Shire profile
Bass Coast Shire is on the Gippsland coast south-east of Melbourne, between Western Port and Anderson Inlet. It takes in Phillip Island (Cowes, Rhyll, Newhaven, Cape Woolamai), San Remo, the Western Port towns of Grantville, Corinella and Coronet Bay, and on the south coast Kilcunda, Wonthaggi, Cape Paterson and Inverloch, with farmland inland. The council's offices are in Wonthaggi. The council describes the shire as a popular holiday destination, with over 180 kilometres of coastline.
New to these terms? Read them in plain English
- Local Government Area (LGA)
- The official area a council governs.
- Estimated Resident Population (ERP)
- The official population count for an area.
- Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS)
- The national statistics agency behind population figures.
The area at a glance
- Population (ERP, 30 June 2025)
- 44,377ABS Estimated Resident Population (preliminary). This counts residents only. The council's budget says the population grows to around 80,000 in summer.
- Area
- 865.8 km²ABS. The VEC's council page gives 865 km².
- Population density
- About 51 people per km²ABS population ÷ ABS area (our calculation). Most people live in the towns.
- Wards
- 3 (Bunurong, Island, Western Port), with 3 councillors each
- Council group (LGPRF)
- Large Shire
- Rateable properties
- 34,861 assessments (2026–27 budget)
- Traditional Owners
- The Bunurong peopleThe council acknowledges the Bunurong as the Traditional Owners and Custodians of the lands and waters.
Suburbs & postcodes
- Adams Estate3984
- Almurta3979
- Anderson3995
- Archies Creek3995
- Bass3991
- Cape Paterson3995
- Cape Woolamai3925
- Churchill Island3925
- Corinella3984
- Coronet Bay3984
- Cowes3922
- Dalyston3992
- Glen Alvie3979
- Glen Forbes3990
- Grantville3984
- Harmers Haven3995
- Inverloch (part)3996
- Jam Jerrup3984
- Kernot3979
- Kilcunda3995
- Kongwak (part)3951
- Krowera (part)3945
- Lance Creek3995
- Lang Lang (part)3984
- Loch (part)3945
- Newhaven3925
- North Wonthaggi3995
- Outtrim (part)3951
- Pioneer Bay3984
- Pound Creek (part)3996
- Queensferry3984
- Rhyll3923
- Ryanston3992
- San Remo3925
- Silverleaves3922
- Smiths Beach3922
- South Dudley3995
- St Clair3995
- Summerlands3922
- Sunderland Bay3922
- Sunset Strip3922
- Surf Beach3922
- Tenby Point3984
- The Gurdies3984
- Ventnor3922
- Wattle Bank3995
- West Creek3992
- Wimbledon Heights3922
- Wonthaggi3995
- Woodleigh3945
- Woolamai3995
On the map
The shaded area is the official Local Government Area boundary.
We built the suburb list from the official Vicmap locality boundaries, keeping each locality with at least 5% of its area inside the council boundary and marking it '(part)' when part of it lies in a neighbouring council: Inverloch about 85% inside (the rest in South Gippsland), Krowera about 93%, Loch about 46%, Lang Lang about 31% (most of it in Cardinia), Kongwak about 27%, Outtrim about 24% and Pound Creek about 16% (the rest of each in South Gippsland). Coastal localities can fall a few per cent short only because their boundaries include water. Postcodes come from the CSA's suburb and postcode table for Bass Coast, and from Vicmap postcode boundaries for Queensferry. The shaded area on the map is the council boundary from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ASGS 2025) — the same boundary the ABS area and population figures are measured on.
Sources — check it yourself
- ABS — Regional population 2024–25, data cube 32180DS0002 Table 2 (Victoria) · ERP 30 Jun 2025
- ABS — Regional population, latest release · Released Mar 2026
- Bass Coast Shire Council — Annual Budget 2026–27, §2.1 Snapshot of Bass Coast and §8.1.1(d) assessments (PDF) · 2026–27
- Victorian Electoral Commission — Bass Coast Shire Council (3 wards, council area) · Sep 2026
- Bass Coast Shire Council — Contact Us (Acknowledgement of Country) (read from an archived copy) · Sep 2026
- Crime Statistics Agency (CSA) — LGA Recorded Offences, Table 03 (suburb and postcode by LGA) · Jul 2025 to Jun 2026
- DataVic — Vicmap Admin locality polygons · Sep 2026
- Local Government Victoria — LGPRF 2020–2025 Full Council Data Set (council group: Large Shire) · 2024–25
Figures are current as at the dates shown and may change — always confirm with the linked source. See the notice at the bottom of the page for full details and how to report a correction.