Johnsonville vs Swan Reach
Swan Reach is the younger of the two, with a median age of 51 against 58 in Johnsonville. In both, the large majority of households own their home and most homes are detached houses. In Johnsonville, about half of households are people living alone. On these figures, Johnsonville tends to suit people living alone.
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
Swan Reach
ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here
- is already more of a family suburb (57% vs 37%)
- has more separate houses rather than flats (87% vs 75%)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Too close to call
Nothing among the 2 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Swan Reach
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- leaves renters under less rental stress (20% vs 32%)
- has cheaper rent ($210/wk vs $325/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Johnsonville
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a shorter drive in (219 min vs 226 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (298 km vs 303.8 km)
- But Swan Reach is more walkable (14/100 vs 0/100)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Johnsonville
ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here
- has more units and townhouses to downsize into (25% vs 13%)
- has more residents already 65 and over (38% vs 32%)
- But Swan Reach is more walkable (14/100 vs 0/100)
Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Swan Reach
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (14.6% vs -0.3%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Johnsonville and Swan Reach 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
Swan Reach has more residents (861 vs 326); Johnsonville rents higher ($325/wk vs $210/wk).
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 326 | 861 +164% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -0.3% | +14.6% |
| Median age | 58 | 51 |
| Median household income | $52,364/yr | $55,848/yr +7% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $325/wk +35% vs other | $210/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (23.0%).
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 (4.2%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.9%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $607,500 | $645,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — | $245,000 |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | — | 18 days from 3 sales |
Zoning mix
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 85% | 77% |
| Parks and recreation | 7% | 13% |
| Residential | 7% | 2% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 1% | 7% |
| 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
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 386 across East Gippsland same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +50% same for both | |
Ranking within VIC
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — | Higher than 37% of VIC |
| Income | — | Higher than 14% of VIC |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 14% of VIC | Higher than 76% of VIC |
| Affordability | — | Higher than 24% of VIC |
| EV adoption | — same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 53% of VIC | Higher than 50% of VIC |
Liveability
Swan Reach is more walkable (14 vs 0).
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — | D |
| Score | — | 22/100 |
| Socio-economic band | below-average income decile 3/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Johnsonville carries more bushfire risk (96 vs 53).
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | High 96/100 | Moderate 53/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 53/100 same for both | |
| Flood | Moderate 65/100 | Moderate 58/100 |
| Coastal erosion | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 0 within 5 km same for both | |
Schools
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 | 1 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 | 1 |
Schools in Johnsonville
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Schools in Swan Reach
- Swan Reach Primary School Government · Primary below peers
Amenities in the suburb
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks & reserves | 1 | 3 |
| Childcare | 1 same for both | |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 0 | 1 |
| Fuel stations | 1 | 2 |
| Waterways | 3 | 1 |
Mobility
Swan Reach sits further from the CBD (303.8 km vs 298 km).
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 | 14/100 |
| Distance to Melbourne | 298 km | 303.8 km +2% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 219 min | 226 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.0% postcode 3902 | 0.0% postcode 3903 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 50 postcode 3902 | 55 postcode 3903 |
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 (77.9%).
Setting
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 35 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 49 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 12.5 km | 11.1 km |
NBN connectivity
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 same for both | |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 158 premises | 0% 428 premises |
Climate
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 620 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 25.5°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 4.5°C same for both | |
Council rates
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,807/yr same for both | |
| Council | East Gippsland same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Gippsland same for both | |
| Member | Darren Chester same for both | |
| Party | The Nationals same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Johnsonville | Swan Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Johnsonville
Other comparisons with Swan Reach
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.