Quiet, hilly, residential family suburb roughly 18 km north-east of the Sydney CBD on the Northern Beaches, with 6,971 residents at the 2021 census. Narraweena is an Aboriginal name said to mean 'a quiet place in the hills', and the suburb developed after World War II when the land was subdivided — the post office opened on 1 April 1953 — so its stock is largely post-war houses now being renovated or rebuilt. Domain and local agents call it the 'Haberfield of the northern beaches': a thriving Italian community hub with cafes, a continental deli and pizza shops, still bearing the hallmarks of the families who arrived from southern Italy in the 1960s, sandwiched between Dee Why, Cromer, Beacon Hill and Brookvale. Of Narraweena's roughly 2,350 dwellings, about two-thirds are freestanding houses, the hilly terrain gives many homes on the eastern side views over Dee Why to Long Reef, and the suburb has shed its old post-war public-housing stigma as young families have moved in.
At a Glance
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Region | Northern Beaches |
| Council (LGA) | Northern Beaches Council |
| Postcode | 2099 |
| Distance to Sydney CBD | Roughly 45–55 minutes by bus: the 174X express runs from Narraweena direct to City Wynyard in the Sydney CBD… |
| Median house price | ~$2.15M–$2.45M depending on tracker: Cotality/OnTheHouse median house value $2,156,006 as at 31 Jul 2026, while YIP's median house price was $2,450,000 based on 51 house sales over the past 12 months (mid-2026) |
| Median unit price | $1,073,348 |
| Typical rent | Houses median rent $1,198/week and units $850/week |
Transport
Bus-based: Narraweena has no railway station, light rail or ferry. Bus routes serving the suburb include the 160X (Dee Why to Chatswood), 166 (Frenchs Forest to Manly), 174X (Narraweena to City Wynyard — an express run), 178 (Cromer Heights to Warringah Mall) and 179 (Wheeler Heights to Warringah Mall), with CDC NSW operating the 193 (Austlink to Warringah Mall) through the suburb. The B1 B-Line express runs along Pittwater Road through neighbouring Dee Why, about 1–2 km to the east, for faster city trips. No train service exists anywhere on the Northern Beaches.
Schools
Narraweena Public School — NSW government primary school on McIntosh Road, ICSEA 1059. St John the Apostle Narraweena — Catholic systemic primary school, the suburb's second primary school. There is no high school in the suburb: secondary students fall in the catchment of Northern Beaches Secondary College Cromer Campus in neighbouring Cromer, which covers Cromer, Brookvale, Dee Why, Wheeler Heights, Narraweena and Collaroy Plateau and lists Narraweena Public among its feeder schools. Independent Catholic secondary St Augustine's College sits just outside in adjacent Brookvale (inthesuburbs.com.au).
Shopping & Amenities
The main shopping strip is along Alfred Street — Narraweena's 'village' — with the Narraweena Fruit Market, a Friendly Grocer supermarket at 150 Alfred Street, cafes and takeaways, and Rose's Continental Deli on nearby McIntosh Road, an institution for coffee, cold cuts, cheeses and pasta in the family for nearly 20 years. Dee Why's shops, including supermarkets, are even closer — the suburb is about 3 km from Dee Why beach and 2.5 km north of Warringah Mall in Brookvale. Local childcare and community services sit around the Alfred Street precinct.
Parks & Outdoors
Beverley Job Park is the suburb's main open space — a hub with a sports field/oval, off-leash dog park, playground and bushland paths, upgraded in 2025 with a new $390,000 multi-use hardcourt for basketball and handball funded by council and NSW government grants. Smaller reserves such as Parr Reserve offer pocket playgrounds, and the hilly streets provide views over Dee Why to Long Reef. The suburb is within easy reach of the Dee Why Lagoon Wildlife Refuge and Dee Why beach (~3 km east) and of Narrabeen Lagoon at neighbouring Cromer to the north.
Property Market
The median house price in Narraweena was around ~$2.15M–$2.45M depending on tracker: Cotality/OnTheHouse median house value $2,156,006 as at 31 Jul 2026, while YIP's median house price was $2,450,000 based on 51 house sales over the past 12 months (mid-2026). See our full Sydney property price map for how the suburb compares across the city. A family house market of freestanding post-war homes on generous blocks — about two-thirds of Narraweena's ~2,350 dwellings are detached houses — with a wave of renovations and rebuilds as young families buy in for less than in better-known neighbours. Cotality counted 60 sales in the 12 months to Jul 2026. YIP reported 11.36% annual capital growth on houses with an average 60 days on market. Note: 2026 house-median estimates vary by tracker and snapshot window, and unit medians sit near $1.0–1.1M.
New Developments
Infill, not sprawl: a mixed-use redevelopment was planned on the Rose's Continental Deli site in McIntosh Road with apartments above commercial space, and Domain reported a generational shift of young families buying postwar homes on generous blocks and driving 'a wave of renovations and rebuilds'. Council-led amenity upgrades continue, including the $390,000 multi-use court completed at Beverley Job Park in 2025. Larger apartment development is concentrated in the adjacent Dee Why town centre rather than in Narraweena itself.
Jobs & Local Economy
Retail and services along the Alfred Street village strip (Friendly Grocer, cafes, deli) provide local jobs, with bigger retail employment at Dee Why's town centre nearby and Warringah Mall in Brookvale about 2.5 km away. Most residents commute to the Sydney CBD by express bus — the 174X runs direct to Wynyard — and Northern Beaches Hospital at Frenchs Forest is about a five-minute drive away.
Nearby Suburbs
Dee Why, Cromer, Beacon Hill, Brookvale, Collaroy Plateau
Sources & method
Researched 4 September 2026 from named public sources — census and government records, transport authorities, council and planning documents — plus published sales data. Where sources disagree on a figure, the guide says so rather than picking one.
Sources cited in this guide:
Corrections are welcome — if something here is out of date or wrong, tell us and we will fix it.
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