Box Hill vs Nelson

Box Hill is the younger of the two, with a median age of 31 against 47 in Nelson. In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Nelson: a median of $3.95 million, against $1.28 million in Box Hill, though rent is higher in Box Hill. On these figures, Box Hill tends to suit young adults, families with children, and buyers on a tighter budget, while Nelson suits 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

Box Hill

ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here

  • has more childcare (7 vs 0)
  • has more parks and reserves (4 vs 0)

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

First-home buyers

They split

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

  • Box Hill has cheaper houses ($1,280,000 vs $3,950,000)
  • Nelson has cheaper land ($22,000 vs $810,000)

Weighs house prices, land prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

Nelson

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper rent ($450/wk vs $580/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Box Hill

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is more walkable (31/100 vs 18/100)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

They split

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

  • Box Hill is more walkable (31/100 vs 18/100)
  • Nelson has more residents already 65 and over (27% vs 5%)

Weighs who already lives there, GPs, and walkability.

Where they sit

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

Box Hill Nelson
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.

Box Hill Nelson
Walkability 31 / 18
Box Hill — Walkability: 31/100 Nelson — Walkability: 18/100
Low fire risk 79 / 63
Box Hill — Low fire risk: 79/100 Nelson — Low fire risk: 63/100

Demographics

Box Hill has more residents (6,450 vs 460); Nelson skews older (47 vs 31).

Box Hill Nelson
Population 6,450
+93% vs other
 460
Population trend (2016 → 2021) — +1.3%
Median age 31 47
Median household income $149,812/yr
+17% vs other
 $124,748/yr
Median weekly rent $580/wk
+22% vs other
 $450/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Box Hill Nelson
0-4 11.8% / 5.0%
Box Hill — 0-4: 11.8% Nelson — 0-4: 5.0%
5-14 16.8% / 11.7%
Box Hill — 5-14: 16.8% Nelson — 5-14: 11.7%
15-19 4.2% / 3.5%
Box Hill — 15-19: 4.2% Nelson — 15-19: 3.5%
20-24 4.5% / 7.0%
Box Hill — 20-24: 4.5% Nelson — 20-24: 7.0%
25-34 20.6% / 9.8%
Box Hill — 25-34: 20.6% Nelson — 25-34: 9.8%
35-44 23.1% / 10.4%
Box Hill — 35-44: 23.1% Nelson — 35-44: 10.4%
45-54 9.0% / 14.8%
Box Hill — 45-54: 9.0% Nelson — 45-54: 14.8%
55-64 5.1% / 12.8%
Box Hill — 55-64: 5.1% Nelson — 55-64: 12.8%
65-74 3.6% / 17.6%
Box Hill — 65-74: 3.6% Nelson — 65-74: 17.6%
75-84 1.0% / 8.0%
Box Hill — 75-84: 1.0% Nelson — 75-84: 8.0%
85+ 0.2% / 1.7%
Box Hill — 85+: 0.2% Nelson — 85+: 1.7%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (23.1%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Box Hill 77.2% couple families
Box Hill — Couple Families: 77.2% Box Hill — One Parent Families: 11.2% Box Hill — Lone Person: 8.7% Box Hill — Group Household: 1.8% Box Hill — Other Families: 1.1%
Nelson 68.4% couple families
Nelson — Couple Families: 68.4% Nelson — One Parent Families: 13.3% Nelson — Lone Person: 11.2% Nelson — Group Household: 7.1% Nelson — Other Families: 0.0%
Couple Families One Parent Families Lone Person Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Box Hill 20.1% renting
Box Hill — Owned Outright: 10.1% Box Hill — Mortgage: 69.8% Box Hill — Renting: 20.1%
Nelson 18.6% renting
Nelson — Owned Outright: 59.7% Nelson — Mortgage: 21.7% Nelson — Renting: 18.6%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Box Hill Nelson
Bachelor Degree 20.6% / 10.4%
Box Hill — Bachelor Degree: 20.6% Nelson — Bachelor Degree: 10.4%
Certificate III & IV 9.8% / 20.4%
Box Hill — Certificate III & IV: 9.8% Nelson — Certificate III & IV: 20.4%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 8.0% / 8.9%
Box Hill — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.0% Nelson — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.9%
Postgraduate Degree 9.3% / 0.9%
Box Hill — Postgraduate Degree: 9.3% Nelson — Postgraduate Degree: 0.9%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 1.7% / 1.1%
Box Hill — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.7% Nelson — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.6%).

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.

