Donvale vs Mitcham

Mitcham is the younger of the two, with a median age of 39 against 45 in Donvale. In both, most households own their home and most homes are detached houses. In Donvale, most households are couple families. In Mitcham, about half of households are couple families. Houses cost more in Donvale: a median of $1.67 million, against $1.2 million in Mitcham, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Donvale tends to suit couples, while Mitcham suits buyers on a tighter budget.

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

Donvale

ahead on 5 of the 6 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (33/100 vs 60/100)
  • has more schools inside the suburb (7 vs 5)
  • has more separate houses rather than flats (87% vs 63%)
  • But Mitcham has more schools rated above their peers (4 vs 0)

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

First-home buyers

Mitcham

ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here

  • has cheaper land ($870,000 vs $1,361,000)
  • has cheaper houses ($1,200,500 vs $1,665,500)

Weighs house prices, unit prices, land prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

Mitcham

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a bigger rental market to choose from (28% vs 16%)
  • has cheaper rent ($406/wk vs $450/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Mitcham

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is more walkable (91/100 vs 37/100)

Weighs distance, drive time, rail access, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

They split

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

  • Donvale carries lower crime risk (33/100 vs 60/100)
  • Mitcham has more units and townhouses to downsize into (37% vs 13%)

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

Investors

Too close to call

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

Weighs house yield, unit yield, and population growth.

Where they sit

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

Donvale Mitcham
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.

Donvale Mitcham
Walkability 37 / 91
Donvale — Walkability: 37/100 Mitcham — Walkability: 91/100
Safety 67 / 40
Donvale — Safety: 67/100 Mitcham — Safety: 40/100
Low fire risk 13 / 10
Donvale — Low fire risk: 13/100 Mitcham — Low fire risk: 10/100
Low flood risk 54 / 80
Donvale — Low flood risk: 54/100 Mitcham — Low flood risk: 80/100

Demographics

Mitcham has more residents (16,795 vs 12,644); Donvale skews older (45 vs 39).

Donvale Mitcham
Population 12,644 16,795
+33% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +2.4% +4.0%
Median age 45 39
Median household income $109,200/yr
+3% vs other
 $105,560/yr
Median weekly rent $450/wk
+10% vs other
 $406/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Donvale Mitcham
0-4 4.2% / 5.9%
Donvale — 0-4: 4.2% Mitcham — 0-4: 5.9%
5-14 12.3% / 11.8%
Donvale — 5-14: 12.3% Mitcham — 5-14: 11.8%
15-19 6.4% / 5.2%
Donvale — 15-19: 6.4% Mitcham — 15-19: 5.2%
20-24 5.8% / 5.9%
Donvale — 20-24: 5.8% Mitcham — 20-24: 5.9%
25-34 8.4% / 14.1%
Donvale — 25-34: 8.4% Mitcham — 25-34: 14.1%
35-44 12.1% / 15.9%
Donvale — 35-44: 12.1% Mitcham — 35-44: 15.9%
45-54 14.4% / 13.7%
Donvale — 45-54: 14.4% Mitcham — 45-54: 13.7%
55-64 13.0% / 11.2%
Donvale — 55-64: 13.0% Mitcham — 55-64: 11.2%
65-74 10.7% / 8.8%
Donvale — 65-74: 10.7% Mitcham — 65-74: 8.8%
75-84 8.2% / 5.4%
Donvale — 75-84: 8.2% Mitcham — 75-84: 5.4%
85+ 4.6% / 1.9%
Donvale — 85+: 4.6% Mitcham — 85+: 1.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (15.9%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Donvale 57.2% couple families
Donvale — Couple Families: 57.2% Donvale — Lone Person: 27.2% Donvale — One Parent Families: 13.0% Donvale — Group Household: 1.9% Donvale — Other Families: 0.7%
Mitcham 47.2% couple families
Mitcham — Couple Families: 47.2% Mitcham — Lone Person: 33.7% Mitcham — One Parent Families: 12.7% Mitcham — Group Household: 4.8% Mitcham — Other Families: 1.5%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Donvale 16.1% renting
Donvale — Owned Outright: 45.6% Donvale — Mortgage: 38.3% Donvale — Renting: 16.1%
Mitcham 27.9% renting
Mitcham — Owned Outright: 35.6% Mitcham — Mortgage: 36.5% Mitcham — Renting: 27.9%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Donvale Mitcham
Bachelor Degree 20.8% / 21.8%
Donvale — Bachelor Degree: 20.8% Mitcham — Bachelor Degree: 21.8%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 8.3% / 8.6%
Donvale — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.3% Mitcham — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.6%
Certificate III & IV 8.2% / 8.4%
Donvale — Certificate III & IV: 8.2% Mitcham — Certificate III & IV: 8.4%
Postgraduate Degree 7.4% / 9.2%
Donvale — Postgraduate Degree: 7.4% Mitcham — Postgraduate Degree: 9.2%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 3.1% / 3.6%
Donvale — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.1% Mitcham — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.8%).

