Suburb and locality boundaries, 2021, Australia
liveThe ABS digital boundary file SAL_2021_AUST_GDA2020_SHP.zip, from the Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) Edition 3. Each row is one area with the columns the ABS publishes. The ABS adds rows for no usual address, migratory, offshore and shipping, which have no shape. They are kept, with a null geometry, so every ABS code is in the table.
Also called: suburb boundaries Australia, Suburbs and Localities 2021 shapefile, SAL boundaries, suburb GeoJSON Australia.
Part of ABS boundaries, 6 tables the publisher releases together: Statistical Areas Level 2 (SA2) boundaries, 2021, Australia, Local Government Area (council) boundaries, 2025, Australia, Postcode (postal area) boundaries, 2021, Australia, State electorate boundaries, 2025, Australia, Federal electorate boundaries, 2025, Australia.
- What is in each row?
- One of the Suburbs and Localities, the ABS's census approximation of the suburbs and localities the states gazette, with its code, name and the other columns the ABS publishes, and its shape in the GeoParquet, GeoJSON, GeoPackage and PMTiles files. The CSV, Excel and other table files hold the columns without the shape.
- What coordinate system are the shapes in?
- GDA2020 (EPSG:7844), the file the ABS publishes in that datum. GDA2020 differs from WGS84 by well under a metre, so web maps can use it as it is.
- How does this join to other datasets here?
- Each dataset here with point coordinates carries the code and name of the area each point falls in, matched by location against this layer. Those columns name the layer and its version in the dataset's schema, and the ABS's attribution is in every file.
Made for agents
Connect your AI agent
Any agent that connects to publicdata.au/mcp can find this dataset, read its 6 fields, count and filter across all 15,353 rows and diff its versions. Every answer names the version and carries ABS's attribution. No key.
Then ask it: What does Suburb and locality boundaries, 2021, Australia hold, and what changed in the newest version?
claude mcp add --transport http publicdata https://publicdata.au/mcpOne command. No key, no account, no sign-up.
Settings, then Connectors, then Add custom connector, and paste https://publicdata.au/mcp.
On the web and in the desktop app.
https://publicdata.au/mcpStreamable HTTP. Cursor, VS Code or any client that connects to a remote MCP server.
Using https://publicdata.au/llms.txt, how many people died on Queensland roads in 2025, by month?For an assistant that reads the web and has no connector.
Download it as Excel, CSV, JSON and 9 more formats
Pick a format and a version. Excel is picked first because it opens in the tools most offices have. The URL is yours to keep. A dated version never changes.
In your own tools
Use it in Excel, R, Python and more
Excel and Power BI read the CSV from its address and refresh from it. The R and Python packages take any dataset on this site by its slug, so a new dataset needs no new release. The DuckDB file attaches read-only over HTTPS, and a query reads only the blocks it touches.
The dated URL in the code never changes. https://publicdata.au/d/abs-suburbs-localities-2021/latest/ redirects to the newest version.
https://publicdata.au/d/abs-suburbs-localities-2021/latest/data.csvIn Excel choose Data, then From Web, and paste this address. Excel keeps it, so Refresh All reads the newest version. A sheet holds about a million rows; past that, load the query to the Data Model.
https://publicdata.au/d/abs-suburbs-localities-2021/latest/data.csvIn Power BI Desktop choose Get data, then Web, paste this address and choose Anonymous when asked how to sign in. A scheduled refresh reads the same address, so the report follows each new version.
library(publicdataau)
df <- pd_read("abs-suburbs-localities-2021")
pd_attribution(df)install.packages("publicdataau"). pd_read() fetches the version's Parquet file; pd_rows() and pd_aggregate() ask the query API instead, and pd_connect() attaches the DuckDB file.
import publicdata_au as pd_au
df = pd_au.read("abs-suburbs-localities-2021")
df.attrs["publicdata"]["attribution"]pip install "publicdata-au[pandas]". read() fetches the version's Parquet file; rows() and aggregate() ask the query API, and connect() attaches the DuckDB file.
