Bookaar vs Darlington
In both, most households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Bookaar, most households are couple families. In Darlington, most households are people living alone. On these figures, Bookaar tends to suit couples, while Darlington 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
Bookaar
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is already more of a family suburb (65% vs 35%)
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
Darlington
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a bigger rental market to choose from (33% vs 7%)
- has cheaper rent ($155/wk vs $210/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Darlington
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- sits closer to the CBD (195.9 km vs 203.3 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Darlington
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has more residents already 65 and over (26% vs 17%)
Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Bookaar
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (-2.5% vs -21.5%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Bookaar and Darlington 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
Bookaar has more residents (159 vs 84); Bookaar has higher household incomes ($88,816 vs $56,316).
| Bookaar | Darlington | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 159 +47% vs other | 84 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -2.5% | -21.5% |
| Median age | 48 | 50 |
| Median household income | $88,816/yr +37% vs other | $56,316/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $210/wk +26% vs other | $155/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.8%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (14.3%).
Zoning mix
| Bookaar | Darlington | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 91% | 99% |
| Parks and recreation | 9% | 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
| Bookaar | Darlington | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 60 across Corangamite | 64 across Moyne |
| Approvals change year on year | +117% | -15% |
Ranking within VIC
| Bookaar | Darlington | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 59% of VIC | Higher than 15% of VIC |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 63% of VIC | Higher than 38% of VIC |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 8% of VIC | — |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 47% of VIC | Higher than 31% of VIC |
Liveability
| Bookaar | Darlington | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | very advantaged area decile 9/10 | advantaged area decile 7/10 |
Risk profile
Darlington carries more bushfire risk (57 vs 0).
| Bookaar | Darlington | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 | Moderate 57/100 |
| Crime | High 78/100 | High 87/100 |
| Flood | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Coastal erosion | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 0 within 5 km same for both | |
Schools
| Bookaar | Darlington | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 same for both | |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Amenities in the suburb
| Bookaar | Darlington | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks & reserves | 2 | 3 |
| Waterways | 6 | 2 |
Mobility
Bookaar sits further from the CBD (203.3 km vs 195.9 km).
| Bookaar | Darlington | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Melbourne | 203.3 km +4% vs other | 195.9 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 147 min | 145 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.2% postcode 3260 | 0.0% postcode 3271 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 29 postcode 3260 | — |
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 (74.2%).
Setting
| Bookaar | Darlington | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 141 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 153 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Bookaar | Darlington | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 29/100 | 27/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 83 premises | 0% 46 premises |
Climate
| Bookaar | Darlington | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 717 mm | 594 mm |
| Summer max (Jan) | — | 26.1°C |
| Winter min (Jul) | — | 4.7°C |
Council rates
| Bookaar | Darlington | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $2,335/yr | $1,613/yr |
| Council | Corangamite | Moyne |
Federal electorate
| Bookaar | Darlington | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Wannon same for both | |
| Member | Dan Tehan same for both | |
| Party | Liberal same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Bookaar | Darlington | |
|---|---|---|
| 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 Bookaar
Other comparisons with Darlington
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.