Carnegie vs Bentleigh East
Carnegie is the younger of the two, with a median age of 36 against 40 in Bentleigh East. In both, most households own their home. In Carnegie, about half of households are people living alone. In Bentleigh East, most homes are detached houses and about half of households are couple families. Houses cost more in Carnegie: a median of $1.66 million, against $1.45 million in Bentleigh East, though rent is higher in Bentleigh East. Carnegie is closer to the city centre: 15.2 km, against 22.2 km. On these figures, Carnegie tends to suit young adults and people living alone, while Bentleigh East suits families with children and couples.
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
Bentleigh East
ahead on 6 of the 6 things we measure here
- has more childcare (20 vs 5)
- has more parks and reserves (15 vs 5)
- has more separate houses rather than flats (69% vs 32%)
- But Carnegie has more schools rated above their peers (3 vs 2)
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
- Carnegie has cheaper units ($561,000 vs $775,000)
- Bentleigh East has cheaper houses ($1,450,000 vs $1,655,000)
Weighs house prices, unit prices, and mortgage stress.
Renters
Carnegie
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a bigger rental market to choose from (43% vs 24%)
- has cheaper rent ($395/wk vs $500/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Carnegie
ahead on 3 of the 4 things we measure here
- gets more of its commuters onto trains and trams (9% vs 3%)
- sits closer to the CBD (15.2 km vs 22.2 km)
- is more walkable (99/100 vs 85/100)
Weighs distance, drive time, rail access, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
They split
one each way, out of the 5 things we measure here
- Carnegie has more units and townhouses to downsize into (68% vs 31%)
- Bentleigh East has more GPs (10 vs 5)
Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Bentleigh East
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (9.1% vs 3.0%)
Weighs house yield, unit yield, and population growth.
Where they sit
Carnegie and Bentleigh East 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
Bentleigh East has more residents (30,159 vs 17,909); Bentleigh East rents higher ($500/wk vs $395/wk).
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 17,909 | 30,159 +68% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +3.0% | +9.1% |
| Median age | 36 | 40 |
| Median household income | $97,656/yr | $115,180/yr +18% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $395/wk | $500/wk +27% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.8%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (26.4%).
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.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (9.2%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $1,655,000 | $1,450,000 |
| Median unit price | $561,000 | $775,000 |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | 23 days from 96 sales | 23 days from 173 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.
92 vs 19 sales
234 vs 103 sales
50 vs 47 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.
24 vs 25 sales
69 vs 164 sales
41 vs 131 sales
8 vs 19 sales
Zoning mix
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| Residential | 85% same for both | |
| Infrastructure and transport | 6% | 7% |
| Parks and recreation | 5% | 4% |
| Commercial | 4% | 1% |
| Other and special use | 0% | 3% |
| 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
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 617 across Glen Eira same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -69% same for both | |
Gross rental yield
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 3.2% $900/wk on $1.45M | 3.6% $980/wk on $1.42M |
| Units | 5.3% $582/wk on $575K | 5.0% $630/wk on $652K |
Ranking within VIC
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 94% of VIC | Higher than 87% of VIC |
| Income | Higher than 70% of VIC | Higher than 87% of VIC |
| Schools | Higher than 96% of VIC | Higher than 57% of VIC |
| Walkability | Higher than 100% of VIC | Higher than 95% of VIC |
| Affordability | Higher than 5% of VIC | Higher than 20% of VIC |
| EV adoption | Higher than 92% of VIC | Higher than 95% of VIC |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 89% of VIC | Higher than 85% of VIC |
| Rental yield (houses) | Higher than 24% of VIC | Higher than 41% of VIC |
| Rental yield (units) | Higher than 74% of VIC | Higher than 62% of VIC |
Liveability
Carnegie is more walkable (99 vs 85); Carnegie scores higher overall (86 vs 79).
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | A+ | A |
| Score | 86/100 | 79/100 |
| Socio-economic band | very advantaged area decile 10/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Carnegie carries more flood risk (49 vs 30); Carnegie carries more crime risk (61 vs 43).
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Crime | Moderate 61/100 | Moderate 43/100 |
| Flood | Moderate 49/100 | Low 30/100 |
| Coastal erosion | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 9 within 5 km | 13 within 5 km |
Schools
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 4 | 8 |
| Rated above peers | 3 | 2 |
| Rated at peers | 0 | 2 |
| Rated below peers | 0 | 1 |
| Universities within 10 km | 3 Monash Caulfield, 1.8 km | 3 Monash Caulfield, 5.0 km |
| Full-time students aged 15–24 | 4.4% | 2.9% |
Schools in Carnegie
- Carnegie Primary School Government · Primary above peers
- Glen Huntly Primary School Government · Primary above peers
- St Anthony's School Catholic · Primary above peers
- Noble Park English Language School-Stonnington Glen Eira Campus Government · Primary · Special school
Schools in Bentleigh East
- Coatesville Primary School Government · Primary above peers
- Valkstone Primary School Government · Primary above peers
- Bentleigh Secondary College Government · Secondary at peers
- St Peter's School Catholic · Primary at peers
- East Bentleigh Primary School Government · Primary below peers
- McKinnon Secondary College - East Campus Government · Secondary
Amenities in the suburb
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| Supermarkets | 8 | 2 |
| Cafes & restaurants | 49 | 27 |
| Parks & reserves | 5 | 15 |
| Childcare | 5 | 20 |
| GPs | 5 | 10 |
| Pharmacies | 4 | 3 |
| Hospitals | 0 | 1 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 1 | 3 |
| Fuel stations | 0 | 4 |
Mobility
Bentleigh East sits further from the CBD (22.2 km vs 15.2 km).
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 99/100 | 85/100 |
| Distance to Melbourne | 15.2 km | 22.2 km +46% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 27 min | 30 min |
| Public transport score | 80/100 Rail · Tram · Bus | 79/100 Bus |
| Peak arrivals per hour | 259.2 7-9am + 5-7pm | 463.0 7-9am + 5-7pm |
| Median peak wait | 0 min scheduled, not actual same for both | |
| Electric vehicle share | 1.7% postcode 3163 | 2.2% postcode 3165 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 13 postcode 3163 | 23 postcode 3165 |
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 (49.5%).
Setting
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 46 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 52 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 6.1 km | 6.3 km |
NBN connectivity
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 78/100 | 76/100 |
| Most common technology | Hybrid fibre-coaxial same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 12% 9,997 premises | 3% 12,873 premises |
Climate
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| 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)
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 | 7.6 µg/m³ same for both | |
| PM10 | — same for both | |
| NO₂ | — same for both | |
Council rates
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,577/yr same for both | |
| Council | Glen Eira same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Hotham same for both | |
| Member | Clare O'Neil same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Carnegie | Bentleigh East | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Carnegie
Bentleigh East
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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.