Hyams Beach vs Wrights Beach
Wrights Beach is the younger of the two, with a median age of 49 against 65 in Hyams Beach. In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are people living alone. Houses cost more in Hyams Beach: a median of $2 million, against $1.04 million in Wrights Beach, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Hyams Beach tends to suit people living alone and older residents, while Wrights Beach suits buyers on a tighter budget.
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
Wrights Beach
ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here
- is already more of a family suburb (42% vs 12%)
- carries lower crime risk (21/100 vs 55/100)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Wrights Beach
ahead on 2 of the 2 things we measure here
- has cheaper houses ($1,040,000 vs $2,000,000)
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (23% vs 37%)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Wrights Beach
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($415/wk vs $450/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Hyams Beach
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a shorter drive in (161 min vs 167 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (191.3 km vs 194.7 km)
- But Wrights Beach is more walkable (18/100 vs 5/100)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Wrights Beach
ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here
- is more walkable (18/100 vs 5/100)
- carries lower crime risk (21/100 vs 55/100)
- But Hyams Beach has more residents already 65 and over (47% vs 32%)
Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Hyams Beach
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (22.3% vs 3.8%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Hyams Beach and Wrights Beach 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
Hyams Beach skews older (65 vs 49); Hyams Beach has higher household incomes ($96,200 vs $87,360).
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 137 same for both | |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +22.3% | +3.8% |
| Median age | 65 | 49 |
| Median household income | $96,200/yr +9% vs other | $87,360/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $450/wk +8% vs other | $415/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (29.9%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
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 (10.2%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.2%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $2,000,000 | $1,040,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
Hyams Beach has more land zoned for conservation (88% vs 69%).
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| Environmental | 88% | 69% |
| Residential | 5% | 14% |
| Parks and recreation | 1% | 6% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 1% | 6% |
| Rural and farming | 1% | 5% |
| Planning zones cover 97% of Hyams Beach and 100% of Wrights Beach. 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
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 854 across Shoalhaven same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -10% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 85% of NSW | Higher than 49% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 63% of NSW | Higher than 56% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 48% of NSW | Higher than 68% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 15% of NSW | Higher than 56% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 54% of NSW | Higher than 53% of NSW |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 65% of NSW | Higher than 67% of NSW |
Liveability
Wrights Beach is more walkable (18 vs 5).
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | very advantaged area decile 10/10 | advantaged area decile 8/10 |
Risk profile
Hyams Beach carries more crime risk (55 vs 21); Wrights Beach carries more bushfire risk (69 vs 59).
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Moderate 59/100 | Moderate 69/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 55/100 | Low 21/100 |
| Flood | Not mapped no mapped data here same for both | |
| Coastal erosion | Moderate 40/100 | None 0/100 |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 0 within 5 km same for both | |
Schools
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| 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
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks & reserves | 0 | 1 |
| Beaches | 1 | 0 |
| Waterways | 1 same for both | |
Mobility
Wrights Beach sits further from the CBD (194.7 km vs 191.3 km).
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 5/100 | 18/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 191.3 km | 194.7 km +2% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 161 min | 167 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.5% postcode 2540 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 44 postcode 2540 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 (72.4%).
Setting
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 90 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 44 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 794 m 1.1 km to a named beach | 2.6 km 2.7 km to a named beach |
NBN connectivity
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 45/100 | 53/100 |
| Most common technology | Fibre to the node same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 250 premises | 15% 175 premises |
Climate
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 1,302 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 23.9°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 9.6°C same for both | |
Council rates
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,501/yr same for both | |
| Council | Shoalhaven same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Gilmore same for both | |
| Member | Fiona Phillips same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Hyams Beach | Wrights Beach | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Hyams Beach
Other comparisons with Wrights Beach
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.