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.

Donvale Mitcham
China 7.5% / 7.9%
Donvale — China: 7.5% Mitcham — China: 7.9%
Malaysia 3.1% / 2.3%
Donvale — Malaysia: 3.1% Mitcham — Malaysia: 2.3%
India 1.8% / 3.5%
Donvale — India: 1.8% Mitcham — India: 3.5%
England 2.2% / 2.3%
Donvale — England: 2.2% Mitcham — England: 2.3%
Iran 1.9% / 1.0%
Donvale — Iran: 1.9% Mitcham — Iran: 1.0%
Vietnam — / 1.2%
Donvale — Vietnam: not among its largest Mitcham — Vietnam: 1.2%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (7.9%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Donvale 86.8% houses
Donvale — Houses: 86.8% Donvale — Townhouses: 10.3% Donvale — Flats / Apartments: 3.0%
Mitcham 62.8% houses
Mitcham — Houses: 62.8% Mitcham — Townhouses: 32.3% Mitcham — Flats / Apartments: 4.9%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Donvale Mitcham
Median house price $1,665,500 $1,200,500
Median unit price $792,500 $760,000
Median land price $1,361,000 $870,000
Typical days to sell (houses) 26 days
from 112 sales
 24 days
from 156 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.

Donvale Mitcham
2 bed $738K / $680K
Donvale — 2 bed: $738K (27 sales) Mitcham — 2 bed: $680K (67 sales)

27 vs 67 sales

3 bed $972K / $895K
Donvale — 3 bed: $972K (18 sales) Mitcham — 3 bed: $895K (43 sales)

18 vs 43 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.

Donvale Mitcham
3 bed $1.23M / $1.16M
Donvale — 3 bed: $1.23M (32 sales) Mitcham — 3 bed: $1.16M (119 sales)

32 vs 119 sales

4 bed $1.66M / $1.35M
Donvale — 4 bed: $1.66M (73 sales) Mitcham — 4 bed: $1.35M (82 sales)

73 vs 82 sales

5 bed $1.91M / $1.39M
Donvale — 5 bed: $1.91M (43 sales) Mitcham — 5 bed: $1.39M (15 sales)

43 vs 15 sales

Zoning mix

Donvale Mitcham
Residential 78% 73%
Parks and recreation 10% 9%
Infrastructure and transport 6% 10%
Industrial 0% 6%
Environmental 4% 0%
Commercial 0% 2%
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

Donvale Mitcham
New dwellings approved 486
across Manningham
 879
across Whitehorse
Approvals change year on year -2% +17%

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.

Donvale Mitcham
Houses 3.2%
$955/wk on $1.55M
 3.3%
$725/wk on $1.15M
Units 4.6%
$650/wk on $730K
 4.3%
$600/wk on $728K

Ranking within VIC

Donvale Mitcham
House price Higher than 90% of VIC Higher than 81% of VIC
Income Higher than 82% of VIC Higher than 77% of VIC
Schools Higher than 3% of VIC Higher than 97% of VIC
Walkability Higher than 84% of VIC Higher than 97% of VIC
Affordability Higher than 12% of VIC Higher than 23% of VIC
EV adoption Higher than 96% of VIC Higher than 93% of VIC
NBN connectivity Higher than 84% of VIC Higher than 83% of VIC
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 22% of VIC Higher than 26% of VIC
Rental yield (units) Higher than 41% of VIC Higher than 20% of VIC

Liveability

Mitcham is more walkable (91 vs 37); Mitcham scores higher overall (71 vs 46).

