Wahroonga vs Hornsby

Hornsby is the younger of the two, with a median age of 38 against 44 in Wahroonga. In both, most households own their home. In Wahroonga, most homes are detached houses and most households are couple families. In Hornsby, most homes are flats or apartments and about half of households are couple families. Houses cost more in Wahroonga: a median of $2.77 million, against $1.8 million in Hornsby, and rent is higher there too. Wahroonga is closer to the city centre: 24.5 km, against 28.4 km. On these figures, Wahroonga tends to suit couples, while Hornsby 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

Wahroonga

ahead on 5 of the 6 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (25/100 vs 70/100)
  • has more schools inside the suburb (15 vs 7)
  • has more separate houses rather than flats (74% vs 35%)
  • But Hornsby has more childcare (20 vs 17)

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

First-home buyers

Hornsby

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has cheaper units ($720,000 vs $1,172,500)
  • has cheaper houses ($1,800,000 vs $2,770,000)

Weighs house prices, unit prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

Hornsby

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a bigger rental market to choose from (44% vs 19%)
  • has cheaper rent ($440/wk vs $600/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

They split

one each way, out of the 4 things we measure here

  • Wahroonga has a shorter drive in (31 min vs 37 min)
  • Hornsby gets more of its commuters onto trains and trams (11% vs 4%)

Weighs distance, drive time, rail access, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Hornsby

ahead on 3 of the 5 things we measure here

  • has more units and townhouses to downsize into (65% vs 26%)
  • has more GPs (15 vs 6)
  • is more walkable (96/100 vs 86/100)
  • But Wahroonga carries lower crime risk (25/100 vs 70/100)

Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.

Investors

Too close to call

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

Weighs house yield, unit yield, and population growth.

Where they sit

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

Wahroonga Hornsby
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.

Wahroonga Hornsby
Walkability 86 / 96
Wahroonga — Walkability: 86/100 Hornsby — Walkability: 96/100
Safety 75 / 30
Wahroonga — Safety: 75/100 Hornsby — Safety: 30/100
Low fire risk 44 / 35
Wahroonga — Low fire risk: 44/100 Hornsby — Low fire risk: 35/100

Demographics

Wahroonga has higher household incomes ($155,896 vs $101,504); Wahroonga rents higher ($600/wk vs $440/wk).

Wahroonga Hornsby
Population 17,853 22,462
+26% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +2.8% +1.3%
Median age 44 38
Median household income $155,896/yr
+35% vs other
 $101,504/yr
Median weekly rent $600/wk
+27% vs other
 $440/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Wahroonga Hornsby
0-4 4.5% / 6.0%
Wahroonga — 0-4: 4.5% Hornsby — 0-4: 6.0%
5-14 14.2% / 11.6%
Wahroonga — 5-14: 14.2% Hornsby — 5-14: 11.6%
15-19 7.6% / 4.6%
Wahroonga — 15-19: 7.6% Hornsby — 15-19: 4.6%
20-24 5.4% / 6.0%
Wahroonga — 20-24: 5.4% Hornsby — 20-24: 6.0%
25-34 6.6% / 15.3%
Wahroonga — 25-34: 6.6% Hornsby — 25-34: 15.3%
35-44 12.6% / 17.8%
Wahroonga — 35-44: 12.6% Hornsby — 35-44: 17.8%
45-54 15.1% / 13.5%
Wahroonga — 45-54: 15.1% Hornsby — 45-54: 13.5%
55-64 11.7% / 10.6%
Wahroonga — 55-64: 11.7% Hornsby — 55-64: 10.6%
65-74 9.3% / 8.5%
Wahroonga — 65-74: 9.3% Hornsby — 65-74: 8.5%
75-84 7.6% / 4.2%
Wahroonga — 75-84: 7.6% Hornsby — 75-84: 4.2%
85+ 5.3% / 1.9%
Wahroonga — 85+: 5.3% Hornsby — 85+: 1.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (17.8%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Wahroonga 62.6% couple families
Wahroonga — Couple Families: 62.6% Wahroonga — Lone Person: 22.7% Wahroonga — One Parent Families: 12.0% Wahroonga — Group Household: 1.8% Wahroonga — Other Families: 0.9%
Hornsby 45.0% couple families
Hornsby — Couple Families: 45.0% Hornsby — Lone Person: 34.7% Hornsby — One Parent Families: 13.6% Hornsby — Group Household: 4.7% Hornsby — Other Families: 2.0%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Wahroonga 18.6% renting
Wahroonga — Owned Outright: 40.1% Wahroonga — Mortgage: 41.3% Wahroonga — Renting: 18.6%
Hornsby 44.1% renting
Hornsby — Owned Outright: 23.4% Hornsby — Mortgage: 32.5% Hornsby — Renting: 44.1%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Wahroonga Hornsby
Bachelor Degree 25.1% / 23.5%
Wahroonga — Bachelor Degree: 25.1% Hornsby — Bachelor Degree: 23.5%
Postgraduate Degree 12.7% / 12.0%
Wahroonga — Postgraduate Degree: 12.7% Hornsby — Postgraduate Degree: 12.0%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 7.9% / 8.7%
Wahroonga — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 7.9% Hornsby — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.7%
Certificate III & IV 4.5% / 7.4%
Wahroonga — Certificate III & IV: 4.5% Hornsby — Certificate III & IV: 7.4%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 2.9% / 2.3%
Wahroonga — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.9% Hornsby — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.3%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (25.1%).

