Flinders vs Shellharbour

Flinders is the younger of the two, with a median age of 36 against 46 in Shellharbour. In both, most households own their home and most homes are detached houses. In Flinders, most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Shellharbour: a median of $1.35 million, against $1.14 million in Flinders, though rent is higher in Flinders. On these figures, Flinders tends to suit families with children, couples, and buyers on a tighter budget, while Shellharbour suits people living alone and older residents.

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

Flinders

ahead on 4 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more childcare (6 vs 3)
  • carries lower crime risk (46/100 vs 71/100)
  • has more parks and reserves (16 vs 12)
  • But Shellharbour has more schools inside the suburb (3 vs 1)

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

First-home buyers

Flinders

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • leaves households under less mortgage stress (24% vs 31%)
  • has cheaper houses ($1,135,000 vs $1,350,000)

Weighs house prices, unit prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

Shellharbour

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper rent ($420/wk vs $490/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Shellharbour

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • sits closer to the CBD (103.8 km vs 111.2 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

They split

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

  • Flinders carries lower crime risk (46/100 vs 71/100)
  • Shellharbour has more residents already 65 and over (22% vs 13%)

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

Investors

Flinders

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (6.6% vs -1.2%)

Weighs house yield and population growth.

Where they sit

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

Flinders Shellharbour
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.

Flinders Shellharbour
Walkability 67 / 65
Flinders — Walkability: 67/100 Shellharbour — Walkability: 65/100
Safety 54 / 29
Flinders — Safety: 54/100 Shellharbour — Safety: 29/100
Low fire risk 100 / 100
Flinders — Low fire risk: 100/100 Shellharbour — Low fire risk: 100/100

Demographics

Flinders has more residents (7,118 vs 3,520); Flinders has higher household incomes ($109,356 vs $82,992).

Flinders Shellharbour
Population 7,118
+51% vs other
 3,520
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +6.6% -1.2%
Median age 36 46
Median household income $109,356/yr
+24% vs other
 $82,992/yr
Median weekly rent $490/wk
+14% vs other
 $420/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Flinders Shellharbour
0-4 6.5% / 4.4%
Flinders — 0-4: 6.5% Shellharbour — 0-4: 4.4%
5-14 15.7% / 10.7%
Flinders — 5-14: 15.7% Shellharbour — 5-14: 10.7%
15-19 7.7% / 6.7%
Flinders — 15-19: 7.7% Shellharbour — 15-19: 6.7%
20-24 6.1% / 5.3%
Flinders — 20-24: 6.1% Shellharbour — 20-24: 5.3%
25-34 12.3% / 11.0%
Flinders — 25-34: 12.3% Shellharbour — 25-34: 11.0%
35-44 15.1% / 9.9%
Flinders — 35-44: 15.1% Shellharbour — 35-44: 9.9%
45-54 13.8% / 12.8%
Flinders — 45-54: 13.8% Shellharbour — 45-54: 12.8%
55-64 10.2% / 17.6%
Flinders — 55-64: 10.2% Shellharbour — 55-64: 17.6%
65-74 8.4% / 12.8%
Flinders — 65-74: 8.4% Shellharbour — 65-74: 12.8%
75-84 3.4% / 6.4%
Flinders — 75-84: 3.4% Shellharbour — 75-84: 6.4%
85+ 0.8% / 2.6%
Flinders — 85+: 0.8% Shellharbour — 85+: 2.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (17.6%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Flinders 57.7% couple families
Flinders — Couple Families: 57.7% Flinders — Lone Person: 20.7% Flinders — One Parent Families: 18.7% Flinders — Group Household: 1.9% Flinders — Other Families: 0.9%
Shellharbour 43.2% couple families
Shellharbour — Couple Families: 43.2% Shellharbour — Lone Person: 35.4% Shellharbour — One Parent Families: 17.0% Shellharbour — Group Household: 3.6% Shellharbour — Other Families: 0.7%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Flinders 24.4% renting
Flinders — Owned Outright: 29.3% Flinders — Mortgage: 46.4% Flinders — Renting: 24.4%
Shellharbour 33.6% renting
Shellharbour — Owned Outright: 38.4% Shellharbour — Mortgage: 28.0% Shellharbour — Renting: 33.6%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Flinders Shellharbour
Certificate III & IV 18.9% / 19.4%
Flinders — Certificate III & IV: 18.9% Shellharbour — Certificate III & IV: 19.4%
Bachelor Degree 8.9% / 10.1%
Flinders — Bachelor Degree: 8.9% Shellharbour — Bachelor Degree: 10.1%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 8.3% / 8.2%
Flinders — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.3% Shellharbour — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.2%
Postgraduate Degree 2.5% / 2.6%
Flinders — Postgraduate Degree: 2.5% Shellharbour — Postgraduate Degree: 2.6%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 1.2% / 1.4%
Flinders — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.2% Shellharbour — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.4%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (19.4%).

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.

Flinders Shellharbour
England 2.8% / 4.5%
Flinders — England: 2.8% Shellharbour — England: 4.5%
New Zealand 0.9% / 1.2%
Flinders — New Zealand: 0.9% Shellharbour — New Zealand: 1.2%
Italy 0.5% / 0.7%
Flinders — Italy: 0.5% Shellharbour — Italy: 0.7%
South Africa 0.5% / 0.4%
Flinders — South Africa: 0.5% Shellharbour — South Africa: 0.4%
Scotland 0.4% / 0.5%
Flinders — Scotland: 0.4% Shellharbour — Scotland: 0.5%
Philippines 0.6% / —
Flinders — Philippines: 0.6% Shellharbour — Philippines: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (4.5%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Flinders 73.6% houses
Flinders — Houses: 73.6% Flinders — Townhouses: 25.7% Flinders — Flats / Apartments: 0.8%
Shellharbour 68.4% houses
Shellharbour — Houses: 68.4% Shellharbour — Townhouses: 14.8% Shellharbour — Flats / Apartments: 16.8%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Flinders Shellharbour
Median house price $1,135,000 $1,350,000
Median unit price $850,000 $775,000
Median land price —
same for both
Typical days to sell (houses) 24 days
from 29 sales
 27 days
from 19 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.

