Ironbank vs Cherry Gardens

Ironbank is the younger of the two, with a median age of 44 against 48 in Cherry Gardens. In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Ironbank: a median of $1.48 million, against $1.31 million in Cherry Gardens, and rent is higher there too. Ironbank is closer to the city centre: 20.5 km, against 26.9 km. On these figures, Cherry Gardens 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

Ironbank

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has more parks and reserves (13 vs 2)

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

First-home buyers

They split

one each way, out of the 2 things we measure here

  • Ironbank leaves households under less mortgage stress (19% vs 25%)
  • Cherry Gardens has cheaper houses ($1,315,000 vs $1,475,000)

Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.

Renters

Cherry Gardens

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper rent ($350/wk vs $430/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Ironbank

ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here

  • sits closer to the CBD (20.5 km vs 26.9 km)
  • has a shorter drive in (27 min vs 35 min)

Weighs distance, drive time, rail access, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Cherry Gardens

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has more residents already 65 and over (23% vs 15%)

Weighs 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

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

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
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.

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Walkability 4 / 8
Ironbank — Walkability: 4/100 Cherry Gardens — Walkability: 8/100
Safety 75 / 73
Ironbank — Safety: 75/100 Cherry Gardens — Safety: 73/100
Low fire risk 25 / 37
Ironbank — Low fire risk: 25/100 Cherry Gardens — Low fire risk: 37/100

Demographics

Ironbank has higher household incomes ($133,796 vs $104,832); Ironbank rents higher ($430/wk vs $350/wk).

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Population 537 633
+18% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +2.3% +3.8%
Median age 44 48
Median household income $133,796/yr
+22% vs other
 $104,832/yr
Median weekly rent $430/wk
+19% vs other
 $350/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
0-4 3.2% / 4.3%
Ironbank — 0-4: 3.2% Cherry Gardens — 0-4: 4.3%
5-14 12.3% / 13.3%
Ironbank — 5-14: 12.3% Cherry Gardens — 5-14: 13.3%
15-19 9.7% / 8.8%
Ironbank — 15-19: 9.7% Cherry Gardens — 15-19: 8.8%
20-24 5.4% / 4.3%
Ironbank — 20-24: 5.4% Cherry Gardens — 20-24: 4.3%
25-34 6.7% / 4.3%
Ironbank — 25-34: 6.7% Cherry Gardens — 25-34: 4.3%
35-44 11.9% / 9.8%
Ironbank — 35-44: 11.9% Cherry Gardens — 35-44: 9.8%
45-54 15.8% / 17.7%
Ironbank — 45-54: 15.8% Cherry Gardens — 45-54: 17.7%
55-64 19.0% / 14.8%
Ironbank — 55-64: 19.0% Cherry Gardens — 55-64: 14.8%
65-74 11.4% / 15.0%
Ironbank — 65-74: 11.4% Cherry Gardens — 65-74: 15.0%
75-84 2.8% / 7.7%
Ironbank — 75-84: 2.8% Cherry Gardens — 75-84: 7.7%
85+ 0.9% / 0.6%
Ironbank — 85+: 0.9% Cherry Gardens — 85+: 0.6%

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

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Ironbank 72.2% couple families
Ironbank — Couple Families: 72.2% Ironbank — Lone Person: 13.9% Ironbank — One Parent Families: 10.4% Ironbank — Group Household: 3.5%
Cherry Gardens 66.4% couple families
Cherry Gardens — Couple Families: 66.4% Cherry Gardens — Lone Person: 20.1% Cherry Gardens — One Parent Families: 11.2% Cherry Gardens — Group Household: 2.2%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Ironbank 5.8% renting
Ironbank — Owned Outright: 40.7% Ironbank — Mortgage: 53.5% Ironbank — Renting: 5.8%
Cherry Gardens 2.4% renting
Cherry Gardens — Owned Outright: 54.6% Cherry Gardens — Mortgage: 43.0% Cherry Gardens — Renting: 2.4%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Bachelor Degree 17.3% / 18.3%
Ironbank — Bachelor Degree: 17.3% Cherry Gardens — Bachelor Degree: 18.3%
Certificate III & IV 12.7% / 13.9%
Ironbank — Certificate III & IV: 12.7% Cherry Gardens — Certificate III & IV: 13.9%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 9.7% / 7.7%
Ironbank — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 9.7% Cherry Gardens — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 7.7%
Postgraduate Degree 7.6% / 3.9%
Ironbank — Postgraduate Degree: 7.6% Cherry Gardens — Postgraduate Degree: 3.9%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 3.7% / 2.2%
Ironbank — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.7% Cherry Gardens — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.2%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (18.3%).

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.

