuy is a remote regional town on the Gove Peninsula in north-east Arnhem Land, one of the Northern Territory's most isolated urban centres. The 2021 Census population in the dataset is 3,350, with a diverse mix of Aboriginal communities, long-term residents and workers tied to regional services and industry. Originally established around bauxite mining and port infrastructure, it now functions as a broader service hub for the surrounding region. The town has a distinctive tropical-coastal and remote-community character on Aboriginal-owned land.
Ngukurr NT 852
Ngukurr is a remote Aboriginal community situated on the Roper River in the Roper Gulf region of the Northern Territory, approximately 320 kilometres south-east of Katherine and 650 kilometres from Darwin, within the Roper Gulf Regional Council area. With a population of 1,088 recorded in the 2021 Census, Ngukurr is one of the larger remote Aboriginal communities in the Territory, with approximately 93 per cent of residents identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander. The community has a very young age profile — the median age is just 25 — and average household sizes are large at 5.5 persons, reflecting multigenerational living and strong kinship networks. Social housing makes up over 80 per cent of all dwellings.
Nightcliff NT 810
Nightcliff is a popular coastal suburb in the northern suburbs of Darwin, located 8 kilometres from the CBD on the traditional country of the Larrakia people. With a population of 3,884, it features a mix of elevated tropical homes and apartment complexes with sea views over the Timor Sea. The suburb has a relaxed, multicultural character with a slightly younger demographic attracted by the beachside lifestyle.
Gillen NT 870
Gillen is a residential suburb in Alice Springs, Northern Territory, located approximately 2 km south-west of the town centre at an elevation of 578 metres. With a population of around 4,470 and a median age of 33, it is one of Alice Springs' larger and more diverse suburbs. The area is named after Francis James Gillen, a renowned anthropologist who studied Central Australian Aboriginal culture.
Howard Springs NT 835
Howard Springs is a rural-residential locality 29km southeast of Darwin CBD in the Litchfield Municipality. With around 3,150 residents spread across nearly 77 square kilometres, the area is characterised by acreage properties offering a semi-rural lifestyle within commuting distance of Darwin. The suburb has strong Australian and English heritage, with nearly 78% of residents born in Australia.
Berrimah NT 828
Berrimah is an inner eastern suburb of Darwin, Northern Territory, situated approximately 12 kilometres east of the Darwin CBD along the Stuart Highway corridor. With a population of around 1,200 people, the suburb is predominantly known as an industrial and light-commercial precinct, housing distribution centres, trade businesses, and government facilities including the former Berrimah Prison site. It falls under the City of Darwin local government area and borders the residential suburb of Marrara and the Darwin International Airport precinct.
Humpty Doo NT 836
Humpty Doo is a well-established semi-rural suburb in the Litchfield Municipality of the Northern Territory, located approximately 40 kilometres south-east of Darwin along the Arnhem Highway. Home to around 4,313 residents, it is the largest community in the Litchfield Shire and serves as a local service hub for the surrounding rural residential properties and farming land. The suburb is characterised by generous block sizes, lush tropical vegetation, and a distinctly laid-back Top End lifestyle.
Darwin City NT 800
Darwin City is the central business district and urban core of Darwin, the capital of the Northern Territory. Located on a peninsula overlooking Darwin Harbour, the suburb has a population of around 7,150 residents. Darwin City is a vibrant, multicultural hub known for its tropical climate, with distinct wet and dry seasons shaping daily life.
Maningrida NT 822
Maningrida is a remote Aboriginal community in the West Arnhem Regional Council area, located on the northern coast of Arnhem Land approximately 500 kilometres east of Darwin. Home to around 2,518 residents as recorded in the 2021 Census, the community is predominantly Kunibídji and other Aboriginal peoples of Arnhem Land, with Indigenous Australians making up over 91% of the population. Sitting at 30 metres elevation and covering approximately 11 square kilometres of coastal country along the Arafura Sea, Maningrida is one of the most significant and populous Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory.
Katherine East NT 850
Katherine East is a residential suburb of Katherine, a major regional town in the Northern Territory located approximately 320 kilometres southeast of Darwin. With a population of around 3,060, it is one of the larger suburbs within the Katherine township. The area sits at an elevation of 115 metres on the eastern side of the Katherine River and features a tropical savanna climate with distinct wet and dry seasons.
Zuccoli NT 832
Zuccoli is one of Darwin's newest master-planned suburbs, located 22 kilometres southeast of the CBD in the City of Palmerston. With a rapidly growing population exceeding 4,100 residents, it sits on the outer edge of Palmerston's urban expansion. The suburb features modern housing estates with contemporary designs, attracting young families and first-home buyers seeking affordable entry into the Darwin property market.
Stuart Park NT 820
Stuart Park is a compact inner-city suburb of Darwin, situated approximately 3 kilometres north-west of the Darwin CBD within the City of Darwin local government area. With a population of 4,101, the suburb skews young — the median age is just 34 — and attracts a diverse mix of professionals, university students, and recently arrived migrants, reflected in the fact that more than a third of residents were born overseas. Median household income sits at around $2,278 per week, well above the national average, underpinning a predominantly apartment and townhouse housing stock.
Karama NT 812
Karama is an established residential suburb in Darwin's northern suburbs, located 14 kilometres from the CBD. With a population of around 4,800, this 1980s-era suburb sits between McMillans Road and Vanderlin Drive. The community is notably diverse and includes a significant proportion of public housing residents—about 17% compared to the national average of 4%.
Durack NT 830
Durack is a well-established residential suburb in the City of Palmerston, situated approximately 22 kilometres south-east of Darwin CBD in the Northern Territory. With a population of around 3,732 (2021 Census), Durack is one of Palmerston's larger and more mature suburbs, characterised by spacious blocks, tropical landscaping, and a family-friendly atmosphere. The suburb is named after the pioneering Durack pastoral family who played a significant role in Northern Australia's colonial history.
Alpurrurulam NT 4825
Alpurrurulam, also known colloquially as Lake Nash, is a remote Aboriginal community located in the east of the Northern Territory, approximately 1,200 kilometres south-east of Darwin and close to the Queensland border. With a 2021 census population of around 350 people, of whom approximately 95% identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, the community sits on the Lake Nash pastoral property and is one of the most isolated settlements in Australia. The community is officially referred to as Alpurrurulam for administrative purposes, with its original Aboriginal name being Ilperrelhelame.
Tennant Creek NT 860
Tennant Creek is a remote outback town and service hub in the Barkly region of the Northern Territory, situated on the Stuart Highway approximately 990 kilometres south of Darwin and 510 kilometres north of Alice Springs, within the Barkly Regional Council area. With a population of 3,080 and a median age of 33, the town has a significant Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population of 1,714 residents — more than half the total — reflecting its deep connection to Warumungu Country. Household incomes are modest at a median of $1,677 per week, consistent with the challenges facing many remote NT communities.
📊 Methodology
Rankings use the growth in median taxable income between the 2019-20 and 2023-24 financial years, from the ATO Taxation Statistics 2023-24 (Individuals — Table 8, median and average taxable income by postcode). ATO income is reported by postcode, so figures are de-duplicated to one entry per postcode, using the highest-population suburb in Northern Territory as the representative (linked above). Only postcodes with a representative suburb of at least 200 residents are included, and the ATO suppresses any postcode with fewer than 200 lodgments. Ties are broken by population (larger first). Taxable income differs from ABS Census household and personal income.