Bellarine vs Portarlington

Bellarine is the younger of the two, with a median age of 57 against 62 in Portarlington. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Bellarine, about half of households are couple families. In Portarlington, most households are people living alone. On these figures, Bellarine tends to suit couples, while Portarlington suits people living alone and older residents.

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

Bellarine

ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (10/100 vs 42/100)
  • is already more of a family suburb (65% vs 39%)
  • But Portarlington has more parks and reserves (10 vs 0)

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

First-home buyers

Bellarine

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • leaves households under less mortgage stress (18% vs 36%)

Weighs mortgage stress.

Renters

They split

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

  • Bellarine leaves renters under less rental stress (16% vs 31%)
  • Portarlington has a bigger rental market to choose from (22% vs 8%)

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

Commuting to the city

Bellarine

ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (12/100 vs 0/100)
  • has a shorter drive in (91 min vs 96 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (101.2 km vs 106.6 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

They split

one each way, out of the 4 things we measure here

  • Bellarine is more walkable (12/100 vs 0/100)
  • Portarlington has more GPs (3 vs 0)

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

Investors

Portarlington

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (22.6% vs 0.0%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

Bellarine Portarlington
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.

Bellarine Portarlington
Walkability 12 / 0
Bellarine — Walkability: 12/100 Portarlington — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 90 / 58
Bellarine — Safety: 90/100 Portarlington — Safety: 58/100
Low fire risk 100 / 100
Bellarine — Low fire risk: 100/100 Portarlington — Low fire risk: 100/100
Low flood risk 76 / 47
Bellarine — Low flood risk: 76/100 Portarlington — Low flood risk: 47/100

Demographics

Portarlington has more residents (4,436 vs 169); Bellarine has higher household incomes ($115,128 vs $55,328).

Bellarine Portarlington
Population 169 4,436
+2525% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +0.0% +22.6%
Median age 57 62
Median household income $115,128/yr
+52% vs other
 $55,328/yr
Median weekly rent $350/wk
+5% vs other
 $331/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Bellarine Portarlington
0-4 — / 2.4%
Bellarine — 0-4: not among its largest Portarlington — 0-4: 2.4%
5-14 7.1% / 7.1%
Bellarine — 5-14: 7.1% Portarlington — 5-14: 7.1%
15-19 4.7% / 3.2%
Bellarine — 15-19: 4.7% Portarlington — 15-19: 3.2%
20-24 7.7% / 2.8%
Bellarine — 20-24: 7.7% Portarlington — 20-24: 2.8%
25-34 7.1% / 5.3%
Bellarine — 25-34: 7.1% Portarlington — 25-34: 5.3%
35-44 5.9% / 7.2%
Bellarine — 35-44: 5.9% Portarlington — 35-44: 7.2%
45-54 14.8% / 10.4%
Bellarine — 45-54: 14.8% Portarlington — 45-54: 10.4%
55-64 19.5% / 17.9%
Bellarine — 55-64: 19.5% Portarlington — 55-64: 17.9%
65-74 18.3% / 24.6%
Bellarine — 65-74: 18.3% Portarlington — 65-74: 24.6%
75-84 11.2% / 14.4%
Bellarine — 75-84: 11.2% Portarlington — 75-84: 14.4%
85+ 5.3% / 4.6%
Bellarine — 85+: 5.3% Portarlington — 85+: 4.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (24.6%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Bellarine 35.1% lone person
Bellarine — Lone Person: 35.1% Bellarine — Couple Families: 54.1% Bellarine — One Parent Families: 10.8% Bellarine — Group Household: 0.0% Bellarine — Other Families: 0.0%
Portarlington 55.5% lone person
Portarlington — Lone Person: 55.5% Portarlington — Couple Families: 26.3% Portarlington — One Parent Families: 12.6% Portarlington — Group Household: 3.9% Portarlington — Other Families: 1.7%
Lone Person Couple Families One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Bellarine 8.3% renting
Bellarine — Owned Outright: 68.3% Bellarine — Mortgage: 23.3% Bellarine — Renting: 8.3%
Portarlington 21.7% renting
Portarlington — Owned Outright: 57.3% Portarlington — Mortgage: 21.0% Portarlington — Renting: 21.7%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Bellarine Portarlington
Certificate III & IV 15.4% / 16.0%
Bellarine — Certificate III & IV: 15.4% Portarlington — Certificate III & IV: 16.0%
Bachelor Degree 14.8% / 9.9%
Bellarine — Bachelor Degree: 14.8% Portarlington — Bachelor Degree: 9.9%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 11.8% / 9.6%
Bellarine — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 11.8% Portarlington — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 9.6%
Postgraduate Degree 6.5% / 4.1%
Bellarine — Postgraduate Degree: 6.5% Portarlington — Postgraduate Degree: 4.1%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 5.3% / 2.5%
Bellarine — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 5.3% Portarlington — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (16.0%).

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.

