Salt Ash vs Tanilba Bay

In both, most households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Salt Ash, about half of households are couple families. Houses cost more in Salt Ash: a median of $1.09 million, against $772,000 in Tanilba Bay, though rent is higher in Tanilba Bay. On these figures, Salt Ash tends to suit couples, while Tanilba Bay suits people living alone and 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

Tanilba Bay

ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more parks and reserves (11 vs 2)
  • has more childcare (5 vs 2)
  • But Salt Ash is already more of a family suburb (68% vs 54%)

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

First-home buyers

Tanilba Bay

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper houses ($772,500 vs $1,089,000)

Weighs house prices, land prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

Salt Ash

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • leaves renters under less rental stress (21% vs 34%)
  • has cheaper rent ($310/wk vs $380/wk)
  • But Tanilba Bay has a bigger rental market to choose from (27% vs 12%)

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

Commuting to the city

Salt Ash

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a shorter drive in (138 min vs 145 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (183.1 km vs 191.4 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Tanilba Bay

ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here

  • has more GPs (2 vs 0)
  • has more residents already 65 and over (28% vs 21%)

Weighs smaller dwellings, 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

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

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
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.

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Walkability 18 / 11
Salt Ash — Walkability: 18/100 Tanilba Bay — Walkability: 11/100
Safety 20 / 23
Salt Ash — Safety: 20/100 Tanilba Bay — Safety: 23/100
Low fire risk 32 / 26
Salt Ash — Low fire risk: 32/100 Tanilba Bay — Low fire risk: 26/100

Demographics

Tanilba Bay has more residents (3,237 vs 1,103); Salt Ash has higher household incomes ($75,972 vs $58,812).

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Population 1,103 3,237
+193% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) -2.2% +2.6%
Median age 46 48
Median household income $75,972/yr
+23% vs other
 $58,812/yr
Median weekly rent $310/wk $380/wk
+23% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
0-4 4.3% / 5.3%
Salt Ash — 0-4: 4.3% Tanilba Bay — 0-4: 5.3%
5-14 13.4% / 11.2%
Salt Ash — 5-14: 13.4% Tanilba Bay — 5-14: 11.2%
15-19 6.7% / 5.6%
Salt Ash — 15-19: 6.7% Tanilba Bay — 15-19: 5.6%
20-24 5.6% / 4.4%
Salt Ash — 20-24: 5.6% Tanilba Bay — 20-24: 4.4%
25-34 7.6% / 9.9%
Salt Ash — 25-34: 7.6% Tanilba Bay — 25-34: 9.9%
35-44 11.2% / 9.6%
Salt Ash — 35-44: 11.2% Tanilba Bay — 35-44: 9.6%
45-54 14.5% / 11.5%
Salt Ash — 45-54: 14.5% Tanilba Bay — 45-54: 11.5%
55-64 16.2% / 13.9%
Salt Ash — 55-64: 16.2% Tanilba Bay — 55-64: 13.9%
65-74 12.4% / 15.4%
Salt Ash — 65-74: 12.4% Tanilba Bay — 65-74: 15.4%
75-84 7.0% / 9.7%
Salt Ash — 75-84: 7.0% Tanilba Bay — 75-84: 9.7%
85+ 1.5% / 3.0%
Salt Ash — 85+: 1.5% Tanilba Bay — 85+: 3.0%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (16.2%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Salt Ash 47.9% couple families
Salt Ash — Couple Families: 47.9% Salt Ash — Lone Person: 27.4% Salt Ash — One Parent Families: 20.2% Salt Ash — Group Household: 3.4% Salt Ash — Other Families: 1.1%
Tanilba Bay 34.9% couple families
Tanilba Bay — Couple Families: 34.9% Tanilba Bay — Lone Person: 39.4% Tanilba Bay — One Parent Families: 19.5% Tanilba Bay — Group Household: 5.2% Tanilba Bay — Other Families: 1.1%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Salt Ash 12.5% renting
Salt Ash — Owned Outright: 42.4% Salt Ash — Mortgage: 45.2% Salt Ash — Renting: 12.5%
Tanilba Bay 27.2% renting
Tanilba Bay — Owned Outright: 43.5% Tanilba Bay — Mortgage: 29.3% Tanilba Bay — Renting: 27.2%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Certificate III & IV 24.5% / 20.5%
Salt Ash — Certificate III & IV: 24.5% Tanilba Bay — Certificate III & IV: 20.5%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 6.3% / 6.7%
Salt Ash — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.3% Tanilba Bay — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.7%
Bachelor Degree 5.8% / 5.4%
Salt Ash — Bachelor Degree: 5.8% Tanilba Bay — Bachelor Degree: 5.4%
Postgraduate Degree 0.7% / 1.6%
Salt Ash — Postgraduate Degree: 0.7% Tanilba Bay — Postgraduate Degree: 1.6%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 0.6% / 1.0%
Salt Ash — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 0.6% Tanilba Bay — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.0%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (24.5%).

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.

