River Heads flood map & planning overlays
73.4% flood-mapped, on 2,000 m² lots, mostly zoned for conservation.
Most lots here are flood-mapped. The free check shows how much of one lot the overlay covers.
Free map preview, then PDF reports from $9 - about the price of an iced latte on a public holiday.
A planning-constraint profile of River Heads
(Fraser Coast Regional, QLD) - 20.7 km², mapped from live council and
state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained.
Profile updated 7 November 2026.
Constraint readout
20.7 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to River Heads's boundary, with the flood, bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top. Magenta is where aircraft were observed in the sampled period, brightest below 3,000 ft.
Nearby suburbs, nearest first
Aircraft noise and flight paths over River Heads
The ANEF contour is a published planning forecast and observed overflight is what a sampled tracking feed recorded - neither describes any individual property.
Observed overflight - sampled 4 Sep to 7 Nov 2026
typical observed square 0 a day
Night movements: observed, lowest 1,000 ft - night is sampled as often as day, but night traffic is light, so this is a floor and no rate can be put on it.
How this is measured
Traffic is sampled rather than watched continuously, so every figure is a floor: aircraft not captured between samples are not represented. Rates are per 500 m square - the busiest square in the suburb, not a count of flights over the suburb - and a square is only rated where enough traffic was seen to measure it. Altitudes are above mean sea level. Flight paths change with runway use, weather, season and airspace design. This is a record of observed traffic; it is not a noise contour and not a planning control.
River Heads at a glance
Schools in and near River Heads
Public school-location data shows availability across the suburb; it does not rate schools or assign any individual address to a catchment.
Inside the suburb boundary
0 schools providing primary years and 0 providing secondary years. A combined school may be counted in both teaching levels.
Nearest school availability
Primary: 7.54 km from the suburb boundary
Secondary: 7.54 km from the suburb boundary
Source: Queensland Government school geographic information. Catchment boundaries can divide a suburb and change over time.
Which school zone is a River Heads address in? Check an address with our free school zone checker.
How River Heads is zoned
Selling in River Heads? 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 20.7 km², River Heads is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 73% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 15% is flagged bushfire-prone. The dominant land-use zone is Environmental Management and Conservation. The median lot measures about 2,000 m² across 1,427 parcels.
Who lives in River Heads
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the River Heads 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 892, and decile 2 within Queensland. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of River Heads's 2,044 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Booral - River Heads, the wider ABS statistical area containing River Heads. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than River Heads itself.
2,699 in 2001 to 7,887 in 2025, up 192%.
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.
River Heads 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 |
| Observed flight paths | Observed | adsb.lol, under the Open Database License |
| Demographics | Available | Australian Bureau of Statistics (2021 Census and SEIFA) |
| School availability | Available | Queensland Government |
Profile last materially updated 7 November 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 River Heads 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.
See what's in the $9 report →Aircraft have been seen below 3,000 ft over about 83% of River Heads. The report's Aircraft Overflight page narrows that to the address itself: how many aircraft a day, how low, and at what heights.
Published flood models are held over parts of River Heads. The free check tells you whether one reaches an address; where it does, a Flood Model Report is +$9 with the planning report.
Moving here? The Liveability section adds walking times from the address to schools, parks, shops and transport, and the school zones it sits in (+$9 with the planning report).
Building or pricing a slab? The $119 geotechnical desktop report covers geology, soils, bores and the indicative soil reactivity range to expect for a River Heads lot.
River Heads planning - frequently asked
Is River Heads flood-prone?
About 73% of River Heads falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 46%. Published flood models are held over parts of River Heads; the free check on the Flood Model Report page says whether one reaches a given address.
Is River Heads bushfire-prone?
Around 15% of River Heads is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Fraser Coast Regional average of 68%.
Is River Heads under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed below 3,000 ft over about 83% of River Heads, and over about 94% at any altitude up to 10,000 ft, in the period sampled (4 Sep 2026 to 7 Nov 2026). The lowest measured aircraft was at 500 ft, with an average of 3,000 ft. At the busiest point in the suburb about 2 aircraft a day were recorded passing over one 500 m square. Traffic is sampled rather than watched continuously and flight paths change with runway use, weather and season; the ANEF contour is the planning instrument.
What is the zoning in River Heads?
The dominant planning zone in River Heads is Environmental Management and Conservation, though the suburb also includes Rural and Low Density Residential.
Does River Heads have heritage-listed places?
No heritage-listed places are on record within River Heads.
What is the typical lot size in River Heads?
Across 1,427 surveyed parcels in River Heads, the median lot size is about 2,000 m². There are also 68 registered easements mapped in the suburb.
What is the population of River Heads?
At the 2021 Census River Heads had 2,044 usual residents, with a median age of 54 and an average household size of 2.4 people. The wider Booral - River Heads statistical area, which contains River Heads, went from 2,699 people in 2001 to 7,887 in 2025, up 192%.
Is River Heads an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), River Heads scores 892 and sits in decile 2 of 10 nationally and decile 2 within Queensland (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in River Heads?
Median household income in River Heads was $1,243 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,124 for the typical suburb in Fraser Coast Regional. Median rent was $350 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,400 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Booral | 6.7 km | 26% | 75% |
| Bunya Creek | 8.4 km | 85% | 46% |
| Tandora | 10.9 km | 80% | 62% |
| Wondunna | 11.5 km | 24% | 56% |
| Great Sandy Strait | 13.2 km | 52% | 5% |
| Kawungan | 13.3 km | 11% | 20% |
| Urangan | 13.7 km | 41% | 26% |
| Sunshine Acres | 13.8 km | 46% | 92% |
| Nikenbah | 13.8 km | 38% | 38% |
| Torquay | 13.9 km | 33% | 3% |