Bellarine Portarlington
England 4.7% / 5.1%
Bellarine — England: 4.7% Portarlington — England: 5.1%
South Africa 1.8% / —
Bellarine — South Africa: 1.8% Portarlington — South Africa: not among its largest
New Zealand — / 1.7%
Bellarine — New Zealand: not among its largest Portarlington — New Zealand: 1.7%
Italy — / 0.8%
Bellarine — Italy: not among its largest Portarlington — Italy: 0.8%
Greece — / 0.7%
Bellarine — Greece: not among its largest Portarlington — Greece: 0.7%
Germany — / 0.6%
Bellarine — Germany: not among its largest Portarlington — Germany: 0.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (5.1%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Bellarine 100.0% houses
Bellarine — Houses: 100.0% Bellarine — Townhouses: 0.0% Bellarine — Flats / Apartments: 0.0%
Portarlington 90.8% houses
Portarlington — Houses: 90.8% Portarlington — Townhouses: 8.1% Portarlington — Flats / Apartments: 1.1%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Bellarine Portarlington
Median house price — $815,000
Median unit price — $520,000
Median land price — $590,000
Typical days to sell (houses) — 57 days
from 83 sales

Zoning mix

Bellarine has more rural and farming land (98% vs 68%).

Bellarine Portarlington
Rural and farming 98% 68%
Residential 0% 15%
Parks and recreation 1% 8%
Infrastructure and transport 1% 7%
Other and special use 0% 2%
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

Bellarine Portarlington
New dwellings approved 3,468
across Greater Geelong
same for both
Approvals change year on year +56%
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.

Bellarine Portarlington
Houses — 3.1%
$575/wk on $952K
Units — 4.6%
$515/wk on $580K

Ranking within VIC

Bellarine Portarlington
House price — Higher than 51% of VIC
Income Higher than 87% of VIC Higher than 14% of VIC
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 74% of VIC Higher than 2% of VIC
Affordability — Higher than 15% of VIC
EV adoption Higher than 68% of VIC
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 46% of VIC Higher than 79% of VIC
Rental yield (houses) — Higher than 19% of VIC
Rental yield (units) — Higher than 39% of VIC

Liveability

Bellarine is more walkable (12 vs 0).

Bellarine Portarlington
Grade — C
Score — 45/100
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 9/10
 mid-range socio-economic
decile 4/10

Risk profile

Portarlington carries more crime risk (42 vs 10); Portarlington carries more flood risk (53 vs 24).

Bellarine Portarlington
Bushfire None
0/100
same for both
Crime Low
10/100
 Moderate
42/100
Flood Low
24/100
 Moderate
53/100
Coastal erosion Moderate
67/100
 Moderate
69/100
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 2
within 5 km
 3
within 5 km

Schools

Bellarine Portarlington
Inside the suburb 0 1
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0 1
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Schools in Bellarine

No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.

Schools in Portarlington

  • Portarlington Primary School Government · Primary at peers

Amenities in the suburb

Bellarine Portarlington
Supermarkets 0 1
Cafes & restaurants 0 7
Parks & reserves 0 10
Childcare 0 2
GPs 0 3
Pharmacies 0 1
Police stations 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 2
Fuel stations 0 1

Mobility

Portarlington sits further from the CBD (106.6 km vs 101.2 km).

Bellarine Portarlington
Walkability score 12/100 0/100
Distance to Melbourne 101.2 km 106.6 km
+5% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 91 min 96 min
Public transport score 35/100 76/100
Peak arrivals per hour 4.5
7-9am + 5-7pm
 33.2
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 1 min
scheduled, not actual
same for both
Electric vehicle share 0.8%
postcode 3223
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 34
postcode 3223
same for both

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.

Bellarine Portarlington
Car (driver) 50.9% / 63.3%
Bellarine — Car (driver): 50.9% Portarlington — Car (driver): 63.3%
Worked from Home 36.4% / 28.2%
Bellarine — Worked from Home: 36.4% Portarlington — Worked from Home: 28.2%
Walked Only 7.3% / 2.7%
Bellarine — Walked Only: 7.3% Portarlington — Walked Only: 2.7%
Car (passenger) 5.5% / 4.1%
Bellarine — Car (passenger): 5.5% Portarlington — Car (passenger): 4.1%
Bus — / 1.1%
Bellarine — Bus: not among its largest Portarlington — Bus: 1.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (63.3%).

Setting

Bellarine Portarlington
Elevation 56 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 35 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 1.8 km 2.7 km
2.7 km to a named beach

NBN connectivity

Bellarine Portarlington
Connectivity score 29/100 70/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless Fibre to the node
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 1%
79 premises
 47%
3,388 premises

Climate

Bellarine Portarlington
Annual rainfall —
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 22.8°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 7.8°C
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Bellarine Portarlington
PM2.5 5.0 µg/m³ —
PM10 20.5 µg/m³ —
NO₂ —
same for both

Council rates

Bellarine Portarlington
Average residential rate $1,802/yr
same for both
Council Greater Geelong
same for both

Federal electorate

Bellarine Portarlington
Division Corangamite
same for both
Member Libby Coker
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Bellarine Portarlington
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Bellarine

Coastal Outer Retirees

Portarlington

Acreage Coastal Outer Retirees

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Bellarine

Bellarine vs Clifton Springs Bellarine vs Drysdale

Other comparisons with Portarlington

Portarlington vs Drysdale Portarlington vs St Leonards Portarlington vs Indented Head
Full data on Bellarine Full data on Portarlington
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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.

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