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
England 7.6% / 9.2%
Ironbank — England: 7.6% Cherry Gardens — England: 9.2%
New Zealand 1.3% / 0.9%
Ironbank — New Zealand: 1.3% Cherry Gardens — New Zealand: 0.9%
Germany 0.6% / 1.4%
Ironbank — Germany: 0.6% Cherry Gardens — Germany: 1.4%
Ireland 1.1% / 0.5%
Ironbank — Ireland: 1.1% Cherry Gardens — Ireland: 0.5%
Netherlands 0.9% / —
Ironbank — Netherlands: 0.9% Cherry Gardens — Netherlands: not among its largest
Scotland — / 0.9%
Ironbank — Scotland: not among its largest Cherry Gardens — Scotland: 0.9%
China — / 0.5%
Ironbank — China: not among its largest Cherry Gardens — China: 0.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (9.2%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Ironbank 96.0% houses
Ironbank — Houses: 96.0% Ironbank — Flats / Apartments: 4.0%
Cherry Gardens 100.0% houses
Cherry Gardens — Houses: 100.0% Cherry Gardens — Flats / Apartments: 0.0%
Houses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Median house price $1,475,000 $1,315,000
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price —
same for both
Typical days to sell (houses) — 42 days
from 3 sales

Zoning mix

Cherry Gardens has more rural and farming land (77% vs 56%); Ironbank has more land zoned for conservation (44% vs 23%).

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Rural and farming 56% 77%
Environmental 44% 23%
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

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
New dwellings approved 95
across Adelaide Hills
 1,367
across Onkaparinga
Approvals change year on year +53% +58%

Ranking within SA

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
House price Higher than 24% of SA —
Income Higher than 96% of SA Higher than 83% of SA
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 59% of SA Higher than 61% of SA
Affordability Higher than 97% of SA —
EV adoption Higher than 92% of SA Higher than 70% of SA
NBN connectivity Higher than 52% of SA Higher than 46% of SA

Liveability

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Grade B C
Score 50/100 49/100
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 10/10
 very advantaged area
decile 9/10

Risk profile

Ironbank carries more bushfire risk (75 vs 63).

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Bushfire High
75/100
 Moderate
63/100
Crime Low
25/100
 Low
27/100
Flood —
same for both
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 1
within 5 km
same for both

Schools

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
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
Universities within 10 km None 1
Bedford Park, 9.6 km

Amenities in the suburb

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Parks & reserves 13 2

Mobility

Cherry Gardens sits further from the CBD (26.9 km vs 20.5 km).

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Walkability score 4/100 8/100
Distance to Adelaide 20.5 km 26.9 km
+31% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 27 min 35 min
Electric vehicle share 1.8%
postcode 5153
 0.8%
postcode 5157
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 86
postcode 5153
 97
postcode 5157

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.

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Car (driver) 71.3% / 71.0%
Ironbank — Car (driver): 71.3% Cherry Gardens — Car (driver): 71.0%
Worked from Home 19.3% / 19.9%
Ironbank — Worked from Home: 19.3% Cherry Gardens — Worked from Home: 19.9%
Car (passenger) 4.3% / 3.3%
Ironbank — Car (passenger): 4.3% Cherry Gardens — Car (passenger): 3.3%
Bus 3.5% / 1.1%
Ironbank — Bus: 3.5% Cherry Gardens — Bus: 1.1%
Walked Only — / 3.3%
Ironbank — Walked Only: not among its largest Cherry Gardens — Walked Only: 3.3%
Train 1.6% / 1.5%
Ironbank — Train: 1.6% Cherry Gardens — Train: 1.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (71.3%).

Setting

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Elevation 404 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 366 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 15.6 km 13.5 km

NBN connectivity

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Connectivity score 30/100 29/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
188 premises
 0%
212 premises

Climate

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Annual rainfall 969 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 23.8°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 5.4°C
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
PM2.5 6.0 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 17.8 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ 1.12 pphm
same for both

Council rates

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Average residential rate $2,727/yr $2,008/yr
Council Adelaide Hills Onkaparinga

Federal electorate

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Division Mayo
same for both
Member Rebekha Sharkie
same for both
Party Centre Alliance
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Ironbank Cherry Gardens
Grant amount $15,000
same for both
Property price cap —
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Ironbank

Acreage Middle-Ring Parks Professionals

Cherry Gardens

Acreage Middle-Ring

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Ironbank

Ironbank vs Heathfield Ironbank vs Upper Sturt Ironbank vs Coromandel East Ironbank vs Longwood Ironbank vs Scott Creek

Other comparisons with Cherry Gardens

Cherry Gardens vs Chandlers Hill Cherry Gardens vs Clarendon Cherry Gardens vs Coromandel East Cherry Gardens vs Scott Creek
Full data on Ironbank Full data on Cherry Gardens
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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