Browns Plains vs Barnawartha

Barnawartha is the younger of the two, with a median age of 40 against 55 in Browns Plains. In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are couple families. On these figures, Browns Plains tends to suit couples and older residents, while Barnawartha suits families with children.

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

Barnawartha

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • carries lower crime risk (26/100 vs 86/100)

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

First-home buyers

Barnawartha

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • leaves households under less mortgage stress (20% vs 32%)

Weighs mortgage stress.

Renters

Browns Plains

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper rent ($200/wk vs $293/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Too close to call

Nothing among the 3 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Barnawartha

ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (26/100 vs 86/100)
  • has more GPs (2 vs 0)
  • But Browns Plains has more residents already 65 and over (24% vs 13%)

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

Investors

Barnawartha

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (9.2% vs -2.9%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

Browns Plains Barnawartha
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.

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Walkability 0 / 0
Browns Plains — Walkability: 0/100 Barnawartha — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 14 / 74
Browns Plains — Safety: 14/100 Barnawartha — Safety: 74/100
Low fire risk 27 / 24
Browns Plains — Low fire risk: 27/100 Barnawartha — Low fire risk: 24/100
Low flood risk 27 / 34
Browns Plains — Low flood risk: 27/100 Barnawartha — Low flood risk: 34/100

Demographics

Barnawartha has more residents (987 vs 99); Barnawartha rents higher ($293/wk vs $200/wk).

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Population 99 987
+897% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) -2.9% +9.2%
Median age 55 40
Median household income $73,112/yr $90,584/yr
+24% vs other
Median weekly rent $200/wk $293/wk
+46% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Browns Plains Barnawartha
0-4 — / 7.6%
Browns Plains — 0-4: not among its largest Barnawartha — 0-4: 7.6%
5-14 13.1% / 13.0%
Browns Plains — 5-14: 13.1% Barnawartha — 5-14: 13.0%
15-19 8.1% / 6.5%
Browns Plains — 15-19: 8.1% Barnawartha — 15-19: 6.5%
20-24 3.0% / 4.3%
Browns Plains — 20-24: 3.0% Barnawartha — 20-24: 4.3%
25-34 3.0% / 13.0%
Browns Plains — 25-34: 3.0% Barnawartha — 25-34: 13.0%
35-44 4.0% / 13.0%
Browns Plains — 35-44: 4.0% Barnawartha — 35-44: 13.0%
45-54 16.2% / 14.1%
Browns Plains — 45-54: 16.2% Barnawartha — 45-54: 14.1%
55-64 25.3% / 15.1%
Browns Plains — 55-64: 25.3% Barnawartha — 55-64: 15.1%
65-74 21.2% / 9.3%
Browns Plains — 65-74: 21.2% Barnawartha — 65-74: 9.3%
75-84 3.0% / 3.6%
Browns Plains — 75-84: 3.0% Barnawartha — 75-84: 3.6%
85+ — / 0.3%
Browns Plains — 85+: not among its largest Barnawartha — 85+: 0.3%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (25.3%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Browns Plains 71.4% couple families
Browns Plains — Couple Families: 71.4% Browns Plains — Lone Person: 28.6% Browns Plains — One Parent Families: 0.0% Browns Plains — Group Household: 0.0%
Barnawartha 55.1% couple families
Barnawartha — Couple Families: 55.1% Barnawartha — Lone Person: 30.9% Barnawartha — One Parent Families: 9.3% Barnawartha — Group Household: 4.7%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Browns Plains 13.5% renting
Browns Plains — Owned Outright: 48.6% Browns Plains — Mortgage: 37.8% Browns Plains — Renting: 13.5%
Barnawartha 8.0% renting
Barnawartha — Owned Outright: 35.4% Barnawartha — Mortgage: 56.6% Barnawartha — Renting: 8.0%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

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.

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Indonesia 3.0% / —
Browns Plains — Indonesia: 3.0% Barnawartha — Indonesia: not among its largest
England — / 2.5%
Browns Plains — England: not among its largest Barnawartha — England: 2.5%
New Zealand — / 1.0%
Browns Plains — New Zealand: not among its largest Barnawartha — New Zealand: 1.0%
India — / 0.4%
Browns Plains — India: not among its largest Barnawartha — India: 0.4%
Germany — / 0.4%
Browns Plains — Germany: not among its largest Barnawartha — Germany: 0.4%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (3.0%).

