Castle Donnington vs Swan Hill

Swan Hill is the younger of the two, with a median age of 38 against 43 in Castle Donnington. In both, most households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Castle Donnington, about half of households are couple families. On these figures, Castle Donnington tends to suit families with children and couples, while Swan Hill suits people living alone.

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

Swan Hill

ahead on 3 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more parks and reserves (24 vs 0)
  • has more childcare (12 vs 0)
  • has more schools inside the suburb (10 vs 0)
  • But Castle Donnington carries lower crime risk (13/100 vs 84/100)

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

Too close to call

Nothing among the 2 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

Weighs rent and rental stress.

Commuting to the city

Castle Donnington

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a shorter drive in (231 min vs 243 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (331.8 km vs 340.7 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

They split

one each way, out of the 5 things we measure here

  • Castle Donnington carries lower crime risk (13/100 vs 84/100)
  • Swan Hill has more GPs (3 vs 0)

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

Investors

Too close to call

Nothing among the 1 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
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.

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Walkability 0 / 4
Castle Donnington — Walkability: 0/100 Swan Hill — Walkability: 4/100
Safety 87 / 16
Castle Donnington — Safety: 87/100 Swan Hill — Safety: 16/100
Low fire risk 63 / 69
Castle Donnington — Low fire risk: 63/100 Swan Hill — Low fire risk: 69/100
Low flood risk 30 / 40
Castle Donnington — Low flood risk: 30/100 Swan Hill — Low flood risk: 40/100

Demographics

Swan Hill has more residents (11,186 vs 139); Castle Donnington skews older (43 vs 38).

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Population 139 11,186
+7947% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +6.1% +2.6%
Median age 43 38
Median household income $80,132/yr
+10% vs other
 $72,280/yr
Median weekly rent $250/wk
+6% vs other
 $235/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
0-4 6.5% / 6.7%
Castle Donnington — 0-4: 6.5% Swan Hill — 0-4: 6.7%
5-14 18.0% / 12.5%
Castle Donnington — 5-14: 18.0% Swan Hill — 5-14: 12.5%
15-19 — / 5.0%
Castle Donnington — 15-19: not among its largest Swan Hill — 15-19: 5.0%
20-24 5.0% / 6.2%
Castle Donnington — 20-24: 5.0% Swan Hill — 20-24: 6.2%
25-34 13.7% / 14.7%
Castle Donnington — 25-34: 13.7% Swan Hill — 25-34: 14.7%
35-44 8.6% / 12.0%
Castle Donnington — 35-44: 8.6% Swan Hill — 35-44: 12.0%
45-54 11.5% / 10.1%
Castle Donnington — 45-54: 11.5% Swan Hill — 45-54: 10.1%
55-64 17.3% / 11.8%
Castle Donnington — 55-64: 17.3% Swan Hill — 55-64: 11.8%
65-74 13.7% / 10.0%
Castle Donnington — 65-74: 13.7% Swan Hill — 65-74: 10.0%
75-84 10.1% / 7.3%
Castle Donnington — 75-84: 10.1% Swan Hill — 75-84: 7.3%
85+ — / 3.7%
Castle Donnington — 85+: not among its largest Swan Hill — 85+: 3.7%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (18.0%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Castle Donnington 51.7% couple families
Castle Donnington — Couple Families: 51.7% Castle Donnington — Lone Person: 24.1% Castle Donnington — One Parent Families: 24.1% Castle Donnington — Group Household: 0.0% Castle Donnington — Other Families: 0.0%
Swan Hill 35.1% couple families
Swan Hill — Couple Families: 35.1% Swan Hill — Lone Person: 42.6% Swan Hill — One Parent Families: 15.9% Swan Hill — Group Household: 4.8% Swan Hill — Other Families: 1.6%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Castle Donnington 0.0% renting
Castle Donnington — Owned Outright: 63.4% Castle Donnington — Mortgage: 36.6% Castle Donnington — Renting: 0.0%
Swan Hill 32.8% renting
Swan Hill — Owned Outright: 36.1% Swan Hill — Mortgage: 31.0% Swan Hill — Renting: 32.8%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Certificate III & IV 13.7% / 15.2%
Castle Donnington — Certificate III & IV: 13.7% Swan Hill — Certificate III & IV: 15.2%
Bachelor Degree 9.4% / 7.7%
Castle Donnington — Bachelor Degree: 9.4% Swan Hill — Bachelor Degree: 7.7%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 7.9% / 6.8%
Castle Donnington — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 7.9% Swan Hill — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.8%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 3.6% / 1.6%
Castle Donnington — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.6% Swan Hill — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.6%
Postgraduate Degree — / 1.5%
Castle Donnington — Postgraduate Degree: not among its largest Swan Hill — Postgraduate Degree: 1.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (15.2%).

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.