INSTALL httpfs; LOAD httpfs;
ATTACH 'https://publicdata.au/d/abs-suburbs-localities-2021/v/2021-09-15/data.duckdb' AS abs_suburbs_localities_2021 (READ_ONLY);
SELECT sal_2021_code, count(*) FROM abs_suburbs_localities_2021.records GROUP BY 1 ORDER BY 2 DESC;The DuckDB file attaches read-only over HTTPS and only the blocks a query touches are read. Parquet works the same way: FROM read_parquet(url).
const res = await fetch("https://publicdata.au/api/v1/datasets/abs-suburbs-localities-2021/aggregate?group=state_name&metric=count&area_sqkm=gt.0");
const { rows, publicdata } = await res.json();
console.log(rows, publicdata.attribution);The query API answers a page on any site as well as Node, with no key. It returns the rows and the attribution the licence asks for.
What is in it
Column names are made snake_case and the publisher's original header is kept beside each one. Blank cells are null. Nothing is added, removed, ranked or summarised.
| Field | Type | Publisher's header | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| sal_2021_code | string | SAL_CODE21 | |
| sal_2021_name | string | SAL_NAME21 | |
| state_code | string | STE_CODE21 | |
| state_name | string | STE_NAME21 | |
| area_sqkm | number | AREASQKM21 | |
| loci_uri | string | LOCI_URI21 |
Download this table as a data dictionary (Excel), or read it as a Frictionless Table Schema at schema.json. The key is sal_2021_code.
The first 10 rows
From the latest version, in the publisher's order, with every field. A blank cell is shown as null.
| sal_2021_code | sal_2021_name | state_code | state_name | area_sqkm | loci_uri |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10001 | Aarons Pass | 1 | New South Wales | 82.7639 | http://linked.data.gov.au/dataset/asgsed3/SAL/10001 |
| 10002 | Abbotsbury | 1 | New South Wales | 4.9788 | http://linked.data.gov.au/dataset/asgsed3/SAL/10002 |
| 10003 | Abbotsford (NSW) | 1 | New South Wales | 1.018 | http://linked.data.gov.au/dataset/asgsed3/SAL/10003 |
| 10004 | Abercrombie | 1 | New South Wales | 2.9775 | http://linked.data.gov.au/dataset/asgsed3/SAL/10004 |
| 10005 | Abercrombie River | 1 | New South Wales | 127.1701 | http://linked.data.gov.au/dataset/asgsed3/SAL/10005 |
| 10006 | Aberdare | 1 | New South Wales | 3.2961 | http://linked.data.gov.au/dataset/asgsed3/SAL/10006 |
| 10007 | Aberdeen (NSW) | 1 | New South Wales | 41.6327 | http://linked.data.gov.au/dataset/asgsed3/SAL/10007 |
| 10008 | Aberfoyle | 1 | New South Wales | 340.4792 | http://linked.data.gov.au/dataset/asgsed3/SAL/10008 |
| 10009 | Aberglasslyn | 1 | New South Wales | 6.2154 | http://linked.data.gov.au/dataset/asgsed3/SAL/10009 |
| 10010 | Abermain | 1 | New South Wales | 15.3822 | http://linked.data.gov.au/dataset/asgsed3/SAL/10010 |
The first row as JSON
As it appears in data.json.
GET https://publicdata.au/d/abs-suburbs-localities-2021/latest/data.json
{
"sal_2021_code": "10001",
"sal_2021_name": "Aarons Pass",
"state_code": "1",
"state_name": "New South Wales",
"area_sqkm": 82.7639,
"loci_uri": "http://linked.data.gov.au/dataset/asgsed3/SAL/10001"
}
Query it without downloading
The query API returns only the rows you ask for, as JSON, NDJSON or CSV, from the same typed rows as the files. It needs no key. Build a query here and run it, then copy the URL or the code into your own work.
How filters work
Each filter is field=operator.value in the query string, and every filter must match. A number or date field compares as a number or date, and a text field compares as text. Values are case-sensitive except with ilike. Prefix not. to negate a filter, as not.eq.value.
