Corio vs North Shore
Corio is the younger of the two, with a median age of 35 against 45 in North Shore. In both, the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Corio, most households own their home. In North Shore, about half of households rent and most households are people living alone. Houses cost more in North Shore: a median of $703,000, against $560,000 in Corio, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Corio tends to suit families with children and buyers on a tighter budget, while North Shore 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
Corio
ahead on 4 of the 6 things we measure here
- has more parks and reserves (28 vs 0)
- has more schools inside the suburb (8 vs 0)
- has more childcare (8 vs 0)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Corio
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper houses ($560,000 vs $702,600)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Corio
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($280/wk vs $310/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Corio
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- is more walkable (74/100 vs 46/100)
- sits closer to the CBD (64.3 km vs 67.6 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Corio
ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here
- has more GPs (6 vs 0)
- is more walkable (74/100 vs 46/100)
- But North Shore has more units and townhouses to downsize into (20% vs 8%)
Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Corio
ahead on 2 of the 2 things we measure here
- is growing faster (1.3% vs -9.0%)
- returns a higher gross yield on houses (4.2% vs 3.0%)
Weighs house yield and population growth.
Where they sit
Corio and North Shore 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
Corio has more residents (15,497 vs 325); North Shore skews older (45 vs 35).
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 15,497 +98% vs other | 325 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +1.3% | -9.0% |
| Median age | 35 | 45 |
| Median household income | $59,904/yr | $69,004/yr +15% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $280/wk | $310/wk +11% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (16.6%).
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 (17.5%).
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 (3.1%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $560,000 | $702,600 |
| Median unit price | $430,000 | — |
| Median land price | $500,000 | — |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | 21 days from 210 sales | 68 days from 3 sales |
Zoning mix
North Shore has more industrially zoned land (54% vs 26%); North Shore has more commercially zoned land (25% vs 3%).
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Industrial | 26% | 54% |
| Residential | 29% | 8% |
| Commercial | 3% | 25% |
| Rural and farming | 16% | 0% |
| Parks and recreation | 14% | 3% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 10% same for both | |
| Other and special use | 1% | 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
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 3,468 across Greater Geelong same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +56% same for both | |
Gross rental yield
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 4.2% $480/wk on $592K | 3.0% $460/wk on $804K |
| Units | 4.6% $410/wk on $459K | — |
Ranking within VIC
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 19% of VIC | Higher than 29% of VIC |
| Income | Higher than 20% of VIC | Higher than 31% of VIC |
| Schools | Higher than 2% of VIC | — |
| Walkability | Higher than 91% of VIC | Higher than 85% of VIC |
| Affordability | Higher than 52% of VIC | Higher than 54% of VIC |
| EV adoption | Higher than 18% of VIC same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 91% of VIC | Higher than 92% of VIC |
| Rental yield (houses) | Higher than 81% of VIC | Higher than 12% of VIC |
| Rental yield (units) | Higher than 42% of VIC | — |
Liveability
Corio is more walkable (74 vs 46).
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | C | — |
| Score | 31/100 | — |
| Socio-economic band | high-need area decile 1/10 | below-average income decile 3/10 |
Risk profile
Corio carries more flood risk (47 vs 28).
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Crime | High 91/100 | High 97/100 |
| Flood | Moderate 47/100 | Low 28/100 |
| Coastal erosion | Moderate 52/100 | Moderate 69/100 |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 21 within 5 km | 18 within 5 km |
Schools
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 8 | 0 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 1 | 0 |
| Rated below peers | 2 | 0 |
| Universities within 10 km | 2 Deakin University, Geelong Waterfront Campus, 9.3 km | 2 Deakin University, Geelong Waterfront Campus, 6.2 km |
| Full-time students aged 15–24 | 1.0% | 1.2% |
Schools in Corio
- St Francis Xavier School Catholic · Primary at peers
- Geelong Grammar School - Corio Campus Independent · Combined below peers
- Northern Bay P-12 College Government · Combined below peers
- Geelong English Language School (interim name)-Corio Campus Government · Combined
- Northern Bay P-12 College-Hendy Street P-8 Campus Government · Combined
- Northern Bay P-12 College-Wexford Court P-8 Campus Government · Combined
Schools in North Shore
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Amenities in the suburb
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Supermarkets | 3 | 0 |
| Cafes & restaurants | 3 | 1 |
| Parks & reserves | 28 | 0 |
| Childcare | 8 | 0 |
| GPs | 6 | 0 |
| Pharmacies | 3 | 0 |
| Police stations | 1 | 0 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 3 | 0 |
| Fuel stations | 6 | 0 |
| EV chargers | 2 | 0 |
| Beaches | 1 | 0 |
Mobility
North Shore sits further from the CBD (67.6 km vs 64.3 km).
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 74/100 | 46/100 |
| Distance to Melbourne | 64.3 km | 67.6 km +5% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 52 min | 56 min |
| Public transport score | 86/100 Rail | 88/100 Rail |
| Peak arrivals per hour | 241.5 7-9am + 5-7pm | 28.0 7-9am + 5-7pm |
| Median peak wait | 0 min scheduled, not actual | 1 min scheduled, not actual |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.3% postcode 3214 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 30 postcode 3214 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.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (76.7%).
Setting
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 17 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 18 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 1.7 km 2.7 km to a named beach | 659 m 3.7 km to a named beach |
NBN connectivity
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 82/100 | 83/100 |
| Most common technology | Fibre to the premises same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 63% 7,094 premises | 67% 430 premises |
Climate
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 454 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 26.1°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 5.5°C same for both | |
Air quality (annual mean)
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 | 5.0 µg/m³ same for both | |
| PM10 | 20.5 µg/m³ same for both | |
| NO₂ | — same for both | |
Council rates
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,802/yr same for both | |
| Council | Greater Geelong same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Corio same for both | |
| Member | Richard Marles same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Corio | North Shore | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
North Shore
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Corio
Other comparisons with North Shore
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.