Hilltop, New Zealand
Suburb of Taupō, New Zealand
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Hilltop is a suburb of Taupō in the Waikato region of New Zealand's North Island.
Hilltop | |
|---|---|
Hilltop Shopping Centre | |
 Interactive map of Hilltop | |
| Coordinates: 38.700310°S 176.093236°E | |
| Country | New Zealand |
| City | Taupō |
| Local authority | Taupō District Council |
| Electoral ward | Taupō General Ward |
| Area | |
| • Land | 368 ha (910 acres) |
| Population (June 2025)[2] | |
• Total | 5,080 |
| • Density | 1,380/km2 (3,580/sq mi) |
| Taupō Central | Tauhara | |
| (Lake Taupō) |
  Hilltop  |
|
| Two Mile Bay | Waipahihi | Maunganamu |
The suburb is close to Lake Taupō, Taupō Central and several schools.[3] It includes high-value homes with lake views.[3][4]
Part of the suburb suffered a major power surge in January 2018.[5]
Demographics
Bird Area-Hilltop covers 3.68 km2 (1.42 sq mi)[1] and had an estimated population of 5,080 as of June 2025,[2] with a population density of 2,032 people per km2.
Bird Area-Hilltop had a population of 4,974 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 15 people (0.3%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 474 people (10.5%) since the 2013 census. There were 2,403 males, 2,550 females, and 18 people of other genders in 1,905 dwellings.[8] 2.2% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 44.0 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 927 people (18.6%) aged under 15 years, 786 (15.8%) aged 15 to 29, 2,115 (42.5%) aged 30 to 64, and 1,146 (23.0%) aged 65 or older.[6]
People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 80.5% European (Pākehā); 23.1% Māori; 3.2% Pasifika; 6.3% Asian; 1.0% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 2.8% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 97.3%, Māori by 4.9%, Samoan by 0.3%, and other languages by 8.6%. No language could be spoken by 1.8% (e.g. too young to talk). New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.2%. The percentage of people born overseas was 20.6, compared with 28.8% nationally.[6]
Religious affiliations were 31.1% Christian, 1.4% Hindu, 0.4% Islam, 2.2% Māori religious beliefs, 0.5% Buddhist, 0.5% New Age, 0.1% Jewish, and 1.1% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 54.9%, and 7.9% of people did not answer the census question.[6]
Of those at least 15 years old, 813 (20.1%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 2,298 (56.8%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 930 (23.0%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $41,600, compared with $41,500 nationally. 432 people (10.7%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was 1,986 (49.1%) full-time, 627 (15.5%) part-time, and 75 (1.9%) unemployed.[6]