Atherton flood map & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of Atherton
(Tablelands Regional, QLD) - 94.14 km², mapped from live council and
state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained.
Profile updated 12 September 2026.
Suburb-wide figures; the free map shows which overlays touch your lot.
Constraint readout
94.14 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Atherton's boundary, with the flood, bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top.
Nearby suburbs, nearest first
Atherton at a glance
Schools in and near Atherton
Public school-location data shows availability across the suburb. These figures do not rate schools and do not assign a particular address to a catchment.
Inside the suburb boundary
3 schools providing primary years and 3 providing secondary years. A combined school may be counted in both teaching levels.
Nearest school availability
Primary: inside the suburb
Secondary: inside the suburb
Source: Queensland Government school geographic information. Catchment boundaries can divide a suburb and change over time; use the official catchment finder for a specific address.
How Atherton is zoned
Selling in Atherton? The lot-level zone is the zoning Part 3 of Queensland's Form 2 seller disclosure statement asks for - see our Form 2 planning data guide.
Across its 94.14 km², Atherton is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 33% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 30% is flagged bushfire-prone. There are 9 heritage-listed sites on record, and the dominant land-use zone is Rural. The median lot measures about 903 m² across 4,564 parcels.
Who lives in Atherton
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Atherton suburb boundary itself, not a wider region.
Socio-economic standing
ABS SEIFA 2021 ranks every Australian suburb. Decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth of the country, decile 10 the least.
Score 910, and decile 3 within Queensland. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Atherton's 7,724 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Atherton, the wider ABS statistical area containing Atherton. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Atherton itself.
8,842 in 2001 to 12,472 in 2025, up 41%.
Source: ABS Census 2021 and SEIFA 2021 (Suburbs and Localities), Regional Population (SA2), CC BY 4.0. Small counts are randomly adjusted by the ABS.
Atherton data sources and coverage
“Not mapped” means we hold no source layer for this suburb - never an all-clear.
| Dataset | Coverage | Publisher |
|---|---|---|
| Flood mapping | Mapped | the relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data |
| Bushfire-prone mapping | Mapped | the relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data |
| Zoning | Mapped | the relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data |
| Heritage and environment | Mapped where published | the relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data |
| Aircraft noise contours (ANEF) | Not held | the relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data, Defence |
| Demographics | Available | Australian Bureau of Statistics (2021 Census and SEIFA) |
| School availability | Available | Queensland Government |
Profile last materially updated 12 September 2026. See the methodology and full source list. Source data changes over time and critical decisions should be checked with the responsible authority.
Check a specific Atherton address
See exactly which overlays touch a single property - the interactive map is free. Need it on paper? A full planning PDF is just $9.
Published flood models are held over parts of Atherton. The free check tells you whether one reaches an address; where it does, a Flood Model Report is +$9 with the planning report.
Building or pricing a slab? The $119 geotechnical desktop report covers geology, soils, bores and an indicative AS 2870 site class for a Atherton lot.
See what's in the $9 report →Atherton planning - frequently asked
Is Atherton flood-prone?
About 33% of Atherton falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 36%.
Is Atherton bushfire-prone?
Around 30% of Atherton is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Tablelands Regional average of 40%.
What is the zoning in Atherton?
The dominant planning zone in Atherton is Rural, though the suburb also includes Conservation and Low density residential.
Does Atherton have heritage-listed places?
Atherton has 9 heritage-listed places on record.
What is the typical lot size in Atherton?
Across 4,564 surveyed parcels in Atherton, the median lot size is about 903 m². There are also 646 registered easements mapped in the suburb.
What is the population of Atherton?
At the 2021 Census Atherton had 7,724 usual residents, with a median age of 46 and an average household size of 2.2 people. The wider Atherton statistical area, which contains Atherton, went from 8,842 people in 2001 to 12,472 in 2025, up 41%.
Is Atherton an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Atherton scores 910 and sits in decile 2 of 10 nationally and decile 3 within Queensland (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in Atherton?
Median household income in Atherton was $1,099 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,156 for the typical suburb in Tablelands Regional. Median rent was $280 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,300 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carrington | 5.0 km | 37% | 62% |
| Wongabel | 7.1 km | 38% | 77% |
| East Barron | 7.6 km | 37% | 8% |
| Kairi | 8.9 km | 30% | 8% |
| Tolga | 9.4 km | 36% | 49% |
| Moomin | 11.8 km | 28% | 94% |
| Yungaburra | 12.0 km | 38% | 11% |
| Tinaroo | 12.6 km | 22% | 73% |
| Lake Tinaroo | 12.8 km | 98% | 18% |
| Upper Barron | 13.2 km | 32% | 26% |