Sheffield vs West Kentish
West Kentish is the younger of the two, with a median age of 50 against 54 in Sheffield. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Sheffield, about half of households are people living alone. In West Kentish, about half of households are couple families. On these figures, Sheffield tends to suit people living alone and older residents, while West Kentish suits couples.
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
Sheffield
ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here
- has more parks and reserves (5 vs 0)
- has more schools rated above their peers (1 vs 0)
- But West Kentish is already more of a family suburb (59% vs 45%)
Weighs schools, house stock, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Too close to call
Nothing among the 1 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
Sheffield
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a bigger rental market to choose from (24% vs 14%)
- has cheaper rent ($200/wk vs $250/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Sheffield
ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here
- is more walkable (54/100 vs 0/100)
- has a shorter drive in (194 min vs 201 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (266.5 km vs 274.4 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Sheffield
ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here
- is more walkable (54/100 vs 0/100)
- has more GPs (2 vs 0)
- has more residents already 65 and over (32% vs 17%)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, and walkability.
Investors
Sheffield
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (3.2% vs -3.0%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Sheffield and West Kentish 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
Sheffield has more residents (1,602 vs 160); West Kentish has higher household incomes ($64,116 vs $50,440).
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 1,602 +90% vs other | 160 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +3.2% | -3.0% |
| Median age | 54 | 50 |
| Median household income | $50,440/yr | $64,116/yr +27% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $200/wk | $250/wk +25% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (25.0%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.6%).
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 (9.4%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $520,000 | — |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | 73 days from 9 sales | — |
Zoning mix
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 85% | 88% |
| Environmental | 11% | 12% |
| Residential | 2% | 0% |
| 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
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 19 across Kentish same for both | |
Gross rental yield
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 3.5% $440/wk on $649K | — |
| Units | — same for both | |
Ranking within TAS
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 22% of TAS | — |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 93% of TAS | Higher than 14% of TAS |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 56% of TAS | Higher than 55% of TAS |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 60% of TAS | Higher than 35% of TAS |
| Rental yield (houses) | Higher than 20% of TAS | — |
Liveability
Sheffield is more walkable (54 vs 0).
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | B | — |
| Score | 55/100 | — |
| Socio-economic band | high-need area decile 1/10 | mid-range socio-economic decile 4/10 |
Risk profile
West Kentish carries more bushfire risk (30 vs 0).
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 | Low 30/100 |
| Crime | Not mapped no mapped data here same for both | |
| Flood | Not mapped no mapped data here same for both | |
| 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
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 1 | 0 |
| Rated above peers | 1 | 0 |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Schools in Sheffield
- Sheffield School Government · Combined above peers
Schools in West Kentish
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Amenities in the suburb
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| Supermarkets | 1 | 0 |
| Cafes & restaurants | 5 | 0 |
| Parks & reserves | 5 | 0 |
| Childcare | 1 | 0 |
| GPs | 2 | 0 |
| Pharmacies | 1 | 0 |
| Police stations | 1 | 0 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 1 | 0 |
| Fuel stations | 3 | 0 |
| EV chargers | 1 | 0 |
| Waterways | 5 | 4 |
Mobility
West Kentish sits further from the CBD (274.4 km vs 266.5 km).
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 54/100 | 0/100 |
| Distance to Hobart | 266.5 km | 274.4 km +3% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 194 min | 201 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.5% postcode 7306 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 36 postcode 7306 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 (75.3%).
Setting
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 267 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 327 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 23.7 km | 26.4 km |
NBN connectivity
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 | 28/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 820 premises | 0% 76 premises |
Climate
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 814 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | — same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | — same for both | |
Council rates
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,299/yr same for both | |
| Council | Kentish same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Lyons same for both | |
| Member | Rebecca White same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Sheffield | West Kentish | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $20,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | — same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Sheffield
Other comparisons with West Kentish
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.