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
England 3.6% / 0.9%
Castle Donnington — England: 3.6% Swan Hill — England: 0.9%
Zimbabwe 2.2% / —
Castle Donnington — Zimbabwe: 2.2% Swan Hill — Zimbabwe: not among its largest
India — / 1.9%
Castle Donnington — India: not among its largest Swan Hill — India: 1.9%
Malaysia — / 1.6%
Castle Donnington — Malaysia: not among its largest Swan Hill — Malaysia: 1.6%
Vietnam — / 1.3%
Castle Donnington — Vietnam: not among its largest Swan Hill — Vietnam: 1.3%
Philippines — / 1.1%
Castle Donnington — Philippines: not among its largest Swan Hill — Philippines: 1.1%
Italy — / 0.9%
Castle Donnington — Italy: not among its largest Swan Hill — Italy: 0.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (3.6%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Castle Donnington 88.5% houses
Castle Donnington — Houses: 88.5% Castle Donnington — Flats / Apartments: 11.5% Castle Donnington — Townhouses: 0.0%
Swan Hill 83.0% houses
Swan Hill — Houses: 83.0% Swan Hill — Flats / Apartments: 8.5% Swan Hill — Townhouses: 8.5%
Houses Flats / Apartments Townhouses

Property market

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Median house price — $519,000
Median unit price — $385,000
Median land price — $265,000
Typical days to sell (houses) — 36 days
from 111 sales

Zoning mix

Castle Donnington has more rural and farming land (97% vs 81%).

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Rural and farming 97% 81%
Infrastructure and transport 2% 7%
Residential 0% 7%
Other and special use 0% 2%
Parks and recreation 2% 1%
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

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
New dwellings approved 91
across Swan Hill
same for both
Approvals change year on year -86%
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.

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Houses — 4.7%
$520/wk on $575K
Units — 4.9%
$385/wk on $410K

Ranking within VIC

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
House price — Higher than 14% of VIC
Income Higher than 47% of VIC Higher than 37% of VIC
Schools — Higher than 35% of VIC
Walkability Higher than 42% of VIC Higher than 66% of VIC
Affordability — Higher than 84% of VIC
EV adoption Higher than 2% of VIC
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 44% of VIC Higher than 77% of VIC
Rental yield (houses) — Higher than 94% of VIC
Rental yield (units) — Higher than 55% of VIC

Liveability

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Grade — D
Score — 22/100
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 9/10
 below-average income
decile 3/10

Risk profile

Swan Hill carries more crime risk (84 vs 13); Castle Donnington carries more flood risk (70 vs 60).

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Bushfire Low
37/100
 Low
31/100
Crime Low
13/100
 High
84/100
Flood High
70/100
 Moderate
60/100
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 0
within 5 km
 4
within 5 km

Schools

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Inside the suburb 0 10
Rated above peers 0 1
Rated at peers 0 3
Rated below peers 0 2

Schools in Castle Donnington

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

Schools in Swan Hill

  • St Mary's School Catholic · Primary above peers
  • St Mary MacKillop College Catholic · Secondary at peers
  • Swan Hill North Primary School Government · Primary at peers
  • Swan Hill Primary School Government · Primary at peers
  • Swan Hill Christian School Independent · Primary below peers
  • Swan Hill College Government · Secondary below peers

Amenities in the suburb

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Supermarkets 0 4
Cafes & restaurants 0 19
Parks & reserves 0 24
Childcare 0 12
GPs 0 3
Pharmacies 0 2
Hospitals 0 1
Police stations 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 7
Fuel stations 0 9
EV chargers 0 1
Waterways 1 0

Mobility

Swan Hill sits further from the CBD (340.7 km vs 331.8 km).

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Walkability score 0/100 4/100
Distance to Melbourne 331.8 km 340.7 km
+3% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 231 min 243 min
Electric vehicle share 0.1%
postcode 3585
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 42
postcode 3585
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.

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Car (driver) 78.7% / 78.6%
Castle Donnington — Car (driver): 78.7% Swan Hill — Car (driver): 78.6%
Worked from Home 11.5% / 7.1%
Castle Donnington — Worked from Home: 11.5% Swan Hill — Worked from Home: 7.1%
Walked Only 9.8% / 5.3%
Castle Donnington — Walked Only: 9.8% Swan Hill — Walked Only: 5.3%
Car (passenger) — / 7.3%
Castle Donnington — Car (passenger): not among its largest Swan Hill — Car (passenger): 7.3%
Bicycle — / 1.3%
Castle Donnington — Bicycle: not among its largest Swan Hill — Bicycle: 1.3%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (78.7%).

Setting

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Elevation 76 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 72 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Connectivity score 29/100 66/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless Fibre to the node
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
64 premises
 39%
6,160 premises

Council rates

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Average residential rate $2,333/yr
same for both
Council Swan Hill
same for both

Federal electorate

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Division Mallee
same for both
Member Anne Webster
same for both
Party The Nationals
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Castle Donnington Swan Hill
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Castle Donnington

Family Rural

Swan Hill

Affordable

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Castle Donnington

Castle Donnington vs Lake Boga Castle Donnington vs Pental Island

Other comparisons with Swan Hill

Swan Hill vs Woorinen South Swan Hill vs Tyntynder South Swan Hill vs Pental Island Swan Hill vs Murrawee Swan Hill vs Murraydale
Full data on Castle Donnington Full data on Swan Hill
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.

Save this page for later

We'll email you a link to this page so you can finish reading it on any device. We use your address once to send it and don't keep it.

or