Box Hill Nelson
India 12.2% / —
Box Hill — India: 12.2% Nelson — India: not among its largest
Philippines 5.3% / 0.9%
Box Hill — Philippines: 5.3% Nelson — Philippines: 0.9%
England 1.8% / 1.5%
Box Hill — England: 1.8% Nelson — England: 1.5%
Nepal 2.4% / —
Box Hill — Nepal: 2.4% Nelson — Nepal: not among its largest
Pakistan 2.3% / —
Box Hill — Pakistan: 2.3% Nelson — Pakistan: not among its largest
Sri Lanka 2.0% / —
Box Hill — Sri Lanka: 2.0% Nelson — Sri Lanka: not among its largest
Italy — / 1.3%
Box Hill — Italy: not among its largest Nelson — Italy: 1.3%
New Zealand — / 0.9%
Box Hill — New Zealand: not among its largest Nelson — New Zealand: 0.9%
Malaysia — / 0.9%
Box Hill — Malaysia: not among its largest Nelson — Malaysia: 0.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (12.2%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Box Hill 98.8% houses
Box Hill — Houses: 98.8% Box Hill — Townhouses: 0.8% Box Hill — Flats / Apartments: 0.5%
Nelson 102.9% houses
Nelson — Houses: 102.9% Nelson — Townhouses: 0.0% Nelson — Flats / Apartments: 0.0%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Box Hill Nelson
Median house price $1,280,000 $3,950,000
Median unit price $1,229,990 —
Median land price $810,000 $22,000
Typical days to sell (houses) 44 days
from 354 sales
 —

Zoning mix

Nelson has more rural and farming land (100% vs 1%).

Box Hill Nelson
Rural and farming 1% 100%
Residential 69% 0%
Commercial 9% 0%
Infrastructure and transport 8% 0%
Environmental 7% 0%
Parks and recreation 6% 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

Box Hill Nelson
New dwellings approved 2,648
across The Hills
same for both
Approvals change year on year -4%
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.

Box Hill Nelson
Houses 3.7%
$890/wk on $1.25M
 —
Units —
same for both

Ranking within NSW

Box Hill Nelson
House price Higher than 65% of NSW Higher than 97% of NSW
Income Higher than 95% of NSW Higher than 87% of NSW
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 75% of NSW Higher than 69% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 76% of NSW Higher than 5% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 96% of NSW
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 98% of NSW Higher than 59% of NSW
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 57% of NSW —

Liveability

Box Hill is more walkable (31 vs 18).

Box Hill Nelson
Grade B —
Score 63/100 —
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 10/10
 very advantaged area
decile 9/10

Risk profile

Nelson carries more bushfire risk (37 vs 21).

Box Hill Nelson
Bushfire Low
21/100
 Low
37/100
Crime Moderate
65/100
 —
Flood Not mapped
no mapped data here
same for both
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 4
within 5 km
 1
within 5 km

Schools

Box Hill Nelson
Inside the suburb 1 0
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Schools in Box Hill

  • Box Hill Public School Government · Primary

Schools in Nelson

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

Amenities in the suburb

Box Hill Nelson
Supermarkets 2 0
Parks & reserves 4 0
Childcare 7 0
GPs 1 0
Pharmacies 1 0
Waterways 0 1

Mobility

Box Hill Nelson
Walkability score 31/100 18/100
Distance to Sydney 47.3 km 48.9 km
+3% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 46 min 49 min
Public transport score 79/100
Bus
 61/100
Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 251.5
7-9am + 5-7pm
 21.5
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 0 min
scheduled, not actual
 1 min
scheduled, not actual
Electric vehicle share 2.7%
postcode 2765
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.

Box Hill Nelson
Car (driver) 44.8% / 57.9%
Box Hill — Car (driver): 44.8% Nelson — Car (driver): 57.9%
Worked from Home 48.5% / 38.8%
Box Hill — Worked from Home: 48.5% Nelson — Worked from Home: 38.8%
Car (passenger) 2.4% / 3.4%
Box Hill — Car (passenger): 2.4% Nelson — Car (passenger): 3.4%
Train 3.3% / —
Box Hill — Train: 3.3% Nelson — Train: not among its largest
Bus 0.7% / —
Box Hill — Bus: 0.7% Nelson — Bus: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (57.9%).

Setting

Box Hill Nelson
Elevation 37 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 58 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 31.4 km 29.0 km

NBN connectivity

Box Hill Nelson
Connectivity score 99/100 30/100
Most common technology Fibre to the premises Fixed wireless
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 99%
7,397 premises
 0%
177 premises

Climate

Box Hill Nelson
Annual rainfall 932 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) —
same for both
Winter min (Jul) —
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Box Hill Nelson
PM2.5 6.1 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 15.5 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ 0.53 pphm
same for both

Council rates

Box Hill Nelson
Average residential rate $1,204/yr
same for both
Council The Hills
same for both

Federal electorate

Box Hill Nelson
Division Greenway
same for both
Member Michelle Rowland
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Box Hill Nelson
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Box Hill

Family Large Blocks Multicultural Outer Professionals Young Families

Nelson

Acreage Luxury Outer Retirees

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Box Hill

Box Hill vs Rouse Hill Box Hill vs Grantham Farm Box Hill vs Gables Box Hill vs Oakville Box Hill vs Vineyard

Other comparisons with Nelson

Nelson vs Rouse Hill Nelson vs Gables Nelson vs Annangrove Nelson vs Maraylya
Full data on Box Hill Full data on Nelson
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.

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