| Operator | What it matches |
|---|---|
| eq.value | Equal to the value. |
| neq.value | Not equal to the value. A blank cell does not match. |
| gt.value | Greater than the value. |
| gte.value | Greater than or equal to the value. |
| lt.value | Less than the value. |
| lte.value | Less than or equal to the value. |
| like.*text* | Matches a pattern where * stands for any run of characters. Case-sensitive. |
| ilike.*text* | The same as like, ignoring case. |
| in.(a,b,c) | Equal to any value in the list. A value cannot contain a comma. |
| is.null | Blank in the source, or suppressed by the publisher. |
| Parameter | What it does |
|---|---|
| select | Fields to return, comma-separated. Every field when absent. |
| order | field.asc or field.desc, comma-separated. The publisher's row order when absent. |
| limit | Rows per page, 1 to 10,000. 100 when absent. |
| offset | Rows to skip. The next URL in each answer sets it for you. |
| group | On aggregate, fields to group by, comma-separated. |
| metric | On aggregate, count, sum.field, avg.field, min.field or max.field, comma-separated. count when absent. |
| format | json, ndjson or csv. JSON carries the provenance header, and the others carry it in response headers. |
Without a version the API answers from the newest loaded version, and that answer changes when the publisher releases again. Put versions/<date>/ before rows or aggregate for an answer that never changes. /api/v1/datasets/<slug>/versions lists the loaded versions. The 1 newest version is loaded; versions lists them.
The API allows 60 requests in 10 seconds from one address. Above that it answers 429 for 10 seconds with a Retry-After header, a RateLimit-Policy header and a JSON body that gives the limit. Every API answer carries the same RateLimit-Policy. A client should wait the Retry-After seconds, or read the files, which have no limit. openapi.json describes this dataset's query paths for client generators and agents.
https://publicdata.au/mcp is a remote MCP server over Streamable HTTP with the same tools, defined in the same place, so a tool added to the pages is added here too. It needs no key and no account. The row tools are held to the query API's limit of 60 queries in 10 seconds from one address, and each call is two queries because it also counts the matching rows. Add it to Claude Code with claude mcp add --transport http publicdata https://publicdata.au/mcp, add the URL in Claude as a custom connector, or give it to any client that connects to remote MCP servers. Each queryable dataset is also a resource at https://publicdata.au/d/<slug>/fields.json, which lists its fields with their types, the publisher's descriptions, their ranges and the values they hold, so an agent can read a dataset's shape before it writes a query.
What changed
One version for every release the publisher has made since this site started following the dataset. The date is the day the file changed on the portal.
- 2021-09-15 15,353 rows6 fieldszip1284f6aa4a5e
versions.json · changes.json · history.tar.zst (126 MB, every version's Parquet and manifest)
Questions
How do I download Suburb and locality boundaries, 2021 as a CSV file?
Open https://publicdata.au/d/abs-suburbs-localities-2021/latest/data.csv. It redirects to the newest dated version, which is https://publicdata.au/d/abs-suburbs-localities-2021/v/2021-09-15/data.csv today. The same path serves Excel, JSON, GeoJSON, Parquet, SQLite, DuckDB, GeoPackage, PMTiles, NDJSON, Arrow. A dated URL never changes, so use it when the file must stay the same.
Can I open Suburb and locality boundaries, 2021 in Excel?
Yes. https://publicdata.au/d/abs-suburbs-localities-2021/v/2021-09-15/data.xlsx is a workbook with the 15,353 rows on a records sheet, the field list on a second sheet and the provenance on a third. The CSV also opens in Excel. https://publicdata.au/d/abs-suburbs-localities-2021/v/2021-09-15/data.csv.gz is the CSV at about a tenth of the size.
How often is Suburb and locality boundaries, 2021 updated?
ABS releases it when the ABS releases a new edition. This site checks the portal every week and adds a dated version when the file changes.
Can I use Suburb and locality boundaries, 2021 commercially?
Yes. CC BY 4.0 allows commercial use, redistribution and derived works as long as the attribution is kept. The attribution string is in this page's side column and inside every file.
Is this the official source for Suburb and locality boundaries, 2021?
No. The publisher is Australian Bureau of Statistics, and its page is https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/standards/australian-statistical-geography-standard-asgs/edition-3-july-2021-june-2026/access-and-downloads/digital-boundary-files. This site republishes the publisher's file without changing its content. The original sits beside every version as source.zip with its SHA-256, so the two can be compared.
What coordinate system does Suburb and locality boundaries, 2021 use?
Shapes in GDA2020 (EPSG:7844), as the ABS publishes them. The GeoJSON file uses GDA2020 as well, which differs from the WGS84 GeoJSON expects by well under a metre.
What this site did to the data. Cells were typed, headers were renamed and the encoding was made UTF-8. Rows were left alone. The publisher's file sits beside every version as source.zip so the change can be checked.
ABS boundaries is 6 tables here, and each takes its version date from its own file.