Aireys Inlet vs Wensleydale
Wensleydale is the younger of the two, with a median age of 47 against 57 in Aireys Inlet. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Aireys Inlet, about half of households are people living alone. In Wensleydale, most households are couple families. On these figures, Aireys Inlet tends to suit people living alone and older residents, while Wensleydale suits couples.
Which one suits you?
There is no overall winner — the suburb that suits a family with school-age kids is routinely the wrong one for someone commuting into the city. So each of these answers its own question, against a checklist you can see, using the same figures in the tables below.
Families with school-age kids
They split
one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here
- Aireys Inlet carries lower crime risk (15/100 vs 29/100)
- Wensleydale is already more of a family suburb (65% vs 48%)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Too close to call
Nothing among the 1 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
Aireys Inlet
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($350/wk vs $400/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Wensleydale
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has a shorter drive in (100 min vs 106 min)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Aireys Inlet
ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here
- has more residents already 65 and over (31% vs 4%)
- carries lower crime risk (15/100 vs 29/100)
Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Aireys Inlet
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (22.1% vs -11.2%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Aireys Inlet and Wensleydale drawn to the same scale. Both outlines are shown together, so the map answers whether they share a border and how their areas compare.
Bars start at zero. Scores, risks and rankings are drawn against their full 0–100 range; other rows are drawn in proportion to the larger of the two.
Side by side, out of 100
Risks are inverted — shown as safety and low exposure — so a longer bar always means better.
Demographics
Aireys Inlet has more residents (979 vs 95); Aireys Inlet skews older (57 vs 47).
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 979 +90% vs other | 95 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +22.1% | -11.2% |
| Median age | 57 | 47 |
| Median household income | $85,384/yr | $100,724/yr +18% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $350/wk | $400/wk +14% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (26.3%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
Where residents were born
Largest overseas birthplaces, as a share of all residents, 2021 Census. A dash means that country is not among the suburb's own eight largest.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (6.3%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (24.1%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $1,345,000 | — |
| Median unit price | $860,000 | — |
| Median land price | $700,000 | — |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | 104 days from 4 sales | — |
Zoning mix
Wensleydale has more rural and farming land (11% vs 0%).
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks and recreation | 77% | 71% |
| Other and special use | 0% | 13% |
| Environmental | 12% | 5% |
| Rural and farming | 0% | 11% |
| Residential | 7% | 0% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 3% | 0% |
| Zoning sets what may be built, not what is there today. A single address can sit in a different zone to the suburb around it. Zones as at 2026-09. | ||
Development activity
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 300 across Surf Coast same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +57% same for both | |
Ranking within VIC
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 91% of VIC | — |
| Income | Higher than 55% of VIC | Higher than 73% of VIC |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 38% of VIC | Higher than 52% of VIC |
| Affordability | Higher than 4% of VIC | — |
| EV adoption | Higher than 99% of VIC | Higher than 47% of VIC |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 78% of VIC | Higher than 15% of VIC |
Liveability
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | C | — |
| Score | 49/100 | — |
| Socio-economic band | very advantaged area decile 9/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Wensleydale carries more crime risk (29 vs 15).
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | High 88/100 | High 90/100 |
| Crime | Low 15/100 | Low 29/100 |
| Flood | Low 28/100 same for both | |
| Coastal erosion | Moderate 43/100 | None 0/100 |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 0 within 5 km same for both | |
Schools
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 1 | 0 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 1 | 0 |
Schools in Aireys Inlet
- Aireys Inlet Primary School Government · Primary below peers
Schools in Wensleydale
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Amenities in the suburb
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| Cafes & restaurants | 7 | 0 |
| Parks & reserves | 3 | 1 |
| GPs | 1 | 0 |
| Pharmacies | 1 | 0 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 1 | 0 |
| Beaches | 4 | 0 |
| Waterways | 14 | 7 |
Mobility
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Melbourne | 124.6 km | 125.4 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 106 min | 100 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 3.1% postcode 3231 | 0.5% postcode 3241 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 33 postcode 3231 | 47 postcode 3241 |
How people get to work
Method of travel on census day 2021 — which fell during COVID restrictions, so working from home is inflated and every travel mode understated.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (76.9%).
Setting
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 86 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 125 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 2.5 km 2.5 km to a named beach | 9.7 km |
NBN connectivity
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 68/100 | 18/100 |
| Most common technology | Fibre to the node | Satellite (Sky Muster) |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 41% 1,124 premises | 0% 30 premises |
Climate
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 599 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 23.2°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 7.6°C same for both | |
Council rates
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $2,314/yr same for both | |
| Council | Surf Coast same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Wannon same for both | |
| Member | Dan Tehan same for both | |
| Party | Liberal same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Aireys Inlet | Wensleydale | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Aireys Inlet
Other comparisons with Wensleydale
Information shown is provided as-is from Australian government and commercial data sources.
Always verify with the relevant authority before making property decisions.
See Data Sources and How We Calculate for details.