Erina Heights vs Terrigal
In both, the large majority of households own their home and most homes are detached houses. In Erina Heights, most households are couple families. In Terrigal, about half of households are couple families. Houses cost more in Terrigal: a median of $1.6 million, against $1.2 million in Erina Heights, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Erina Heights tends to suit couples and buyers on a tighter budget, while Terrigal 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
They split
one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here
- Erina Heights carries lower crime risk (28/100 vs 55/100)
- Terrigal has more parks and reserves (10 vs 0)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Erina Heights
ahead on 2 of the 2 things we measure here
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (20% vs 28%)
- has cheaper houses ($1,200,000 vs $1,600,000)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Erina Heights
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves renters under less rental stress (17% vs 25%)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Terrigal
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is more walkable (59/100 vs 48/100)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Terrigal
ahead on 4 of the 5 things we measure here
- has more units and townhouses to downsize into (29% vs 4%)
- has more GPs (3 vs 0)
- has more residents already 65 and over (22% vs 16%)
- But Erina Heights carries lower crime risk (28/100 vs 55/100)
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
Erina Heights and Terrigal 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
Terrigal has more residents (12,730 vs 454); Erina Heights has higher household incomes ($146,588 vs $106,912).
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 454 | 12,730 +2704% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +7.8% | +12.2% |
| Median age | 41 | 43 |
| Median household income | $146,588/yr +27% vs other | $106,912/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $485/wk | $520/wk +7% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.3%).
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 (16.6%).
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 (7.0%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $1,200,000 | $1,600,000 |
| Median unit price | — | $1,220,000 |
| Median land price | — | $2,000,000 |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | — | 33 days from 167 sales |
Zoning mix
Erina Heights has more land zoned for conservation (82% vs 39%).
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| Environmental | 82% | 39% |
| Residential | 0% | 43% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 18% | 4% |
| Parks and recreation | 0% | 13% |
| 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
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 1,441 across Central Coast (NSW) same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +67% same for both | |
Gross rental yield
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | — | 3.5% $950/wk on $1.42M |
| Units | — | 2.9% $765/wk on $1.39M |
Ranking within NSW
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 92% of NSW | Higher than 77% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 94% of NSW | Higher than 73% of NSW |
| Schools | — | Higher than 47% of NSW |
| Walkability | Higher than 81% of NSW | Higher than 84% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 18% of NSW | Higher than 35% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 89% of NSW same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 66% of NSW | Higher than 71% of NSW |
| Rental yield (houses) | — | Higher than 44% of NSW |
| Rental yield (units) | — | Higher than 2% of NSW |
Liveability
Terrigal is more walkable (59 vs 48).
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — | B |
| Score | — | 60/100 |
| Socio-economic band | very advantaged area decile 10/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Terrigal carries more bushfire risk (17 vs 0); Terrigal carries more crime risk (55 vs 28).
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 | Low 17/100 |
| Crime | Low 28/100 | Moderate 55/100 |
| Flood | Not mapped no mapped data here same for both | |
| Coastal erosion | None 0/100 | Low 29/100 |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 1 within 5 km | 2 within 5 km |
Schools
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 2 | 5 |
| Rated above peers | 0 | 1 |
| Rated at peers | 1 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 1 | 2 |
Schools in Erina Heights
- Central Coast Grammar School Independent · Combined at peers
- Erina Heights Public School Government · Primary below peers
Schools in Terrigal
- Our Lady Star of The Sea Catholic Primary School Catholic · Primary above peers
- Terrigal High School Government · Secondary at peers
- Terrigal Public School Government · Primary below peers
- Aspect Central Coast School Independent · Combined · Special school below peers
- Aspect Central Coast School Senior College Independent · Secondary · Special school
Amenities in the suburb
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| Cafes & restaurants | 1 | 30 |
| Parks & reserves | 0 | 10 |
| Childcare | 3 | 9 |
| GPs | 0 | 3 |
| Pharmacies | 1 | 2 |
| Police stations | 0 | 1 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 0 | 1 |
| Fuel stations | 0 | 1 |
| EV chargers | 0 | 1 |
| Beaches | 0 | 1 |
| Waterways | 0 | 2 |
Mobility
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 48/100 | 59/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 83.5 km | 85.1 km +2% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 76 min | 79 min |
| Public transport score | 79/100 Bus same for both | |
| Peak arrivals per hour | 81.5 7-9am + 5-7pm | 137.2 7-9am + 5-7pm |
| Median peak wait | 0 min scheduled, not actual same for both | |
| Electric vehicle share | 1.4% postcode 2260 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 37 postcode 2260 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 (53.7%).
Setting
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 47 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 14 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 3.4 km 3.8 km to a named beach | 1.6 km 1.6 km to a named beach |
NBN connectivity
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 47/100 | 62/100 |
| Most common technology | Fibre to the node same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 4% 200 premises | 31% 6,257 premises |
Climate
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 1,272 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 26.4°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 10.6°C same for both | |
Air quality (annual mean)
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 | 5.1 µg/m³ same for both | |
| PM10 | 14.8 µg/m³ same for both | |
| NO₂ | 0.36 pphm same for both | |
Council rates
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,409/yr same for both | |
| Council | Central Coast (NSW) same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Robertson same for both | |
| Member | Gordon Reid same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Erina Heights | Terrigal | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Terrigal
More comparisons
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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.