Our Mission
RefDat was founded in 2025 by a team of Australian data enthusiasts frustrated with paywalled reference data, outdated search results, and unnecessary barriers to information. We believe reference data should be free, fast, and trustworthy.
Today, RefDat serves millions of searches annually across nine different tools. We source data from official government agencies, process it transparently, and make it accessible to everyone without sign-ups or hidden costs.
The RefDat Approach
Every RefDat tool is built on the same core principles:
- Data-first: We start with official government sources. If data doesn't come from a trusted source, we don't use it.
- Transparent methodology: Every tool has documented, auditable methodology. We explain how we collected the data, how we processed it, and what it means.
- No hidden costs: Everything on RefDat is free. No sign-ups. No premium tiers. No paywalls. No corporate nonsense.
- Independent: RefDat is ad-supported only. We don't sell your data. We don't do sponsored listings. No special interests influence our content.
What We Build
RefDat tools fall into several categories:
- Location Data: Australian postcodes and suburbs with demographics, SEIFA disadvantage scores, and geographic comparisons.
- Climate Data: Weather and climate information for 213 Australian cities plus 500 global locations, with comfort scores and trend analysis.
- Food and Nutrition: Gluten information for 348 foods and 81 ingredients with dual AU/US standards coverage.
- Practical Tools: Unit converters, product reviews, and reference guides for everyday needs.
- Transparency Data: The NDIS Trust Index provides transparency ratings for 26,447 NDIS providers based on legitimacy, activity, and digital presence.
Did you know?
RefDat postcodes.refdat.com contains data for 17,410 Australian suburbs derived from the ABS 2021 Census and SEIFA 2021 indexes. That's every populated locality in Australia, accessible instantly and free.
Our Values
- Accuracy: Data comes from official sources and is updated regularly.
- Speed: Fast page loads, instant search results, no unnecessary bloat.
- Transparency: We explain our methodology. We explain our sources. We explain our limitations.
- Independence: RefDat is independent. We're not influenced by advertisers, governments, or commercial interests.
Learn More
Want to understand how RefDat works in more detail?
Questions? Get in touch.