Armadale vs Malvern

Armadale is the younger of the two, with a median age of 38 against 44 in Malvern. In Armadale, about half of households rent, most homes are flats or apartments, and about half of households are people living alone. In Malvern, most households own their home. Houses cost more in Malvern: a median of $2.8 million, against $2.15 million in Armadale, and rent is higher there too. Armadale is closer to the city centre: 10.4 km, against 12 km. On these figures, Armadale tends to suit renters, young adults, and people living alone.

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

Malvern

ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more separate houses rather than flats (46% vs 25%)
  • is already more of a family suburb (50% vs 35%)

Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.

First-home buyers

They split

one each way, out of the 3 things we measure here

  • Armadale has cheaper houses ($2,150,000 vs $2,800,000)
  • Malvern has cheaper units ($582,500 vs $654,000)

Weighs house prices, unit prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

Armadale

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has a bigger rental market to choose from (46% vs 28%)

Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.

Commuting to the city

Too close to call

Nothing among the 4 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

Weighs distance, drive time, rail access, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

They split

one each way, out of the 5 things we measure here

  • Armadale has more units and townhouses to downsize into (74% vs 54%)
  • Malvern has more GPs (7 vs 3)

Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.

Investors

Malvern

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • returns a higher gross yield on houses (3.4% vs 2.4%)

Weighs house yield, unit yield, and population growth.

Where they sit

Armadale and Malvern drawn to the same scale. Both outlines are shown together, so the map answers whether they share a border and how their areas compare.

Armadale Malvern
Hides rows where both suburbs match

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.

Armadale Malvern
Walkability 99 / 99
Armadale — Walkability: 99/100 Malvern — Walkability: 99/100
Safety 24 / 26
Armadale — Safety: 24/100 Malvern — Safety: 26/100
Low fire risk 100 / 100
Armadale — Low fire risk: 100/100 Malvern — Low fire risk: 100/100
Low flood risk 67 / 69
Armadale — Low flood risk: 67/100 Malvern — Low flood risk: 69/100

Demographics

Malvern has higher household incomes ($135,512 vs $114,036); Malvern skews older (44 vs 38).

Armadale Malvern
Population 9,368 9,929
+6% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +3.5% -1.4%
Median age 38 44
Median household income $114,036/yr $135,512/yr
+19% vs other
Median weekly rent $421/wk $450/wk
+7% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Armadale Malvern
0-4 4.6% / 4.0%
Armadale — 0-4: 4.6% Malvern — 0-4: 4.0%
5-14 8.1% / 11.0%
Armadale — 5-14: 8.1% Malvern — 5-14: 11.0%
15-19 3.6% / 6.3%
Armadale — 15-19: 3.6% Malvern — 15-19: 6.3%
20-24 7.1% / 6.0%
Armadale — 20-24: 7.1% Malvern — 20-24: 6.0%
25-34 20.7% / 12.1%
Armadale — 25-34: 20.7% Malvern — 25-34: 12.1%
35-44 14.8% / 11.6%
Armadale — 35-44: 14.8% Malvern — 35-44: 11.6%
45-54 12.7% / 13.9%
Armadale — 45-54: 12.7% Malvern — 45-54: 13.9%
55-64 9.6% / 12.1%
Armadale — 55-64: 9.6% Malvern — 55-64: 12.1%
65-74 9.6% / 10.6%
Armadale — 65-74: 9.6% Malvern — 65-74: 10.6%
75-84 6.9% / 8.6%
Armadale — 75-84: 6.9% Malvern — 75-84: 8.6%
85+ 2.3% / 3.9%
Armadale — 85+: 2.3% Malvern — 85+: 3.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.7%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Armadale 54.8% lone person
Armadale — Lone Person: 54.8% Armadale — Couple Families: 25.3% Armadale — One Parent Families: 9.8% Armadale — Group Household: 8.3% Armadale — Other Families: 1.8%
Malvern 43.4% lone person
Malvern — Lone Person: 43.4% Malvern — Couple Families: 39.7% Malvern — One Parent Families: 10.5% Malvern — Group Household: 4.9% Malvern — Other Families: 1.5%
Lone Person Couple Families One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Armadale 46.0% renting
Armadale — Owned Outright: 30.3% Armadale — Mortgage: 23.7% Armadale — Renting: 46.0%
Malvern 27.6% renting
Malvern — Owned Outright: 43.2% Malvern — Mortgage: 29.2% Malvern — Renting: 27.6%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.