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
England 3.4% / 3.7%
Salt Ash — England: 3.4% Tanilba Bay — England: 3.7%
New Zealand 0.5% / 1.3%
Salt Ash — New Zealand: 0.5% Tanilba Bay — New Zealand: 1.3%
Philippines 0.7% / 0.4%
Salt Ash — Philippines: 0.7% Tanilba Bay — Philippines: 0.4%
Germany 0.5% / 0.6%
Salt Ash — Germany: 0.5% Tanilba Bay — Germany: 0.6%
Thailand 0.5% / 0.2%
Salt Ash — Thailand: 0.5% Tanilba Bay — Thailand: 0.2%
South Africa — / 0.7%
Salt Ash — South Africa: not among its largest Tanilba Bay — South Africa: 0.7%
Scotland — / 0.4%
Salt Ash — Scotland: not among its largest Tanilba Bay — Scotland: 0.4%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (3.7%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Salt Ash 97.6% houses
Salt Ash — Houses: 97.6% Salt Ash — Townhouses: 2.4% Salt Ash — Flats / Apartments: 0.0%
Tanilba Bay 92.6% houses
Tanilba Bay — Houses: 92.6% Tanilba Bay — Townhouses: 6.5% Tanilba Bay — Flats / Apartments: 0.9%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Median house price $1,089,000 $772,500
Median unit price — $1,375,000
Median land price $1,035,000 $979,000
Typical days to sell (houses) 42 days
from 11 sales
 36 days
from 20 sales

House price by bedroom count

Only bed counts both suburbs published enough sales for. Sale counts are shown because the buckets differ in depth.

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
3 bed $1.05M / $750K
Salt Ash — 3 bed: $1.05M (6 sales) Tanilba Bay — 3 bed: $750K (37 sales)

6 vs 37 sales

4 bed $1.09M / $846K
Salt Ash — 4 bed: $1.09M (8 sales) Tanilba Bay — 4 bed: $846K (19 sales)

8 vs 19 sales

Zoning mix

Salt Ash has more rural and farming land (30% vs 11%).

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Environmental 61% 71%
Rural and farming 30% 11%
Residential 0% 12%
Infrastructure and transport 8% 3%
Parks and recreation 0% 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

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
New dwellings approved 495
across Port Stephens
same for both
Approvals change year on year -72%
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.

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Houses — 4.3%
$650/wk on $795K
Units —
same for both

Ranking within NSW

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
House price Higher than 43% of NSW Higher than 32% of NSW
Income Higher than 44% of NSW Higher than 21% of NSW
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 68% of NSW Higher than 59% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 51% of NSW Higher than 42% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 59% of NSW Higher than 52% of NSW
NBN connectivity Higher than 64% of NSW Higher than 79% of NSW
Rental yield (houses) — Higher than 84% of NSW

Liveability

Salt Ash scores higher overall (19 vs 14).

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Grade D
same for both
Score 19/100 14/100
Socio-economic band below-average income
decile 3/10
 below-average income
decile 2/10

Risk profile

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Bushfire Moderate
68/100
 High
74/100
Crime High
80/100
 High
77/100
Flood Not mapped
no mapped data here
same for both
Coastal erosion Moderate
60/100
 Moderate
47/100
Aircraft noise High
100/100
 None
0/100
Industrial facilities nearby 1
within 5 km
same for both

Schools

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Inside the suburb 1
same for both
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0 1
Rated below peers 1 0

Schools in Salt Ash

  • Salt Ash Public School Government · Primary below peers

Schools in Tanilba Bay

  • Tanilba Bay Public School Government · Primary at peers

Amenities in the suburb

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Supermarkets 0 1
Cafes & restaurants 2 1
Parks & reserves 2 11
Childcare 2 5
GPs 0 2
Pharmacies 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 2
Fuel stations 6 2
Waterways 6 1

Mobility

Tanilba Bay sits further from the CBD (191.4 km vs 183.1 km).

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Walkability score 18/100 11/100
Distance to Sydney 183.1 km 191.4 km
+5% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 138 min 145 min
Public transport score 77/100
Bus
 74/100
Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 91.5
7-9am + 5-7pm
 83.8
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 0 min
scheduled, not actual
same for both
Electric vehicle share 0.6%
postcode 2318
 0.5%
postcode 2319
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 79
postcode 2318
 49
postcode 2319

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.

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Car (driver) 71.7% / 73.7%
Salt Ash — Car (driver): 71.7% Tanilba Bay — Car (driver): 73.7%
Worked from Home 20.9% / 17.5%
Salt Ash — Worked from Home: 20.9% Tanilba Bay — Worked from Home: 17.5%
Car (passenger) 3.0% / 5.4%
Salt Ash — Car (passenger): 3.0% Tanilba Bay — Car (passenger): 5.4%
Walked Only 3.0% / 2.7%
Salt Ash — Walked Only: 3.0% Tanilba Bay — Walked Only: 2.7%
Bus 1.4% / 0.8%
Salt Ash — Bus: 1.4% Tanilba Bay — Bus: 0.8%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (73.7%).

Setting

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Elevation 3 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 5 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 3.0 km
4.4 km to a named beach
 1.6 km

NBN connectivity

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Connectivity score 40/100 72/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless Fibre to the node
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 6%
468 premises
 42%
1,611 premises

Climate

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Annual rainfall 1,181 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 28.7°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 7.5°C
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
PM2.5 7.5 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 30.4 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ 0.73 pphm
same for both

Council rates

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Average residential rate $1,359/yr
same for both
Council Port Stephens
same for both

Federal electorate

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Division Paterson
same for both
Member Meryl Swanson
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Salt Ash Tanilba Bay
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Salt Ash

Acreage

Tanilba Bay

Acreage Coastal Retirees

More comparisons

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Other comparisons with Tanilba Bay

Tanilba Bay vs Mallabula Tanilba Bay vs Oyster Cove
Full data on Salt Ash Full data on Tanilba Bay
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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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