Eagleton vs Nelsons Plains

In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Eagleton, about half of households are couple families. In Nelsons Plains, most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Nelsons Plains: a median of $1.98 million, against $900,000 in Eagleton, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Eagleton tends to suit people living alone and buyers on a tighter budget, while Nelsons Plains 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

They split

one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here

  • Eagleton carries lower crime risk (32/100 vs 67/100)
  • Nelsons Plains is already more of a family suburb (72% vs 59%)

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

First-home buyers

Eagleton

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper houses ($900,000 vs $1,975,000)

Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.

Renters

Eagleton

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper rent ($310/wk vs $553/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Nelsons Plains

ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (14/100 vs 0/100)
  • has a shorter drive in (126 min vs 133 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (170.6 km vs 178.9 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Eagleton

ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (32/100 vs 67/100)
  • has more residents already 65 and over (28% vs 21%)
  • But Nelsons Plains is more walkable (14/100 vs 0/100)

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

Where they sit

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

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
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.

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Walkability 0 / 14
Eagleton — Walkability: 0/100 Nelsons Plains — Walkability: 14/100
Safety 68 / 33
Eagleton — Safety: 68/100 Nelsons Plains — Safety: 33/100
Low fire risk 100 / 86
Eagleton — Low fire risk: 100/100 Nelsons Plains — Low fire risk: 86/100

Demographics

Nelsons Plains rents higher ($553/wk vs $310/wk); Nelsons Plains has more residents (326 vs 205).

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Population 205 326
+59% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) -2.8% —
Median age 50 48
Median household income $73,892/yr $117,000/yr
+58% vs other
Median weekly rent $310/wk $553/wk
+78% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
0-4 1.5% / 6.4%
Eagleton — 0-4: 1.5% Nelsons Plains — 0-4: 6.4%
5-14 11.7% / 15.6%
Eagleton — 5-14: 11.7% Nelsons Plains — 5-14: 15.6%
15-19 9.3% / 7.1%
Eagleton — 15-19: 9.3% Nelsons Plains — 15-19: 7.1%
20-24 2.9% / 3.4%
Eagleton — 20-24: 2.9% Nelsons Plains — 20-24: 3.4%
25-34 6.8% / 4.9%
Eagleton — 25-34: 6.8% Nelsons Plains — 25-34: 4.9%
35-44 8.3% / 10.1%
Eagleton — 35-44: 8.3% Nelsons Plains — 35-44: 10.1%
45-54 12.7% / 14.1%
Eagleton — 45-54: 12.7% Nelsons Plains — 45-54: 14.1%
55-64 16.1% / 16.9%
Eagleton — 55-64: 16.1% Nelsons Plains — 55-64: 16.9%
65-74 21.5% / 15.6%
Eagleton — 65-74: 21.5% Nelsons Plains — 65-74: 15.6%
75-84 4.9% / 3.7%
Eagleton — 75-84: 4.9% Nelsons Plains — 75-84: 3.7%
85+ 2.0% / 2.1%
Eagleton — 85+: 2.0% Nelsons Plains — 85+: 2.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.5%).

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.

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
England 5.4% / 1.2%
Eagleton — England: 5.4% Nelsons Plains — England: 1.2%
New Zealand — / 1.2%
Eagleton — New Zealand: not among its largest Nelsons Plains — New Zealand: 1.2%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (5.4%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Eagleton 51.3% couple families
Eagleton — Couple Families: 51.3% Eagleton — Lone Person: 41.0% Eagleton — One Parent Families: 7.7% Eagleton — Other Families: 0.0%
Nelsons Plains 66.0% couple families
Nelsons Plains — Couple Families: 66.0% Nelsons Plains — Lone Person: 16.0% Nelsons Plains — One Parent Families: 6.0% Nelsons Plains — Other Families: 12.0%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Other Families

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Eagleton 93.5% houses
Eagleton — Houses: 93.5% Eagleton — Flats / Apartments: 6.5%
Nelsons Plains 98.9% houses
Nelsons Plains — Houses: 98.9% Nelsons Plains — Flats / Apartments: 1.1%
Houses Flats / Apartments

Qualifications

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

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Certificate III & IV 21.0% / 17.2%
Eagleton — Certificate III & IV: 21.0% Nelsons Plains — Certificate III & IV: 17.2%
Bachelor Degree 11.7% / 10.4%
Eagleton — Bachelor Degree: 11.7% Nelsons Plains — Bachelor Degree: 10.4%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 5.4% / 7.1%
Eagleton — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.4% Nelsons Plains — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 7.1%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 2.0% / 2.1%
Eagleton — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.0% Nelsons Plains — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.1%
Postgraduate Degree 1.5% / 2.1%
Eagleton — Postgraduate Degree: 1.5% Nelsons Plains — Postgraduate Degree: 2.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.0%).

