Shelford vs Meredith

Shelford is the younger of the two, with a median age of 39 against 45 in Meredith. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Shelford, most households are couple families. In Meredith, about half of households are couple families. Houses cost more in Shelford: a median of $928,000, against $635,000 in Meredith. On these figures, Shelford tends to suit families with children and couples, while Meredith suits people living alone and buyers on a tighter budget.

Shelford and Meredith are both small rural towns in Victoria, though Shelford is notably quieter with 263 residents compared to Meredith's 821. Shelford commands a higher median house price at $927,500 versus $640,000, and residents earn a median household income of $92,456 against Meredith's $85,176. Meredith has a younger population (median age 45 versus 39) and lower bushfire and flood risk scores, while Shelford has a notably lower crime risk at 26 compared to Meredith's 42. Both towns are similarly distant from Melbourne's CBD and share the same median weekly rent of $300.

Written by an AI language model from the figures below. Every number in it is checked against those figures before it is published.

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

They split

one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here

  • Shelford carries lower crime risk (31/100 vs 53/100)
  • Meredith has more parks and reserves (8 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 3 things we measure here

  • Shelford has cheaper land ($320,000 vs $369,500)
  • Meredith has cheaper houses ($635,000 vs $927,500)

Weighs house prices, land prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

Too close to call

Nothing among the 3 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

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

Commuting to the city

Shelford

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • sits closer to the CBD (111.6 km vs 114.3 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

They split

one each way, out of the 5 things we measure here

  • Shelford carries lower crime risk (31/100 vs 53/100)
  • Meredith has more residents already 65 and over (20% vs 14%)

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

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

Shelford Meredith
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.

Shelford Meredith
Walkability 0 / 0
Shelford — Walkability: 0/100 Meredith — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 69 / 47
Shelford — Safety: 69/100 Meredith — Safety: 47/100
Low fire risk 35 / 44
Shelford — Low fire risk: 35/100 Meredith — Low fire risk: 44/100
Low flood risk 44 / 55
Shelford — Low flood risk: 44/100 Meredith — Low flood risk: 55/100

Demographics

Meredith has more residents (821 vs 263); Meredith skews older (45 vs 39).

Shelford Meredith
Population 263 821
+212% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +4.0% +4.2%
Median age 39 45
Median household income $92,456/yr
+8% vs other
 $85,176/yr
Median weekly rent $300/wk
same for both

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Shelford Meredith
0-4 8.0% / 4.3%
Shelford — 0-4: 8.0% Meredith — 0-4: 4.3%
5-14 14.4% / 13.2%
Shelford — 5-14: 14.4% Meredith — 5-14: 13.2%
15-19 4.9% / 5.8%
Shelford — 15-19: 4.9% Meredith — 15-19: 5.8%
20-24 4.2% / 3.8%
Shelford — 20-24: 4.2% Meredith — 20-24: 3.8%
25-34 11.8% / 10.1%
Shelford — 25-34: 11.8% Meredith — 25-34: 10.1%
35-44 12.9% / 11.9%
Shelford — 35-44: 12.9% Meredith — 35-44: 11.9%
45-54 12.9% / 15.0%
Shelford — 45-54: 12.9% Meredith — 45-54: 15.0%
55-64 14.1% / 16.3%
Shelford — 55-64: 14.1% Meredith — 55-64: 16.3%
65-74 10.3% / 12.7%
Shelford — 65-74: 10.3% Meredith — 65-74: 12.7%
75-84 4.2% / 5.2%
Shelford — 75-84: 4.2% Meredith — 75-84: 5.2%
85+ — / 1.7%
Shelford — 85+: not among its largest Meredith — 85+: 1.7%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (16.3%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Shelford 63.1% couple families
Shelford — Couple Families: 63.1% Shelford — Lone Person: 23.1% Shelford — One Parent Families: 13.8% Shelford — Group Household: 0.0%
Meredith 47.4% couple families
Meredith — Couple Families: 47.4% Meredith — Lone Person: 31.9% Meredith — One Parent Families: 17.8% Meredith — Group Household: 2.8%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Shelford 13.3% renting
Shelford — Owned Outright: 42.2% Shelford — Mortgage: 44.4% Shelford — Renting: 13.3%
Meredith 14.2% renting
Meredith — Owned Outright: 38.4% Meredith — Mortgage: 47.4% Meredith — Renting: 14.2%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

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.

