Chelsea VIC 3196
Chelsea is a suburb in Victoria, 39 km from Melbourne CBD, around 45 minutes by car. Population is 8,347; the median age is 41 and the median household income is $87,516 per year. On socioeconomic measures it sits in the top 40% nationally. Population grew 7.4% from 2016 to 2021. The 2021 Census recorded a median rent of $375 per week and a median monthly mortgage of $2,008. The area shows high flood risk and high crime risk. Of 4 schools within the suburb boundary, 1 ranks above the state average, and walkability is high.
Is Chelsea a good suburb?
Chelsea scores a B (61/100) on SuburbScan's Liveability grade — strong on transit and community, weaker on prices.
Mixed results
4 schools · 1 above peer schools
Very walkable
Walkability 85/100 · 38.9 km · 45 min drive to Melbourne
Above the state median
Median $1.15M · Less affordable than 79% of VIC
Moderate crime risk
Fire 0/100 · Crime 66/100 · Flood 67/100
Advantaged
SEIFA decile 8/10 · median age 41 · 8,347 residents
Liveability Rating
61 / 100 · Ranked #263 in VICEach bar is Chelsea's rank among VIC suburbs, from 0 to 100 (higher is better).
How do you rate the liveability in Chelsea?
Local knowledge beats any dataset. Rate it and see what other residents think.
Our score
61 / 100
From schools, safety and socio-economic data — not opinion.
Residents say
…
Median Unit Price
Public listings dataChelsea's unit market is moving higher: the median sale price reached $688,000, 0.4% above where it sat a year earlier.
Units
$687,500
5% above its 3 neighbours (median $656,500)
Based on 145 recorded sales in the last 24 months.
Typically sold in 18 days — median across 58 sales that recorded a listing period
By bedrooms
- 1 bed 5 sales $595K
- 2 bed 105 sales $670K
- 3 bed 32 sales $875K
Houses
$1,145,250
In line with its 3 neighbours (median $1,150,000)
Based on 90 recorded sales in the last 24 months.
Typically sold in 24 days — median across 43 sales that recorded a listing period
By bedrooms
- 2 bed 12 sales $965K
- 3 bed 56 sales $1.1M
- 4 bed 16 sales $1.38M
Currently for Sale
Last 6 monthsHouses in Chelsea are currently listed at around $1.18 million on average. Based on 61 houses listed in the past six months.
Houses
$1.18M
61 houses listed in the last 6 months.
Units
$671K
36 units listed in the last 6 months.
97 of the suburb's 3,606 dwellings (2.7%) were listed for sale in the last 6 months.
Rental Market
Advertised rents · last 6 monthsHouses in Chelsea rent for around $750 a week on average, based on 29 houses listed for rent in the past six months.
Houses
$750/wk
29 houses advertised for rent in the last 6 months.
Units
$570/wk
30 units advertised for rent in the last 6 months.
59 rentals advertised against an estimated 1,179 rented homes (5.0%) in the last 6 months.
Rental affordability
June quarter 2025113 Moderately unaffordable · the average rental household in this region would pay about 27% of its income on the median rent in postcode 3196.
SGS Rental Affordability Index: a score of 100 means rent takes 30% of income, the usual housing-stress line; lower scores are less affordable. "Region" is the capital city or the rest of the state.
Gross rental yield
Indicative$750/week ($39,000 a year) on a $1.18 million median
$570/week ($30,000 a year) on a $671,000 median
Gross yield — before strata, rates, management, insurance and vacancy. Calculated from median advertised rents and median asking prices over the last 6 months. How we calculate.
Short-Stay Rentals
12 active Airbnb listings: 9 whole homes and 3 rooms. Whole homes are about 0.2% of the suburb's homes.
Airbnb only, as at Jun 2026; other platforms are not included. Active means reviewed in the past 12 months. The share is against private dwellings at the 2021 Census.
Is Chelsea safe? Crime statistics
2026Crime in Chelsea sits in the moderate band, with 457 incidents recorded in 2026 — down roughly 35% on the prior year.
457 offences
34.8% since 2025Crime Trend
Serious Road Crashes
2021–202522 crashes
where someone was killed or admitted to hospital, 1 of them fatal
Where they happened
Crashes are counted where they happened, so a main road through the suburb carries people passing through; this is not a measure of risk to residents. Roads are listed with 3 or more serious crashes.
Coastal Erosion
Shoreline Change Summary
2006–2025Nearest Eroding Coastline
- Distance
- 907 m
- Rate
- -0.03 m/yr
- Net Movement
- -7.4 m
- Certainty
- good
Data Quality
Schools
Four schools serve Chelsea, and the cohort skews above peer-suburb performance. Chelsea Primary School leads the pack.