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Eagleton 12.5% renting
Eagleton — Owned Outright: 56.2% Eagleton — Mortgage: 31.2% Eagleton — Renting: 12.5%
Nelsons Plains 3.2% renting
Nelsons Plains — Owned Outright: 50.5% Nelsons Plains — Mortgage: 46.2% Nelsons Plains — Renting: 3.2%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Property market

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Median house price $900,000 $1,975,000
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price —
same for both

Zoning mix

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Rural and farming 84% 93%
Environmental 9% 4%
Residential 6% 2%
Infrastructure and transport 1%
same for both
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

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
New dwellings approved 495
across Port Stephens
same for both
Approvals change year on year -72%
same for both

Ranking within NSW

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
House price Higher than 88% of NSW Higher than 69% of NSW
Income Higher than 41% of NSW Higher than 81% of NSW
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 30% of NSW Higher than 63% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 5% of NSW Higher than 53% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 51% of NSW Higher than 50% of NSW
NBN connectivity Higher than 34% of NSW Higher than 51% of NSW

Liveability

Nelsons Plains is more walkable (14 vs 0).

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Grade —
same for both
Score —
same for both
Socio-economic band mid-range socio-economic
decile 5/10
 advantaged area
decile 8/10

Risk profile

Nelsons Plains carries more bushfire risk (14 vs 0); Nelsons Plains carries more crime risk (67 vs 32).

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Bushfire None
0/100
 Low
14/100
Crime Low
32/100
 Moderate
67/100
Flood Not mapped
no mapped data here
same for both
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 2
within 5 km
 1
within 5 km

Schools

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Inside the suburb 0
same for both
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Amenities in the suburb

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Childcare 0 1
Waterways 4 0

Mobility

Eagleton sits further from the CBD (178.9 km vs 170.6 km).

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Walkability score 0/100 14/100
Distance to Sydney 178.9 km
+5% vs other
 170.6 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 133 min 126 min
Electric vehicle share 0.5%
postcode 2324
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 54
postcode 2324
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.

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Car (driver) 54.4% / 57.7%
Eagleton — Car (driver): 54.4% Nelsons Plains — Car (driver): 57.7%
Worked from Home 30.4% / 29.2%
Eagleton — Worked from Home: 30.4% Nelsons Plains — Worked from Home: 29.2%
Walked Only 10.1% / 4.6%
Eagleton — Walked Only: 10.1% Nelsons Plains — Walked Only: 4.6%
Car (passenger) — / 8.5%
Eagleton — Car (passenger): not among its largest Nelsons Plains — Car (passenger): 8.5%
Bus 5.1% / —
Eagleton — Bus: 5.1% Nelsons Plains — Bus: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (57.7%).

Setting

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Elevation 14 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 0 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 14.5 km 13.1 km

NBN connectivity

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Connectivity score 24/100 30/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
76 premises
 0%
116 premises

Climate

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Annual rainfall 1,181 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 28.7°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 7.5°C
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
PM2.5 6.3 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 17.5 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ 0.72 pphm
same for both

Council rates

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Average residential rate $1,359/yr
same for both
Council Port Stephens
same for both

Federal electorate

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Division Paterson Lyne
Member Meryl Swanson Alison Penfold
Party Australian Labor Party The Nationals

First Home Owner Grant

Eagleton Nelsons Plains
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Eagleton

Retirees Rural

Nelsons Plains

Family Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Eagleton

Eagleton vs Raymond Terrace Eagleton vs Seaham Eagleton vs East Seaham Eagleton vs Ferodale

Other comparisons with Nelsons Plains

Nelsons Plains vs Raymond Terrace Nelsons Plains vs Wallalong Nelsons Plains vs Seaham Nelsons Plains vs Brandy Hill Nelsons Plains vs Hinton Nelsons Plains vs Millers Forest
Full data on Eagleton Full data on Nelsons Plains
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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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