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.

Wahroonga Hornsby
China 8.2% / 12.6%
Wahroonga — China: 8.2% Hornsby — China: 12.6%
India 2.9% / 5.7%
Wahroonga — India: 2.9% Hornsby — India: 5.7%
England 4.9% / 2.8%
Wahroonga — England: 4.9% Hornsby — England: 2.8%
Nepal — / 4.4%
Wahroonga — Nepal: not among its largest Hornsby — Nepal: 4.4%
New Zealand 1.7% / 1.3%
Wahroonga — New Zealand: 1.7% Hornsby — New Zealand: 1.3%
Philippines — / 2.8%
Wahroonga — Philippines: not among its largest Hornsby — Philippines: 2.8%
South Africa 2.6% / —
Wahroonga — South Africa: 2.6% Hornsby — South Africa: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (12.6%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Wahroonga 74.5% houses
Wahroonga — Houses: 74.5% Wahroonga — Flats / Apartments: 19.8% Wahroonga — Townhouses: 5.7%
Hornsby 35.3% houses
Hornsby — Houses: 35.3% Hornsby — Flats / Apartments: 59.3% Hornsby — Townhouses: 5.4%
Houses Flats / Apartments Townhouses

Property market

Wahroonga Hornsby
Median house price $2,770,000 $1,800,000
Median unit price $1,172,500 $720,000
Median land price $1,457,500 —
Typical days to sell (houses) 23 days
from 201 sales
 23 days
from 103 sales

Unit price by bedroom count

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

Wahroonga Hornsby
2 bed $850K / $725K
Wahroonga — 2 bed: $850K (23 sales) Hornsby — 2 bed: $725K (269 sales)

23 vs 269 sales

3 bed $1.38M / $950K
Wahroonga — 3 bed: $1.38M (29 sales) Hornsby — 3 bed: $950K (31 sales)

29 vs 31 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.

Wahroonga Hornsby
2 bed $1.62M / $1.65M
Wahroonga — 2 bed: $1.62M (6 sales) Hornsby — 2 bed: $1.65M (11 sales)

6 vs 11 sales

3 bed $2.31M / $1.6M
Wahroonga — 3 bed: $2.31M (48 sales) Hornsby — 3 bed: $1.6M (49 sales)

48 vs 49 sales

4 bed $2.5M / $1.82M
Wahroonga — 4 bed: $2.5M (100 sales) Hornsby — 4 bed: $1.82M (41 sales)

100 vs 41 sales

5 bed $3.51M / $1.92M
Wahroonga — 5 bed: $3.51M (64 sales) Hornsby — 5 bed: $1.92M (15 sales)

64 vs 15 sales

Zoning mix

Wahroonga has more land zoned for conservation (27% vs 10%).

Wahroonga Hornsby
Residential 63% 59%
Environmental 27% 10%
Parks and recreation 2% 20%
Infrastructure and transport 8% 6%
Industrial 0% 4%
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

Wahroonga Hornsby
New dwellings approved 908
across Ku-ring-gai
 260
across Hornsby
Approvals change year on year +0% -79%

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.

Wahroonga Hornsby
Houses 2.6%
$1,395/wk on $2.77M
 2.8%
$875/wk on $1.6M
Units 5.0%
$728/wk on $755K
 4.8%
$660/wk on $712K

Ranking within NSW

Wahroonga Hornsby
House price Higher than 93% of NSW Higher than 82% of NSW
Income Higher than 95% of NSW Higher than 69% of NSW
Schools Higher than 60% of NSW Higher than 61% of NSW
Walkability Higher than 95% of NSW Higher than 99% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 18% of NSW Higher than 22% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 98% of NSW Higher than 92% of NSW
NBN connectivity Higher than 81% of NSW Higher than 86% of NSW
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 9% of NSW Higher than 16% of NSW
Rental yield (units) Higher than 68% of NSW Higher than 59% of NSW

Liveability

Wahroonga scores higher overall (74 vs 58); Hornsby is more walkable (96 vs 86).

