City profile
The Mornington Peninsula lies between Port Phillip and Western Port, at the south-eastern edge of Greater Melbourne. The Shire says about 70% of its land is rural and Green Wedge, with around 40 townships and villages. The Shire has its main offices in Rosebud, Mornington and Hastings.
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)
- 172,217ABS Estimated Resident Population (preliminary). The Shire's 'Shire facts' page gives 175,153.
- Area
- 724 km²ABS. The Shire gives 723 km² and the VEC 726 km².
- Population density
- About 238 people per km²ABS ERP ÷ ABS area.
- Wards
- 11, with one councillor each
- Council group (LGPRF)
- Interface (on the edge of metropolitan Melbourne)
- Traditional Owners
- The Bunurong peopleAs acknowledged by the Shire.
Suburbs & postcodes
- Arthurs Seat3936
- Balnarring3926
- Balnarring Beach3926
- Baxter3911
- Bittern3918
- Blairgowrie3942
- Boneo3939
- Cape Schanck3939
- Capel Sound3940
- Crib Point3919
- Dromana3936
- Fingal3939
- Flinders3929
- Hastings3915
- HMAS Cerberus3920
- Main Ridge3928
- McCrae3938
- Merricks3916
- Merricks Beach3926
- Merricks North3926
- Moorooduc3933
- Mornington3931
- Mount Eliza3930
- Mount Martha3934
- Pearcedale (part)3912
- Point Leo3916
- Portsea3944
- Red Hill3937
- Red Hill South3937
- Rosebud3939
- Rye3941
- Safety Beach3936
- Shoreham3916
- Somers3927
- Somerville3912
- Sorrento3943
- St Andrews Beach3941
- Tootgarook3941
- Tuerong3915
- Tyabb3913
On the map
The shaded area is the official Local Government Area boundary.
The Shire doesn't publish a list of its localities, so this list comes from the official Vicmap locality boundaries, checked against the council boundary. Only Pearcedale is split: about 7% of its area is in the Shire, and the rest is in neighbouring councils. Postcodes come from the CSA's suburb and postcode table for Mornington Peninsula. 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
- Mornington Peninsula Shire — Shire facts · Sep 2026
- Victorian Electoral Commission — Mornington Peninsula Shire 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: Interface) · 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.