According to the 2016 census, there were 21,518 residents in Dee Why. 52.0% of people were born in Australia. The most common other countries of birth were England (5.8%), China (3.8%), India (3.4%), Brazil (3.0%) and New Zealand (2.8%). 61.5% of people only spoke English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Portuguese 3.5%, Mandarin 2.5%, Tibetan 2.2%, Nepali 1.8% and Serbian 1.7%. Dee Why's housing is higher density than average for Australia. Of occupied private dwellings in Dee Why, 79.8% were flats, units or apartments with 16.6% being separate houses and 3.1% being semi-detached.