Hillside vs Plumpton

In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are couple families. Hillside is closer to the city centre: 28.1 km, against 33.6 km. On these figures, Plumpton tends to suit 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

Hillside

ahead on 4 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more parks and reserves (25 vs 1)
  • has more childcare (14 vs 0)
  • has more schools rated above their peers (2 vs 0)

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

First-home buyers

Hillside

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • leaves households under less mortgage stress (20% vs 32%)

Weighs mortgage stress.

Renters

Hillside

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • leaves renters under less rental stress (17% vs 25%)
  • has cheaper rent ($380/wk vs $450/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Hillside

ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (77/100 vs 0/100)
  • has a shorter drive in (33 min vs 40 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (28.1 km vs 33.6 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Hillside

ahead on 3 of the 5 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (77/100 vs 0/100)
  • has more GPs (5 vs 0)
  • carries lower crime risk (36/100 vs 89/100)
  • But Plumpton has more residents already 65 and over (22% vs 10%)

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

Where they sit

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

Hillside Plumpton
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.

Hillside Plumpton
Walkability 77 / 0
Hillside — Walkability: 77/100 Plumpton — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 64 / 11
Hillside — Safety: 64/100 Plumpton — Safety: 11/100
Low fire risk 39 / 12
Hillside — Low fire risk: 39/100 Plumpton — Low fire risk: 12/100
Low flood risk 30 / 100
Hillside — Low flood risk: 30/100 Plumpton — Low flood risk: 100/100

Demographics

Hillside has more residents (17,331 vs 79); Hillside has higher household incomes ($113,880 vs $94,224).

Hillside Plumpton
Population 17,331
+100% vs other
 79
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +1.6% —
Median age 36 38
Median household income $113,880/yr
+17% vs other
 $94,224/yr
Median weekly rent $380/wk $450/wk
+18% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Hillside Plumpton
0-4 5.3% / 7.6%
Hillside — 0-4: 5.3% Plumpton — 0-4: 7.6%
5-14 14.2% / 8.9%
Hillside — 5-14: 14.2% Plumpton — 5-14: 8.9%
15-19 8.5% / 16.5%
Hillside — 15-19: 8.5% Plumpton — 15-19: 16.5%
20-24 7.6% / 3.8%
Hillside — 20-24: 7.6% Plumpton — 20-24: 3.8%
25-34 12.4% / 11.4%
Hillside — 25-34: 12.4% Plumpton — 25-34: 11.4%
35-44 13.9% / 17.7%
Hillside — 35-44: 13.9% Plumpton — 35-44: 17.7%
45-54 16.9% / 15.2%
Hillside — 45-54: 16.9% Plumpton — 45-54: 15.2%
55-64 11.6% / 6.3%
Hillside — 55-64: 11.6% Plumpton — 55-64: 6.3%
65-74 6.5% / 11.4%
Hillside — 65-74: 6.5% Plumpton — 65-74: 11.4%
75-84 2.6% / 10.1%
Hillside — 75-84: 2.6% Plumpton — 75-84: 10.1%
85+ 0.5% / —
Hillside — 85+: 0.5% Plumpton — 85+: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (17.7%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Hillside 64.8% couple families
Hillside — Couple Families: 64.8% Hillside — One Parent Families: 16.5% Hillside — Lone Person: 15.8% Hillside — Group Household: 1.4% Hillside — Other Families: 1.4%
Plumpton 60.0% couple families
Plumpton — Couple Families: 60.0% Plumpton — One Parent Families: 20.0% Plumpton — Lone Person: 20.0% Plumpton — Group Household: 0.0% Plumpton — Other Families: 0.0%
Couple Families One Parent Families Lone Person Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Hillside 15.0% renting
Hillside — Owned Outright: 31.5% Hillside — Mortgage: 53.4% Hillside — Renting: 15.0%
Plumpton 20.0% renting
Plumpton — Owned Outright: 80.0% Plumpton — Mortgage: 0.0% Plumpton — Renting: 20.0%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

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.

Hillside Plumpton
India 4.3% / 3.8%
Hillside — India: 4.3% Plumpton — India: 3.8%
New Zealand 1.2% / 6.3%
Hillside — New Zealand: 1.2% Plumpton — New Zealand: 6.3%
Philippines 1.8% / —
Hillside — Philippines: 1.8% Plumpton — Philippines: not among its largest
Italy 1.6% / —
Hillside — Italy: 1.6% Plumpton — Italy: not among its largest
England 1.2% / —
Hillside — England: 1.2% Plumpton — England: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (6.3%).