- • 677 students across 2 schools (avg 338)
- • Sectors: 3 Government, 1 Catholic
- • ICSEA 1075-1084, median 1080 (above the national baseline of 1000)
- • Largest: Chelsea Primary School (360 students)
Primary
Secondary
Walkability
Chelsea is very walkable on foot — at 85/100, most daily errands can be done on foot. Within the suburb there are 2 supermarkets, 5 parks and 18 cafes to anchor that walking radius.
Public transport
Weekday and weekend service frequency across every stop inside Chelsea.
- Peak (7-9am + 5-7pm)
- 79.5 arrivals/hr
- Off-peak weekday
- 73.0 arrivals/hr
- Saturday
- 42.3 arrivals/hr
- Median peak wait
- 1 min
- Span of service
- 20.8 hours
- Direct to CBD (peak)
- 9 min wait
Scheduled service only, based on the 21 October 2026 timetable. Reliability (delays, cancellations) not measured.
NBN connectivity
The internet access technology available across NBN premises in Chelsea.
- Full-fibre (FTTP) share
- 38%
- Premises covered
- 4,870
NBN Co fixed-line and fixed-wireless premises, as at 30 December 2025. Higher-quality technologies (full fibre) score above copper, wireless, and satellite. Actual speeds depend on your plan.
Amenities
Kingston (Vic.): council population
The three add up to the change above. These are council-wide figures from the ABS, not figures for this suburb alone — this suburb's own population is in the census section above.
Socio-economic profile
The ABS scores 17 small areas inside this suburb and averages them into the single decile above. They fall into 4 different deciles — a wide range, so parts of this suburb rank well above the average and parts well below it.
Chelsea is home to about 8,300 residents, with a median age of 41, broadly in line with the national figure. Median household income runs at $88,000 a year, with unemployment at 3.5%.
2021 Census · change since 2016
Population
8,347
Median Age
41
Median Household Income
$87,516/yr
Census Median Rent
$375/wk
Census Median Mortgage
$2,008/mo
Avg Household Size
2.2
Median Personal Income
$49,452/yr
Unemployment Rate
3.5%
Unoccupied Dwellings
8.4%
Total Dwellings
3,606
Owner-Occupier Rate
67.3%
Houses
34.7%
Rental Stress
22.3%
Mortgage Stress
27.5%
Work From Home
36.6%
Dwelling Types
Property Ownership
104 rented from a state or territory housing authority and 8 from a community housing provider, as a share of the 1,140 rented dwellings above — not of all dwellings.
Demographics
- Born in Australia
- 71.6%
- English Spoken at Home
- 80.9%
- Employment Rate
- 61.2%
- Completed Year 12
- 50.2%
Occupations
Religion
Country of Birth (overseas)
Largest overseas birthplaces, as a share of all residents.
When They Arrived
Share of all residents by the year they arrived in Australia. Periods cover different numbers of years, so compare the shape rather than the bar widths.
214 residents (2.6%) arrived since 2016. Australia’s borders were closed to most arrivals from March 2020, so the last two years of that period are much smaller than the ones before them — nationally 260,799 people arrived in 2019 against 28,521 in 2021.
Where New Residents Came From
Where residents aged five and over lived five years before the 2021 Census, for those who lived somewhere else.
Top places newcomers came from, as a share of the 7,813 residents aged five and over. Areas are ABS statistical regions. Small counts are approximate: the ABS adjusts every figure slightly to protect privacy.
Languages Spoken at Home
Top languages other than English, as a share of all residents.
Age Distribution
Family & Household Composition
Commute to Work
14% of employed residents work in a capital's city centre (609 of 4,241).
City centre: the ABS area around each capital's CBD, such as Sydney Inner City or Perth City (which takes in Subiaco and Leederville). 2021 Census place of work.
Local Jobs
People who work in this suburb against employed people who live here, 2021 Census.
About 1,737 people work here; 4,241 employed residents live here.
Mostly a place people commute from: 0.4 jobs per working resident. At least 58% of employed residents must work outside the suburb.
Counts are by place of work and place of usual residence. The ABS counts jobs in zones; where a zone spans several places, its jobs are shared out by land use. The ABS also adjusts every figure slightly to protect privacy.
Education
Cars per Dwelling
Council Rates
Households face an average residential rates bill of $1,940 a year through Kingston (Vic.) based on 2024 figures.
