City profile
Merri-bek is a municipality in Melbourne's inner north, between 4 and 14 kilometres from the city centre. The council describes its borders as Moonee Ponds Creek to the west, Merri Creek to the east, Park Street to the south and the Western Ring Road to the north. It was formed in 1994 from the former cities of Brunswick and Coburg and the southern part of Broadmeadows. Until 26 September 2022 it was called Moreland City Council; the State Government approved the new name after a council consultation, and 'Merri-bek' was one of three names offered by the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation. Its main office is the Coburg Civic Centre.
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)
- 189,108ABS Estimated Resident Population (preliminary). The council's own profile page still quotes an estimate for 2019 (185,767).
- Area
- 51 km²ABS. The council gives 50.9 km².
- Population density
- About 3,700 people per km²ABS: 3,711.5 per km².
- Wards
- 11, with one councillor each
- Council group (LGPRF)
- Metropolitan
- Former name
- Moreland City Council (until 26 September 2022)Some council web services still use the former moreland.vic.gov.au address.
- Traditional Owners
- The Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung peopleAs acknowledged by the council.
Suburbs & postcodes
- Brunswick3056
- Brunswick East3057
- Brunswick West3055
- Coburg3058
- Coburg North3058
- Fawkner3060
- Fitzroy North (part)3068
- Glenroy3046
- Gowanbrae3043
- Hadfield3046
- Oak Park3046
- Pascoe Vale3044
- Pascoe Vale South3044
- Tullamarine (part)3043
On the map
The shaded area is the official Local Government Area boundary.
These are the 12 suburbs the council lists, plus Fitzroy North and Tullamarine, which the council says are only partly in Merri-bek; the same 14 appear in the CSA's suburb list for Merri-bek. We checked them against the official Vicmap locality boundaries: each of the 12 lies at least 96% inside the ABS boundary, while only small shares of Fitzroy North and Tullamarine do. Postcodes come from the CSA's suburb and postcode table (Brunswick East is 3057). The map shows the ABS boundary (ASGS 2025).
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
- Merri-bek City Council — City of Merri-bek profile (suburbs, borders, formation) · Sep 2026
- Merri-bek City Council — Renaming Merri-bek (in effect 26 Sep 2022) · Sep 2026
- Victorian Electoral Commission — Merri-bek City Council (11 single-councillor wards) · 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: Metro) · 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.