Qualifications

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

Hillside Plumpton
Certificate III & IV 13.7% / 19.0%
Hillside — Certificate III & IV: 13.7% Plumpton — Certificate III & IV: 19.0%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 8.0% / 6.3%
Hillside — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.0% Plumpton — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.3%
Bachelor Degree 12.1% / —
Hillside — Bachelor Degree: 12.1% Plumpton — Bachelor Degree: not among its largest
Postgraduate Degree 3.1% / —
Hillside — Postgraduate Degree: 3.1% Plumpton — Postgraduate Degree: not among its largest
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 1.6% / —
Hillside — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.6% Plumpton — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (19.0%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Hillside 88.0% houses
Hillside — Houses: 88.0% Hillside — Flats / Apartments: 2.4% Hillside — Townhouses: 9.5%
Plumpton 89.5% houses
Plumpton — Houses: 89.5% Plumpton — Flats / Apartments: 10.5% Plumpton — Townhouses: 0.0%
Houses Flats / Apartments Townhouses

Property market

Hillside Plumpton
Median house price $825,000 —
Median unit price $600,000 —
Median land price $1,192,500 —
Typical days to sell (houses) 26 days
from 128 sales
 —

Zoning mix

Plumpton has more rural and farming land (92% vs 9%).

Hillside Plumpton
Rural and farming 9% 92%
Residential 84% 0%
Other and special use 0% 7%
Infrastructure and transport 5% 1%
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

Hillside Plumpton
New dwellings approved 4,602
across Melton
same for both
Approvals change year on year +5%
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.

Hillside Plumpton
Houses 3.4%
$550/wk on $832K
 —
Units 4.7%
$500/wk on $548K
 —

Ranking within VIC

Hillside Plumpton
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 86% of VIC Higher than 65% of VIC
Schools Higher than 93% of VIC —
Walkability Higher than 92% of VIC Higher than 64% of VIC
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption Higher than 69% of VIC Higher than 85% of VIC
NBN connectivity Higher than 90% of VIC Higher than 72% of VIC
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 33% of VIC —
Rental yield (units) Higher than 48% of VIC —

Liveability

Hillside is more walkable (77 vs 0).

Hillside Plumpton
Grade B —
Score 60/100 —
Socio-economic band advantaged area
decile 7/10
 mid-range socio-economic
decile 4/10

Risk profile

Hillside carries more flood risk (70 vs 0); Plumpton carries more crime risk (89 vs 36).

Hillside Plumpton
Bushfire Moderate
61/100
 High
88/100
Crime Low
36/100
 High
89/100
Flood High
70/100
 None
0/100
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise Moderate
50/100
 None
0/100
Industrial facilities nearby 2
within 5 km
same for both

Schools

Hillside Plumpton
Inside the suburb 3 1
Rated above peers 2 0
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 1
same for both

Schools in Hillside

  • Cana Catholic Primary School Catholic · Primary above peers
  • Sydenham - Hillside Primary School-Hillside Campus Government · Primary above peers
  • Parkwood Green Primary School Government · Primary below peers

Schools in Plumpton

No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.

Amenities in the suburb

Hillside Plumpton
Supermarkets 2 0
Cafes & restaurants 4 0
Parks & reserves 25 1
Childcare 14 0
GPs 5 0
Pharmacies 2 0
Fuel stations 2 0
Waterways 11 1

Mobility

Plumpton sits further from the CBD (33.6 km vs 28.1 km).

Hillside Plumpton
Walkability score 77/100 0/100
Distance to Melbourne 28.1 km 33.6 km
+20% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 33 min 40 min
Electric vehicle share 0.8%
postcode 3037
 1.3%
postcode 3335
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 39
postcode 3037
 —
postcode 3335

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.

Hillside Plumpton
Car (driver) 67.5% / 88.5%
Hillside — Car (driver): 67.5% Plumpton — Car (driver): 88.5%
Worked from Home 24.1% / 11.5%
Hillside — Worked from Home: 24.1% Plumpton — Worked from Home: 11.5%
Car (passenger) 4.9% / —
Hillside — Car (passenger): 4.9% Plumpton — Car (passenger): not among its largest
Train 2.6% / —
Hillside — Train: 2.6% Plumpton — Train: not among its largest
Bus 0.4% / —
Hillside — Bus: 0.4% Plumpton — Bus: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (88.5%).

Setting

Hillside Plumpton
Elevation 135 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 156 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 21.4 km 25.4 km

NBN connectivity

Hillside Plumpton
Connectivity score 79/100 30/100
Most common technology Fibre to the premises Fixed wireless
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 56%
5,864 premises
 0%
34 premises

Climate

Hillside Plumpton
Annual rainfall 518 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 26.7°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 6.0°C
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Hillside Plumpton
PM2.5 4.4 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 —
same for both
NO₂ —
same for both

Council rates

Hillside Plumpton
Average residential rate $1,779/yr
same for both
Council Melton
same for both

Federal electorate

Hillside Plumpton
Division Hawke
same for both
Member Sam Rae
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Hillside Plumpton
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Hillside

Outer Parks River

Plumpton

Multicultural Outer Students

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Hillside

Hillside vs Caroline Springs Hillside vs Taylors Hill Hillside vs Sydenham Hillside vs Fraser Rise

Other comparisons with Plumpton

Plumpton vs Fraser Rise Plumpton vs Melton Plumpton vs Diggers Rest Plumpton vs Toolern Vale Plumpton vs Bonnie Brook Plumpton vs Grangefields
Full data on Hillside Full data on Plumpton
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.

Save this page for later

We'll email you a link to this page so you can finish reading it on any device. We use your address once to send it and don't keep it.

or