Shelford Meredith
England 3.0% / 3.7%
Shelford — England: 3.0% Meredith — England: 3.7%
New Zealand — / 1.0%
Shelford — New Zealand: not among its largest Meredith — New Zealand: 1.0%
Netherlands — / 1.0%
Shelford — Netherlands: not among its largest Meredith — Netherlands: 1.0%
Ireland — / 0.9%
Shelford — Ireland: not among its largest Meredith — Ireland: 0.9%
Germany — / 0.6%
Shelford — Germany: not among its largest Meredith — Germany: 0.6%

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

Qualifications

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

Shelford Meredith
Certificate III & IV 23.6% / 17.5%
Shelford — Certificate III & IV: 23.6% Meredith — Certificate III & IV: 17.5%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 10.3% / 9.4%
Shelford — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 10.3% Meredith — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 9.4%
Bachelor Degree 7.2% / 8.0%
Shelford — Bachelor Degree: 7.2% Meredith — Bachelor Degree: 8.0%
Postgraduate Degree 2.7% / 2.9%
Shelford — Postgraduate Degree: 2.7% Meredith — Postgraduate Degree: 2.9%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 2.3% / 1.1%
Shelford — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.3% Meredith — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (23.6%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Shelford 94.6% houses
Shelford — Houses: 94.6% Shelford — Flats / Apartments: 5.4% Shelford — Townhouses: 0.0%
Meredith 100.3% houses
Meredith — Houses: 100.3% Meredith — Flats / Apartments: 0.0% Meredith — Townhouses: 1.0%
Houses Flats / Apartments Townhouses

Property market

Shelford Meredith
Median house price $927,500 $635,000
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price $320,000 $369,500
Typical days to sell (houses) — 94 days
from 7 sales

Zoning mix

Shelford has more rural and farming land (99% vs 84%).

Shelford Meredith
Rural and farming 99% 84%
Environmental 0% 8%
Parks and recreation 0% 6%
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

Shelford Meredith
New dwellings approved 186
across Golden Plains
same for both
Approvals change year on year +10%
same for both

Ranking within VIC

Shelford Meredith
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 61% of VIC Higher than 55% of VIC
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 34% of VIC Higher than 30% of VIC
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption Higher than 73% of VIC Higher than 27% of VIC
NBN connectivity Higher than 19% of VIC Higher than 35% of VIC

Liveability

Shelford Meredith
Grade — D
Score — 30/100
Socio-economic band mid-range socio-economic
decile 5/10
same for both

Risk profile

Meredith carries more crime risk (53 vs 31); Shelford carries more flood risk (56 vs 45).

Shelford Meredith
Bushfire Moderate
65/100
 Moderate
56/100
Crime Low
31/100
 Moderate
53/100
Flood Moderate
56/100
 Moderate
45/100
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

Shelford Meredith
Inside the suburb 1
same for both
Rated above peers 0 1
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Schools in Shelford

  • Shelford Primary School Government · Primary

Schools in Meredith

  • Meredith Primary School Government · Primary above peers

Amenities in the suburb

Shelford Meredith
Parks & reserves 2 8
Childcare 0 2
GPs 0 1
Police stations 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 1
EV chargers 0 1
Waterways 12 20

Mobility

Meredith sits further from the CBD (114.3 km vs 111.6 km).

Shelford Meredith
Walkability score 0/100
same for both
Distance to Melbourne 111.6 km 114.3 km
+2% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 90 min 89 min
Electric vehicle share 0.9%
postcode 3329
 0.3%
postcode 3333
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 37
postcode 3329
 49
postcode 3333

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.

Shelford Meredith
Car (driver) 75.6% / 69.4%
Shelford — Car (driver): 75.6% Meredith — Car (driver): 69.4%
Worked from Home 21.1% / 22.2%
Shelford — Worked from Home: 21.1% Meredith — Worked from Home: 22.2%
Walked Only — / 5.9%
Shelford — Walked Only: not among its largest Meredith — Walked Only: 5.9%
Car (passenger) 3.3% / 2.5%
Shelford — Car (passenger): 3.3% Meredith — Car (passenger): 2.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (75.6%).

Setting

Shelford Meredith
Elevation 187 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 331 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 40.9 km 38.7 km

NBN connectivity

Shelford Meredith
Connectivity score 21/100 28/100
Most common technology Satellite (Sky Muster) Fixed wireless
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
102 premises
 0%
352 premises

Climate

Shelford Meredith
Annual rainfall 502 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 25.8°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 5.3°C
same for both

Council rates

Shelford Meredith
Average residential rate $2,052/yr
same for both
Council Golden Plains
same for both

Federal electorate

Shelford Meredith
Division Ballarat
same for both
Member Catherine King
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Shelford Meredith
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Shelford

Family Rural

Meredith

Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Shelford

Shelford vs Teesdale Shelford vs Inverleigh Shelford vs Lethbridge Shelford vs Rokewood Shelford vs Mount Mercer

Other comparisons with Meredith

Meredith vs Lethbridge Meredith vs Elaine Meredith vs She Oaks Meredith vs Morrisons Meredith vs Mount Mercer Meredith vs Steiglitz
Full data on Shelford Full data on Meredith
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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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