Like many pelagic fish, sardine Sardinops sagax is difficult to age by counting structures in otoliths. Of 12 968 whole otoliths analysed in the present study, <25% could be counted with accuracies of greater than ±1 zone. Estimates of average percentage error (APE) were high (11.37%). We used a ‘case building approach’ to corroborate a method for estimating age. Regressions of otolith weight–age from otoliths with high readabilities were used to estimate the age of fish with lower or unreadable otoliths. Growth rates determined from daily increments ranged from 0.36 to 0.75 mm day^–1 for larvae and from 0.22 to 0.47 mm day^–1 for juveniles. Estimates of von Bertalanffy growth coefficients were k = 0.32–1.07 year^–1 and L_∞ = 166.96–195.68 mm. Growth parameters estimated during the present study support previous assertions that levels of pelagic production in South Australian (SA) waters lie between those recorded in the predominantly oligotrophic waters off Western Australia (WA) and the productive waters off southern California and South Africa. Disparities in the age distributions of inshore and offshore samples suggest that age data from commercial catch samples may not be representative of the population. This finding has implications for the use of age-structured models to assess of stocks of S. sagax and other small pelagic fishes.