Sutton Forest vs Werai
Sutton Forest is the younger of the two, with a median age of 50 against 61 in Werai. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Sutton Forest, about half of households are couple families. Houses cost more in Werai: a median of $4.38 million, against $1.97 million in Sutton Forest, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Sutton Forest tends to suit couples and buyers on a tighter budget, while Werai suits share households and older residents.
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
- Sutton Forest has more parks and reserves (3 vs 0)
- Werai carries lower crime risk (33/100 vs 58/100)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
They split
one each way, out of the 2 things we measure here
- Sutton Forest has cheaper houses ($1,973,750 vs $4,375,000)
- Werai leaves households under less mortgage stress (21% vs 32%)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Sutton Forest
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- leaves renters under less rental stress (14% vs 21%)
- has cheaper rent ($300/wk vs $400/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Sutton Forest
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- sits closer to the CBD (139 km vs 146.7 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Werai
ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here
- carries lower crime risk (33/100 vs 58/100)
- has more residents already 65 and over (46% vs 26%)
Weighs 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
Sutton Forest and Werai 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
Sutton Forest has more residents (504 vs 98); Werai rents higher ($400/wk vs $300/wk).
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 504 +81% vs other | 98 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +5.7% | +8.9% |
| Median age | 50 | 61 |
| Median household income | $107,588/yr +6% vs other | $100,724/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $300/wk | $400/wk +33% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (27.6%).
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 (9.2%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.4%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $1,973,750 | $4,375,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | 85 days from 3 sales | — |
Zoning mix
Werai has more rural and farming land (80% vs 6%); Sutton Forest has more land zoned for conservation (90% vs 18%).
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| Environmental | 90% | 18% |
| Rural and farming | 6% | 80% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 3% | 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
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 335 across Wingecarribee same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +6% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 80% of NSW | Higher than 98% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 73% of NSW | Higher than 69% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 37% of NSW | Higher than 34% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 30% of NSW | Higher than 2% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 79% of NSW same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 43% of NSW same for both | |
Liveability
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | B | — |
| Score | 52/100 | — |
| Socio-economic band | very advantaged area decile 10/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Werai carries more bushfire risk (88 vs 14); Sutton Forest carries more crime risk (58 vs 33).
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Low 14/100 | High 88/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 58/100 | Low 33/100 |
| 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
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 same for both | |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Amenities in the suburb
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| Cafes & restaurants | 2 | 0 |
| Parks & reserves | 3 | 0 |
| EV chargers | 1 | 0 |
| Waterways | 13 | 7 |
Mobility
Werai sits further from the CBD (146.7 km vs 139 km).
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Sydney | 139 km | 146.7 km +6% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 108 min | 109 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.9% postcode 2577 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 56 postcode 2577 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 (58.6%).
Setting
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 681 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 723 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 28/100 same for both | |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 221 premises | 0% 60 premises |
Climate
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 974 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | — same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | — same for both | |
Council rates
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $2,072/yr same for both | |
| Council | Wingecarribee same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Whitlam same for both | |
| Member | Carol Berry same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Sutton Forest | Werai | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Sutton Forest
Other comparisons with Werai
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.