How this land is zoned
- Residential 76%
- Parks and recreation 15%
- Infrastructure and transport 6%
- Commercial 3%
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 — the property page shows the zone for one address.
Building Approvals: Kingston (Vic.)
In the year to August 2026, 465 new dwellings were approved across Kingston (Vic.). That mix is 196 houses and 269 units. Approvals are down 36.4% on the same period a year earlier.
Aboriginal Cultural Heritage
The Registered Aboriginal Party for this area is Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation (appointed 2017).
Registered Aboriginal Parties are appointed by the Victorian Aboriginal Heritage Council under the Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006 as the primary guardians, keepers and knowledge holders of Aboriginal cultural heritage for their area. They are the body to contact about cultural heritage here.
Air Quality
MODERATEPM2.5 averaged 6.3 µg/m³ in 2025 — below Australia's NEPM annual standard (8 µg/m³), slightly above the stricter WHO guideline (5 µg/m³). 1 day exceeded the daily threshold of 25 µg/m³.
PM10 averaged 20.8 µg/m³ · NO₂ averaged 0.98 pphm. Days over the limit in 2025: PM10 3 · NO₂ 0 · ozone 0.
From the Dandenong monitoring station, 9.8 km away.
Climate & Setting
from Moorabbin Airport, 8.1 kmModerate rainfall — hot summers, mild winters.
- Elevation
- 8 m
- above sea level, at the suburb centre
- Distance to the ocean
- 825 m
- 810 m to a named beach
- Annual rainfall
- 644 mm
- 94 rainy days
- Summer max (Jan)
- 26.0°C
- 10 days ≥ 35°C
- Winter min (Jul)
- 6.9°C
- 2 frost days ≤ 0°C
Elevation is the ground at the suburb centre, from Geoscience Australia's National Digital Elevation Model. Approximate — it reads high in dense built-up areas. It is a measure of height above sea level and not an indicator of flood risk, which depends on height above nearby waterways.
Industrial Emissions Nearby
2 facilities within 5 km- 3.2 kmMilk and Cream ProcessingTop reported: Oxides of Nitrogen · Carbon monoxide · Particulate Matter ≤2.5 µm (PM2.5)
- 4.8 kmHuman Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Product ManufacturingTop reported: Total Volatile Organic Compounds · Ethanol · Oxides of Nitrogen
EV adoption
In postcode 3196, 202 of 18,509 registered light vehicles are battery-electric on 31 January 2025. A further 2.5% (465 vehicles) are hybrid or plug-in hybrid, taking the non-petrol, non-diesel share to 3.6%.
Rooftop solar
In postcode 3196, 2,880 rooftop-solar systems totalling 16.3 MW have been installed since 2001, against 11,725 dwellings recorded in the 2021 Census. 171 went up in the last year.
Counts every system certified since 2001, so a roof re-fitted with a newer system is counted twice, and small commercial systems are included alongside houses — useful for comparing postcodes, not an estimate of how many homes have working panels today.
2026 covers part of the year only, to 2026-07.
First Home Owner Grant
FY2026-27$10,000 for new homes priced up to $750,000.
The separate First Home Buyer Duty Reduction (stamp-duty concession) runs alongside this grant.
1 first-home grant was paid in postcode 3196 in 2025-26, rank 213 of 298 Victorian postcodes. The most was 264, in 2008-09.
Grants on new and established homes; established homes stopped qualifying in mid-2013.
Mortgage repayments
4 mortgage brokers are registered in this suburb, 17 across postcode 3196.
Land transfer duty at the owner-occupier rate, and it excludes first home buyer concessions — those can cut it substantially or remove it entirely. Excludes legal, inspection and lender fees. Check with State Revenue Office Victoria
The First Home Owner Grant applies to newly built homes only, so it isn't available on an established purchase. A first home buyer building or buying new under $750,000 may qualify for $10,000 — see what qualifies with State Revenue Office Victoria.
At $687,500 this is under the $750,000 First Home Owner Grant cap. A first home buyer may qualify for $10,000 on a newly built home — check eligibility with State Revenue Office Victoria.
A deposit under 20% usually attracts Lenders Mortgage Insurance, which this doesn't include.
Principal and interest over 30 years, fixed rate. Excludes fees, offset, redraw and LMI. Default rate is the median comparison rate across 1788 advertised products as at 2026-10-26 — indicative only, and not an offer. Your rate depends on the lender, your deposit and your circumstances. Not financial advice.
