Located approximately 4.5 km (2.8 mi) north-east of the central business district, Hackett is adjacent to Watson, Dickson and Ainslie.

The suburb was named after Sir John Winthrop Hackett (1848–1916), who was a newspaper editor and worker for the Federation of Australia.

The higher eastern side of Hackett is on top of the lowest layer of the Ainslie Volcanics, a grey Dacite and other erupted particles such as agglomerate and tuff.

[6] This relative economic prosperity is reflected in median personal incomes which, in the 2016 Census, were reported to be 1.6 times the national average.

The suburb is the home of Andrew Leigh, the Member of Parliament representing the neighbouring electoral division of Fenner.