Best Entertainment Suburbs in Sydney 2026
These are the best entertainment scenes suburbs in Sydney, drawn from SuburbCheck's data on every Sydney suburb. Ranked by Entertainment Score — a national percentile of licensed venue density (pubs, bars, clubs and licensed dining per 1,000 residents). NSW and VIC data comes from government liquor registers; other states use OpenStreetMap. A score of 80 or above places a suburb in the top 20% nationally. Commercial hubs and suburbs with no recorded venues are excluded. Scores update as new government data is released.
Last updated 12 June 2026.
- 1Darlington (Sydney)NSW 2008 · Sydney$2.10M2,597 people100
- 2Kurraba PointNSW 2089 · North Sydney$9.24M1,401 people99
- 3HolroydNSW 2142 · Cumberland$1.35M1,248 people98
- 4Burwood HeightsNSW 2136 · Burwood$2.49M1,134 people97
- 5Canada BayNSW 2046 · Canada Bay$3.15M1,308 people97
- 6Cremorne PointNSW 2090 · North Sydney$6.52M2,270 people97
- 7Mays HillNSW 2145 · Cumberland$1.31M1,902 people97
- 8DaceyvilleNSW 2032 · Bayside$2.13M1,146 people96
- 9Rodd PointNSW 2046 · Canada Bay$3.71M1,380 people96
- 10WindsorNSW 2756 · Hawkesbury$845K1,915 people96
- 11QueenscliffNSW 2096 · Northern Beaches$5.10M3,407 people95
- 12Greenhills BeachNSW 2230 · Sutherland Shire$3.83M1,375 people94
- 13DarlinghurstNSW 2010 · Sydney$2.85M10,615 people92
- 14Hurstville GroveNSW 2220 · Georges River$2.30M2,606 people91
- 15Blue BayNSW 2261 · Central Coast$2.04M1,060 people88
- 16FairlightNSW 2094 · Northern Beaches$3.94M6,141 people88
- 17Chatswood WestNSW 2067 · Willoughby$2.55M1,521 people87
- 18Curl CurlNSW 2096 · Northern Beaches$4.13M2,364 people87
- 19Enmore (Inner West)NSW 2042 · Inner West$1.98M3,871 people87
- 20Surry HillsNSW 2010 · Sydney$2.44M15,828 people87
Frequently asked questions
Which suburb in Sydney has the best entertainment scene?
Darlington (Sydney) tops SuburbCheck's Entertainment Score ranking for Sydney, with an Entertainment Score of 100/100. The score reflects the density of licensed venues — pubs, bars, clubs and licensed dining — per 1,000 residents, benchmarked against every Australian suburb.
How is the Entertainment Score calculated?
The Entertainment Score is a national percentile (0–100) based on the density of licensed on-premises venues — pubs, general bars, small bars, clubs and licensed dining — per 1,000 residents. NSW and VIC data comes from government liquor registers; other states use OpenStreetMap. A score of 80 or above puts a suburb in the national top 20% for licensed venue density.
Does a high Entertainment Score mean more crime?
Not in the way most people expect. Our analysis of NSW suburbs found that licensed venue density correlates much more strongly with property theft than with assault or robbery. High-entertainment suburbs often see more opportunistic theft near venues, but interpersonal violence rates are not as strongly linked to venue density as commonly assumed.