North Shields vs Poonindie
Poonindie is the younger of the two, with a median age of 34 against 49 in North Shields. 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 Poonindie: a median of $772,000, against $550,000 in North Shields, though rent is higher in North Shields. On these figures, North Shields tends to suit people living alone, older residents, and buyers on a tighter budget, while Poonindie suits 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
Poonindie
ahead on 3 of the 6 things we measure here
- has more schools rated above their peers (1 vs 0)
- carries lower crime risk (23/100 vs 45/100)
- is already more of a family suburb (86% vs 66%)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
North Shields
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper houses ($550,000 vs $772,500)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Poonindie
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has cheaper rent ($150/wk vs $345/wk)
- leaves renters under less rental stress (9% vs 20%)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Poonindie
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a shorter drive in (412 min vs 421 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (634.2 km vs 641.3 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
They split
one each way, out of the 5 things we measure here
- North Shields has more residents already 65 and over (26% vs 7%)
- Poonindie carries lower crime risk (23/100 vs 45/100)
Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Poonindie
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (11.7% vs -5.8%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
North Shields and Poonindie 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
North Shields rents higher ($345/wk vs $150/wk); North Shields has more residents (338 vs 210).
| North Shields | Poonindie | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 338 +38% vs other | 210 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -5.8% | +11.7% |
| Median age | 49 | 34 |
| Median household income | $90,116/yr +6% vs other | $84,500/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $345/wk +57% vs other | $150/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (18.1%).
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 (23.8%).
Property market
| North Shields | Poonindie | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $550,000 | $772,500 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
Poonindie has more rural and farming land (82% vs 71%).
| North Shields | Poonindie | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 71% | 82% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 25% | 5% |
| Environmental | 4% | 12% |
| Residential | 1% same for both | |
| 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
| North Shields | Poonindie | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 39 across Lower Eyre Peninsula same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +29% same for both | |
Ranking within SA
| North Shields | Poonindie | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 69% of SA | Higher than 62% of SA |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 34% of SA | Higher than 33% of SA |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 3% of SA same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 61% of SA same for both | |
Liveability
| North Shields | Poonindie | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | mid-range socio-economic decile 4/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
North Shields carries more crime risk (45 vs 23).
| North Shields | Poonindie | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | High 85/100 | High 89/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 45/100 | Low 23/100 |
| Flood | — same for both | |
| Coastal erosion | Low 28/100 | Moderate 55/100 |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 1 within 5 km same for both | |
Schools
| North Shields | Poonindie | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 | 1 |
| Rated above peers | 0 | 1 |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Schools in North Shields
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Schools in Poonindie
- Poonindie Community Learning Centre Government · Primary above peers
Amenities in the suburb
| North Shields | Poonindie | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks & reserves | 1 | 0 |
| Childcare | 0 | 1 |
| Fuel stations | 1 | 0 |
| Waterways | 3 | 0 |
Mobility
North Shields sits further from the CBD (641.3 km vs 634.2 km).
| North Shields | Poonindie | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Adelaide | 641.3 km +1% vs other | 634.2 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 421 min | 412 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.1% postcode 5607 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 59 postcode 5607 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 (86.7%).
Setting
| North Shields | Poonindie | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 51 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 54 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 2.4 km | 3.0 km |
NBN connectivity
| North Shields | Poonindie | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 same for both | |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 145 premises | 0% 79 premises |
Council rates
| North Shields | Poonindie | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,789/yr same for both | |
| Council | Lower Eyre Peninsula same for both | |
Federal electorate
| North Shields | Poonindie | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Grey same for both | |
| Member | Tom Venning same for both | |
| Party | Liberal same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| North Shields | Poonindie | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $15,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | — same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with North Shields
Other comparisons with Poonindie
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.