Qualifications

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

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Certificate III & IV 13.1% / 23.0%
Browns Plains — Certificate III & IV: 13.1% Barnawartha — Certificate III & IV: 23.0%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 15.2% / 7.5%
Browns Plains — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 15.2% Barnawartha — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 7.5%
Bachelor Degree 14.1% / 6.2%
Browns Plains — Bachelor Degree: 14.1% Barnawartha — Bachelor Degree: 6.2%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 3.0% / 2.2%
Browns Plains — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.0% Barnawartha — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.2%
Postgraduate Degree — / 1.5%
Browns Plains — Postgraduate Degree: not among its largest Barnawartha — Postgraduate Degree: 1.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (23.0%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Browns Plains 100.0% houses
Browns Plains — Houses: 100.0% Browns Plains — Townhouses: 0.0% Browns Plains — Flats / Apartments: 0.0%
Barnawartha 95.2% houses
Barnawartha — Houses: 95.2% Barnawartha — Townhouses: 4.2% Barnawartha — Flats / Apartments: 0.6%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Median house price — $519,750
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price — $281,500
Typical days to sell (houses) — 48 days
from 4 sales

Zoning mix

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Rural and farming 95% 86%
Parks and recreation 3% 6%
Residential 0% 3%
Infrastructure and transport 2% 3%
Industrial 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

Browns Plains Barnawartha
New dwellings approved 120
across Indigo
same for both
Approvals change year on year +15%
same for both

Ranking within VIC

Browns Plains Barnawartha
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 38% of VIC Higher than 60% of VIC
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 48% of VIC Higher than 43% of VIC
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption Higher than 49% of VIC Higher than 65% of VIC
NBN connectivity Higher than 65% of VIC Higher than 63% of VIC

Liveability

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Grade — D
Score — 22/100
Socio-economic band advantaged area
decile 8/10
 mid-range socio-economic
decile 5/10

Risk profile

Browns Plains carries more crime risk (86 vs 26).

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Bushfire High
73/100
 High
76/100
Crime High
86/100
 Low
26/100
Flood High
73/100
 Moderate
66/100
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 1
within 5 km
 3
within 5 km

Schools

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Inside the suburb 0 1
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 0 1

Schools in Browns Plains

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

Schools in Barnawartha

  • Barnawartha Primary School Government · Primary below peers

Amenities in the suburb

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Parks & reserves 2 3
Childcare 0 1
GPs 0 2
Banks & Bank@Post 0 1
Waterways 2
same for both

Mobility

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Walkability score 0/100
same for both
Distance to Melbourne 303.4 km 302.4 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 196 min 195 min
Electric vehicle share 0.5%
postcode 3685
 0.7%
postcode 3688
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 67
postcode 3685
 82
postcode 3688

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.

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Car (driver) 68.6% / 79.7%
Browns Plains — Car (driver): 68.6% Barnawartha — Car (driver): 79.7%
Worked from Home 21.6% / 12.9%
Browns Plains — Worked from Home: 21.6% Barnawartha — Worked from Home: 12.9%
Car (passenger) 9.8% / 4.5%
Browns Plains — Car (passenger): 9.8% Barnawartha — Car (passenger): 4.5%
Walked Only — / 2.9%
Browns Plains — Walked Only: not among its largest Barnawartha — Walked Only: 2.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (79.7%).

Setting

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Elevation 158 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 168 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Connectivity score 30/100
same for both
Most common technology Fixed wireless
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
44 premises
 0%
376 premises

Climate

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Annual rainfall 567 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 31.7°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 2.1°C
same for both

Council rates

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Average residential rate $1,828/yr
same for both
Council Indigo
same for both

Federal electorate

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Division Indi
same for both
Member Helen Haines
same for both
Party Independent
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Browns Plains Barnawartha
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Browns Plains

Rural

Barnawartha

Affordable Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Browns Plains

Browns Plains vs Rutherglen Browns Plains vs Cornishtown Browns Plains vs Gooramadda

Other comparisons with Barnawartha

Barnawartha vs Chiltern Barnawartha vs Indigo Valley Barnawartha vs Barnawartha North Barnawartha vs Cornishtown
Full data on Browns Plains Full data on Barnawartha
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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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