Donvale Mitcham
Grade C A
Score 46/100 71/100
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 10/10
same for both

Risk profile

Donvale carries more flood risk (46 vs 20); Mitcham carries more crime risk (60 vs 33).

Donvale Mitcham
Bushfire High
87/100
 High
90/100
Crime Low
33/100
 Moderate
60/100
Flood Moderate
46/100
 Low
20/100
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 1
within 5 km
 2
within 5 km

Schools

Donvale Mitcham
Inside the suburb 7 5
Rated above peers 0 4
Rated at peers 3 0
Rated below peers 1
same for both
Universities within 10 km 1
Deakin University, Melbourne Burwood Campus, 9.7 km
 1
Deakin University, Melbourne Burwood Campus, 8.5 km
Full-time students aged 15–24 3.8% 2.8%

Schools in Donvale

  • Donvale Christian College Independent · Combined at peers
  • Donvale Primary School Government · Primary at peers
  • Our Lady of the Pines School Catholic · Primary at peers
  • Whitefriars College Catholic · Secondary below peers
  • Carey Baptist Grammar School - Donvale Campus Independent · Combined
  • Heatherwood School Government · Secondary · Special school

Schools in Mitcham

  • Antonio Park Primary School Government · Primary above peers
  • Mullauna Secondary College Government · Secondary above peers
  • Rangeview Primary School Government · Primary above peers
  • St John's School Catholic · Primary above peers
  • Mitcham Primary School Government · Primary below peers

Amenities in the suburb

Donvale Mitcham
Supermarkets 0 4
Cafes & restaurants 2 23
Parks & reserves 33 30
Childcare 9 12
GPs 3 4
Pharmacies 0 2
Hospitals 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 2
Fuel stations 1 3
Waterways 4 1

Mobility

Donvale Mitcham
Walkability score 37/100 91/100
Distance to Melbourne 24.3 km 25.9 km
+7% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 30 min 31 min
Public transport score 79/100
Bus
 94/100
Rail · Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 235.2
7-9am + 5-7pm
 334.2
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 0 min
scheduled, not actual
same for both
Electric vehicle share 2.4%
postcode 3111
 1.9%
postcode 3132
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 35
postcode 3111
 25
postcode 3132

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.

Donvale Mitcham
Car (driver) 52.3% / 45.8%
Donvale — Car (driver): 52.3% Mitcham — Car (driver): 45.8%
Worked from Home 40.4% / 42.7%
Donvale — Worked from Home: 40.4% Mitcham — Worked from Home: 42.7%
Car (passenger) 3.9% / 3.1%
Donvale — Car (passenger): 3.9% Mitcham — Car (passenger): 3.1%
Train 1.5% / 5.5%
Donvale — Train: 1.5% Mitcham — Train: 5.5%
Bus 1.4% / 0.8%
Donvale — Bus: 1.4% Mitcham — Bus: 0.8%
Walked Only 0.4% / 1.5%
Donvale — Walked Only: 0.4% Mitcham — Walked Only: 1.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (52.3%).

Setting

Donvale Mitcham
Elevation 106 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 136 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 21.0 km 20.5 km

NBN connectivity

Donvale Mitcham
Connectivity score 76/100 75/100
Most common technology Hybrid fibre-coaxial
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 6%
5,073 premises
 2%
8,051 premises

Climate

Donvale Mitcham
Annual rainfall 777 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 26.9°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 6.3°C
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Donvale Mitcham
PM2.5 4.3 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 —
same for both
NO₂ —
same for both

Council rates

Donvale Mitcham
Average residential rate $2,000/yr $1,516/yr
Council Manningham Whitehorse

Federal electorate

Donvale Mitcham
Division Deakin
same for both
Member Matt Gregg
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Donvale Mitcham
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Donvale

Large Blocks Outer Parks Premium Professionals

Mitcham

Easy Commute Outer Parks Professionals Townhouses Transport Hub

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Donvale

Donvale vs Doncaster East Donvale vs Ringwood Donvale vs Nunawading Donvale vs Ringwood North Donvale vs Blackburn North Donvale vs Warrandyte

Other comparisons with Mitcham

Mitcham vs Ringwood Mitcham vs Nunawading Mitcham vs Vermont
Full data on Donvale Full data on Mitcham
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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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