Armadale Malvern
Bachelor Degree 31.1% / 29.4%
Armadale — Bachelor Degree: 31.1% Malvern — Bachelor Degree: 29.4%
Postgraduate Degree 13.5% / 11.8%
Armadale — Postgraduate Degree: 13.5% Malvern — Postgraduate Degree: 11.8%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 8.0% / 7.8%
Armadale — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.0% Malvern — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 7.8%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 4.0% / 4.0%
Armadale — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 4.0% Malvern — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 4.0%
Certificate III & IV 4.3% / 3.4%
Armadale — Certificate III & IV: 4.3% Malvern — Certificate III & IV: 3.4%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (31.1%).

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.

Armadale Malvern
England 3.5% / 3.5%
Armadale — England: 3.5% Malvern — England: 3.5%
China 3.1% / 2.2%
Armadale — China: 3.1% Malvern — China: 2.2%
India 2.2% / 2.0%
Armadale — India: 2.2% Malvern — India: 2.0%
New Zealand 1.9% / 1.6%
Armadale — New Zealand: 1.9% Malvern — New Zealand: 1.6%
Greece 1.0% / 1.3%
Armadale — Greece: 1.0% Malvern — Greece: 1.3%
South Africa 1.1% / 0.9%
Armadale — South Africa: 1.1% Malvern — South Africa: 0.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (3.5%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Armadale 57.7% flats / apartments
Armadale — Flats / Apartments: 57.7% Armadale — Houses: 25.4% Armadale — Townhouses: 16.8%
Malvern 34.8% flats / apartments
Malvern — Flats / Apartments: 34.8% Malvern — Houses: 45.8% Malvern — Townhouses: 19.4%
Flats / Apartments Houses Townhouses

Property market

Armadale Malvern
Median house price $2,150,000 $2,800,000
Median unit price $654,000 $582,500
Median land price —
same for both
Typical days to sell (houses) 24 days
from 56 sales
 23 days
from 69 sales

Unit price by bedroom count

Only bed counts both suburbs published enough sales for. Sale counts are shown because the buckets differ in depth.

Armadale Malvern
1 bed $445K / $421K
Armadale — 1 bed: $445K (81 sales) Malvern — 1 bed: $421K (54 sales)

81 vs 54 sales

2 bed $705K / $670K
Armadale — 2 bed: $705K (158 sales) Malvern — 2 bed: $670K (67 sales)

158 vs 67 sales

3 bed $1.33M / $1.33M
Armadale — 3 bed: $1.33M (35 sales) Malvern — 3 bed: $1.33M (12 sales)

35 vs 12 sales

House price by bedroom count

Only bed counts both suburbs published enough sales for. Sale counts are shown because the buckets differ in depth.

Armadale Malvern
2 bed $1.72M / $2.17M
Armadale — 2 bed: $1.72M (17 sales) Malvern — 2 bed: $2.17M (11 sales)

17 vs 11 sales

3 bed $1.97M / $2.25M
Armadale — 3 bed: $1.97M (44 sales) Malvern — 3 bed: $2.25M (49 sales)

44 vs 49 sales

4 bed $4.3M / $3.52M
Armadale — 4 bed: $4.3M (20 sales) Malvern — 4 bed: $3.52M (40 sales)

20 vs 40 sales

5 bed $4.24M / $4.77M
Armadale — 5 bed: $4.24M (7 sales) Malvern — 5 bed: $4.77M (11 sales)

7 vs 11 sales

Zoning mix

Armadale Malvern
Residential 80% 79%
Infrastructure and transport 12% 11%
Commercial 6%
same for both
Parks and recreation 3% 4%
Other and special use 0% 1%
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

Armadale Malvern
New dwellings approved 818
across Stonnington
same for both
Approvals change year on year +67%
same for both

Gross rental yield

Gross — before strata, rates, management, insurance and vacancy. From median advertised rents and median asking prices over the last 6 months. How we calculate.