Wahroonga Hornsby
Grade A B
Score 74/100 58/100
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 10/10
 very advantaged area
decile 9/10

Risk profile

Hornsby carries more crime risk (70 vs 25).

Wahroonga Hornsby
Bushfire Moderate
56/100
 Moderate
65/100
Crime Low
25/100
 High
70/100
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 2
within 5 km
 3
within 5 km

Schools

Wahroonga Hornsby
Inside the suburb 15 7
Rated above peers 4 2
Rated at peers 1
same for both
Rated below peers 2 1
Universities within 10 km 1
Macquarie University Wallumattagal Campus at North Ryde, 6.6 km
 1
Macquarie University Wallumattagal Campus at North Ryde, 9.6 km
Full-time students aged 15–24 4.4% 2.8%

Schools in Wahroonga

  • Abbotsleigh Independent · Combined above peers
  • Knox Grammar Preparatory School Independent · Primary above peers
  • Wahroonga Public School Government · Primary above peers
  • Waitara Public School Government · Primary above peers
  • Wahroonga Adventist School Independent · Combined at peers
  • Broken Bay Cross Campus Course Centre Catholic · Secondary below peers

Schools in Hornsby

  • Hornsby Girls High School Government · Secondary above peers
  • Hornsby North Public School Government · Primary above peers
  • Hornsby South Public School Government · Primary at peers
  • Barker College Independent · Secondary below peers
  • Blue Gum Community School Independent · Primary
  • Clarke Road School Government · Combined · Special school

Amenities in the suburb

Wahroonga Hornsby
Supermarkets 1 9
Cafes & restaurants 13 49
Parks & reserves 31 21
Childcare 17 20
GPs 6 15
Pharmacies 5 10
Hospitals 2
same for both
Police stations 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 1 9
Fuel stations 2 4
Waterways 28 29

Mobility

Hornsby sits further from the CBD (28.4 km vs 24.5 km).

Wahroonga Hornsby
Walkability score 86/100 96/100
Distance to Sydney 24.5 km 28.4 km
+16% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 31 min 37 min
Public transport score 94/100
Rail · Bus
same for both
Peak arrivals per hour 323.2
7-9am + 5-7pm
 386.2
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 0 min
scheduled, not actual
same for both
Electric vehicle share 3.3%
postcode 2076
 1.7%
postcode 2077
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 30
postcode 2076
 17
postcode 2077

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.

Wahroonga Hornsby
Worked from Home 60.5% / 47.7%
Wahroonga — Worked from Home: 60.5% Hornsby — Worked from Home: 47.7%
Car (driver) 30.1% / 31.8%
Wahroonga — Car (driver): 30.1% Hornsby — Car (driver): 31.8%
Train 3.6% / 10.6%
Wahroonga — Train: 3.6% Hornsby — Train: 10.6%
Walked Only 2.5% / 6.1%
Wahroonga — Walked Only: 2.5% Hornsby — Walked Only: 6.1%
Car (passenger) 2.8% / 2.9%
Wahroonga — Car (passenger): 2.8% Hornsby — Car (passenger): 2.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (60.5%).

Setting

Wahroonga Hornsby
Elevation 185 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 158 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 15.7 km 18.4 km

NBN connectivity

Wahroonga Hornsby
Connectivity score 74/100 76/100
Most common technology Hybrid fibre-coaxial Fibre to the building
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 3%
7,074 premises
 14%
12,291 premises

Climate

Wahroonga Hornsby
Annual rainfall 1,176 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) —
same for both
Winter min (Jul) —
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Wahroonga Hornsby
PM2.5 5.4 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 14.2 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ 0.23 pphm
same for both

Council rates

Wahroonga Hornsby
Average residential rate $1,626/yr $1,488/yr
Council Ku-ring-gai Hornsby

Federal electorate

Wahroonga Hornsby
Division Bradfield Berowra
Member Nicolette Boele Julian Leeser
Party Independent Liberal

First Home Owner Grant

Wahroonga Hornsby
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Wahroonga

Easy Commute Middle-Ring Parks Premium Professionals River Transport Hub

Hornsby

Apartments Cafe Culture Easy Commute Multicultural Outer Parks Professionals Transport Hub

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Wahroonga

Wahroonga vs Turramurra Wahroonga vs Thornleigh Wahroonga vs Waitara Wahroonga vs Pennant Hills Wahroonga vs Normanhurst Wahroonga vs North Turramurra

Other comparisons with Hornsby

Hornsby vs Thornleigh Hornsby vs Dural Hornsby vs Waitara Hornsby vs Mount Colah Hornsby vs Hornsby Heights Hornsby vs Asquith
Full data on Wahroonga Full data on Hornsby
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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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