Flinders Shellharbour
3 bed $938K / $1.15M
Flinders — 3 bed: $938K (34 sales) Shellharbour — 3 bed: $1.15M (17 sales)

34 vs 17 sales

4 bed $1.19M / $1.47M
Flinders — 4 bed: $1.19M (41 sales) Shellharbour — 4 bed: $1.47M (10 sales)

41 vs 10 sales

Zoning mix

Flinders Shellharbour
Residential 82% 47%
Parks and recreation 13% 31%
Infrastructure and transport 5% 12%
Environmental 0% 5%
Commercial 0% 3%
Planning zones cover 100% of Flinders and 98% of Shellharbour. The rest is unzoned land such as water or road reserve.
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

Flinders Shellharbour
New dwellings approved 883
across Shellharbour
same for both
Approvals change year on year +25%
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.

Flinders Shellharbour
Houses 3.7%
$820/wk on $1.15M
 3.4%
$860/wk on $1.3M
Units —
same for both

Ranking within NSW

Flinders Shellharbour
House price Higher than 58% of NSW Higher than 65% of NSW
Income Higher than 75% of NSW Higher than 51% of NSW
Schools — Higher than 18% of NSW
Walkability Higher than 87% of NSW Higher than 86% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 63% of NSW Higher than 34% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 78% of NSW
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 93% of NSW Higher than 76% of NSW
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 58% of NSW Higher than 41% of NSW

Liveability

Flinders scores higher overall (63 vs 46).

Flinders Shellharbour
Grade B C
Score 63/100 46/100
Socio-economic band advantaged area
decile 7/10
 mid-range socio-economic
decile 6/10

Risk profile

Shellharbour carries more crime risk (71 vs 46).

Flinders Shellharbour
Bushfire None
0/100
same for both
Crime Moderate
46/100
 High
71/100
Flood Not mapped
no mapped data here
same for both
Coastal erosion None
0/100
 Low
31/100
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 6
within 5 km
 5
within 5 km

Schools

Flinders Shellharbour
Inside the suburb 1 3
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 1 2
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Schools in Flinders

  • Flinders Public School Government · Primary at peers

Schools in Shellharbour

  • Shellharbour Public School Government · Primary at peers
  • Stella Maris Catholic Primary School Catholic · Primary at peers
  • Amity College Illawarra Campus Independent · Combined

Amenities in the suburb

Flinders Shellharbour
Cafes & restaurants 0 11
Parks & reserves 16 12
Childcare 6 3
GPs 0 1
Pharmacies 1 0
Banks & Bank@Post 0 1
Fuel stations 0 1

Mobility

Flinders sits further from the CBD (111.2 km vs 103.8 km).

Flinders Shellharbour
Walkability score 67/100 65/100
Distance to Sydney 111.2 km
+7% vs other
 103.8 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 98 min
same for both
Public transport score 79/100
Bus
same for both
Peak arrivals per hour 83.8
7-9am + 5-7pm
 100.5
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 0 min
scheduled, not actual
same for both
Electric vehicle share 0.9%
postcode 2529
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 45
postcode 2529
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.

Flinders Shellharbour
Car (driver) 69.7% / 68.0%
Flinders — Car (driver): 69.7% Shellharbour — Car (driver): 68.0%
Worked from Home 25.4% / 25.5%
Flinders — Worked from Home: 25.4% Shellharbour — Worked from Home: 25.5%
Car (passenger) 3.7% / 3.8%
Flinders — Car (passenger): 3.7% Shellharbour — Car (passenger): 3.8%
Walked Only 0.1% / 2.1%
Flinders — Walked Only: 0.1% Shellharbour — Walked Only: 2.1%
Bus 0.7% / 0.2%
Flinders — Bus: 0.7% Shellharbour — Bus: 0.2%
Bicycle 0.2% / 0.3%
Flinders — Bicycle: 0.2% Shellharbour — Bicycle: 0.3%
Train 0.2% / —
Flinders — Train: 0.2% Shellharbour — Train: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (69.7%).

Setting

Flinders Shellharbour
Elevation 39 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 5 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 2.0 km
2.4 km to a named beach
 609 m
941 m to a named beach

NBN connectivity

Flinders Shellharbour
Connectivity score 87/100 69/100
Most common technology Fibre to the premises Fibre to the node
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 76%
2,558 premises
 44%
1,767 premises

Climate

Flinders Shellharbour
Annual rainfall 974 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) —
same for both
Winter min (Jul) —
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Flinders Shellharbour
PM2.5 5.1 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 14.3 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ 0.37 pphm
same for both

Council rates

Flinders Shellharbour
Average residential rate $1,788/yr
same for both
Council Shellharbour
same for both

Federal electorate

Flinders Shellharbour
Division Whitlam
same for both
Member Carol Berry
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Flinders Shellharbour
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Flinders

Coastal Family Parks Townhouses Urban

Shellharbour

Beach Coastal Parks

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Flinders

Flinders vs Shell Cove Flinders vs Blackbutt Flinders vs Dunmore Flinders vs Croom

Other comparisons with Shellharbour

Shellharbour vs Shell Cove Shellharbour vs Barrack Heights Shellharbour vs Blackbutt Shellharbour vs Barrack Point
Full data on Flinders Full data on Shellharbour
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.

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