Hillsborough vs Windermere
Windermere is the younger of the two, with a median age of 26 against 46 in Hillsborough. In both, most households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Windermere, about half of households are couple families. On these figures, Windermere tends to suit families with children.
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
Too close to call
Nothing among the 5 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs schools, house stock, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Too close to call
Nothing among the 1 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
Windermere
ahead on 2 of the 2 things we measure here
- has cheaper rent ($410/wk vs $550/wk)
- leaves renters under less rental stress (18% vs 24%)
Weighs rent and rental stress.
Commuting to the city
Windermere
ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here
- is more walkable (10/100 vs 0/100)
- has a shorter drive in (128 min vs 139 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (177.7 km vs 182.8 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
They split
one each way, out of the 3 things we measure here
- Hillsborough has more residents already 65 and over (16% vs 5%)
- Windermere is more walkable (10/100 vs 0/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, and walkability.
Investors
Hillsborough
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (22.0% vs 16.4%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Hillsborough and Windermere 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
Hillsborough skews older (46 vs 26); Hillsborough rents higher ($550/wk vs $410/wk).
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 50 | 64 +28% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +22.0% | +16.4% |
| Median age | 46 | 26 |
| Median household income | $121,316/yr +4% vs other | $116,948/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $550/wk +25% vs other | $410/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (30.0%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (18.0%).
Property market
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $843,750 | — |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 98% | 96% |
| Environmental | 2% | 3% |
| 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
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 1,413 across Maitland same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +20% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 38% of NSW | — |
| Income | Higher than 85% of NSW | Higher than 80% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 39% of NSW | Higher than 58% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 85% of NSW | — |
| EV adoption | Higher than 56% of NSW | Higher than 57% of NSW |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 61% of NSW same for both | |
Liveability
Windermere is more walkable (10 vs 0).
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | very advantaged area decile 10/10 | very advantaged area decile 9/10 |
Risk profile
Hillsborough carries more bushfire risk (16 vs 0).
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Low 16/100 | None 0/100 |
| Crime | — | Moderate 50/100 |
| 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 | 0 within 5 km | 1 within 5 km |
Schools
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| 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
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| Waterways | 0 | 2 |
Mobility
Hillsborough sits further from the CBD (182.8 km vs 177.7 km).
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 | 10/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 182.8 km +3% vs other | 177.7 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 139 min | 128 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.5% postcode 2320 | 0.6% postcode 2321 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 56 postcode 2320 | 69 postcode 2321 |
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 (100.0%).
Setting
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 61 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 21 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 35.8 km | 34.8 km |
NBN connectivity
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 same for both | |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 19 premises | 0% 21 premises |
Climate
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 996 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 30.0°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 7.1°C same for both | |
Air quality (annual mean)
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| 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
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,908/yr same for both | |
| Council | Maitland same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Lyne | Paterson |
| Member | Alison Penfold | Meryl Swanson |
| Party | The Nationals | Australian Labor Party |
First Home Owner Grant
| Hillsborough | Windermere | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Windermere
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Hillsborough
Other comparisons with Windermere
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.