Armadale Malvern
Houses 2.4%
$962/wk on $2.1M
 3.4%
$1,700/wk on $2.6M
Units 4.3%
$690/wk on $828K
 4.4%
$645/wk on $760K

Ranking within VIC

Armadale Malvern
House price Higher than 96% of VIC Higher than 99% of VIC
Income Higher than 86% of VIC Higher than 95% of VIC
Schools Higher than 79% of VIC Higher than 85% of VIC
Walkability Higher than 99% of VIC
same for both
Affordability Higher than 3% of VIC
same for both
EV adoption Higher than 98% of VIC Higher than 99% of VIC
NBN connectivity Higher than 87% of VIC Higher than 88% of VIC
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 3% of VIC Higher than 32% of VIC
Rental yield (units) Higher than 24% of VIC Higher than 27% of VIC

Liveability

Armadale Malvern
Grade A+
same for both
Score 85/100 88/100
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 10/10
same for both

Risk profile

Armadale Malvern
Bushfire None
0/100
same for both
Crime High
76/100
 High
74/100
Flood Low
33/100
 Low
31/100
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 9
within 5 km
same for both

Schools

Armadale Malvern
Inside the suburb 5 4
Rated above peers 2
same for both
Rated at peers 0 1
Rated below peers 1 0
Universities within 10 km 3
Monash Caulfield, 3.3 km
 3
Monash Caulfield, 2.8 km
Full-time students aged 15–24 3.9% 4.5%

Schools in Armadale

  • Armadale Primary School Government · Primary above peers
  • Lauriston Girls' School Independent · Combined above peers
  • The King David School Independent · Combined below peers
  • The King David School - Junior School Independent · Combined
  • The King David School - The Rebecca Magid Centre Independent · Combined

Schools in Malvern

  • De La Salle College Catholic · Combined above peers
  • St Joseph's School Catholic · Primary above peers
  • Malvern Central School Government · Primary at peers
  • De La Salle College - Kinnoull Campus Catholic · Combined

Amenities in the suburb

Armadale Malvern
Supermarkets 2 3
Cafes & restaurants 9 19
Parks & reserves 6 7
Childcare 9 8
GPs 3 7
Pharmacies 3 6
Hospitals 0 1
Police stations 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 1 6
Fuel stations 1
same for both
EV chargers 1
same for both

Mobility

Armadale Malvern
Walkability score 99/100
same for both
Distance to Melbourne 10.4 km 12 km
+15% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 19 min 21 min
Public transport score 96/100
Rail · Tram · Bus
 98/100
Rail · Tram · Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 291.8
7-9am + 5-7pm
 303.0
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 0 min
scheduled, not actual
same for both
Electric vehicle share 2.8%
postcode 3143
 3.2%
postcode 3144
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 8
postcode 3143
 13
postcode 3144

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.

Armadale Malvern
Worked from Home 50.9% / 49.6%
Armadale — Worked from Home: 50.9% Malvern — Worked from Home: 49.6%
Car (driver) 34.0% / 36.7%
Armadale — Car (driver): 34.0% Malvern — Car (driver): 36.7%
Train 6.4% / 4.6%
Armadale — Train: 6.4% Malvern — Train: 4.6%
Walked Only 3.3% / 4.6%
Armadale — Walked Only: 3.3% Malvern — Walked Only: 4.6%
Tram / Light Rail 2.4% / 1.6%
Armadale — Tram / Light Rail: 2.4% Malvern — Tram / Light Rail: 1.6%
Car (passenger) 1.8% / 1.9%
Armadale — Car (passenger): 1.8% Malvern — Car (passenger): 1.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (50.9%).

Setting

Armadale Malvern
Elevation 49 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 55 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 4.2 km
4.3 km to a named beach
 5.4 km

NBN connectivity

Armadale Malvern
Connectivity score 77/100 78/100
Most common technology Hybrid fibre-coaxial
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 8%
6,000 premises
 12%
6,062 premises

Climate

Armadale Malvern
Annual rainfall 644 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 26.0°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 6.9°C
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Armadale Malvern
PM2.5 7.6 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 —
same for both
NO₂ —
same for both

Council rates

Armadale Malvern
Average residential rate $1,647/yr
same for both
Council Stonnington
same for both

Federal electorate

Armadale Malvern
Division Kooyong
same for both
Member Monique Ryan
same for both
Party Independent
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Armadale Malvern
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Armadale

Apartments Easy Commute Inner Parks Professionals Trams Transport Hub Urban

Malvern

Apartments Easy Commute Inner Parks Professionals Trams Transport Hub Urban

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Armadale

Armadale vs Caulfield North Armadale vs Toorak Armadale vs St Kilda East Armadale vs Prahran

Other comparisons with Malvern

Malvern vs Glen Iris Malvern vs Hawthorn Malvern vs Malvern East Malvern vs Caulfield North Malvern vs Hawthorn East Malvern vs Toorak
Full data on Armadale Full data on Malvern
Unlock full address-level data — $29/month

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.

Save this page for later

We'll email you a link to this page so you can finish reading it on any device. We use your address once to send it and don't keep it.

or