Federal Electorate
Currently held by Jodie Belyea Australian Labor Party
| Year | Winner | 2PP ALP | 2PP LNP | Swing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Jodie Belyea | 57.1% | 42.9% | +0.3 |
| 2022 | Peta Murphy | 56.3% | 43.7% | -3.5 |
| 2019 | Peta Murphy | 52.7% | 47.3% | -1.7 |
Results are per division — federal electoral boundaries are redrawn periodically, so the history reflects this division's past, not necessarily the exact suburb's voters across time.
State Electorate
Currently held by Tim Richardson Australian Labor Party - Victorian Branch
Next state election: 28 November 2026.
| Year | Winner | Won with | 2PP ALP | 2PP LNP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Tim Richardson ALP | 58.2% | 58.2% | 41.8% |
| 2018 | Tim Richardson ALP | 50.1% | 62.9% | 37.1% |
| 2014 | Tim Richardson ALP | 52.1% | 52.1% | 47.9% |
Results are per district. Districts were last redrawn in 2021, so results from before then describe the district of that name, not necessarily this suburb's voters. Results: Victorian Electoral Commission, CC BY 4.0.
Looking at a specific address in Chelsea?
Every figure above is a suburb average, and an average smooths over the difference between a street of family homes and a block of flats. Look up one address and you get the census for the few hundred people around it, its own nearest schools and stops, and what the state has mapped for that block.
- The census for a few hundred neighbours, not all 8,347 residents
- Nearest and zoned schools, with the walk from that door
- Flood, bushfire and noise mapping, where the state publishes it
Free to look up. Subscribers see every section in full — $29/month.
Checking the whole city?
Suburbs to avoid in Melbourne There is no list of bad suburbs, but there are hazards the state measures and publishes — recorded crime, bushfire exposure, flood overlays and aircraft noise. Melbourne suburbs ranked on them, with what the numbers do and don't mean.Nearby suburbs
Compare Chelsea to another suburb
Side-by-side stats for any other VIC suburb — type a name and pick one.
Or jump straight to a nearby comparison:
Common questions about Chelsea
Is Chelsea a safe place to live?
Recorded crime in Chelsea is moderate (66/100, ranked against other VIC suburbs on offences per resident).
What natural hazards affect Chelsea?
Chelsea has no recorded bushfire history. Flood overlays cover a moderate share of it (67/100). These are suburb-wide figures; check the address, as flood and bushfire exposure change street by street.
Is Chelsea a good place to live?
Chelsea has a SuburbScan Liveability grade of B (61/100), ranked against other VIC suburbs on school quality (25%), safety (25%), SEIFA socio-economic advantage (25%), walkability (15%) and CBD access (10%). Whether it suits you depends on what you weigh — each of those is on this page.
What is the population of Chelsea?
Chelsea, VIC had a population of 8,347 at the 2021 Australian Bureau of Statistics census.
What is the postcode for Chelsea, VIC?
The postcode for Chelsea, VIC is 3196.
How far is Chelsea from Melbourne?
Chelsea is 39 km from Melbourne CBD by road, about 45 minutes by car in normal traffic. Distance is the most-direct driving route, not straight-line.
What is the median household income in Chelsea?
At the 2021 ABS Census, median household income in Chelsea was $87,516 a year. It is the most recent suburb-level income figure until 2026 Census results are released in 2027.
What is the median weekly rent in Chelsea?
The median advertised rent in Chelsea is $750 a week for houses (29 listings) and $570 a week for units (30 listings), from rental listings over the last six months.
What is the median age in Chelsea?
The median age of residents in Chelsea was 41 at the 2021 ABS Census.
How are the schools in Chelsea?
There are 4 schools inside the Chelsea boundary: 1 above and 1 at similar schools on NAPLAN, compared with same-state, same-type schools of similar socio-educational advantage (ICSEA).
Is Chelsea walkable?
Chelsea scores 85/100 on the SuburbScan Walkability Score, making it very walkable. The score is a weighted average of public transport, schools, parks, supermarkets, GPs, pharmacies, childcare, and hospitals within walking distance.
What is the air quality in Chelsea?
The nearest government air-quality monitoring station to Chelsea (Dandenong) recorded a 2025 annual mean PM2.5 of 6.3 µg/m³ and PM10 of 20.8 µg/m³. That puts Chelsea below the Australian NEPM annual standard of 8 µg/m³ but above the stricter WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³.
What is the weather like in Chelsea?
At the nearest Bureau of Meteorology station to Chelsea, Moorabbin Airport (8.1 km away), summer days average 26°C, winter nights 6.9°C, 644 mm of rain a year over 94 rainy days, and 10 days a year above 35°C over 2006-2026.
Is the First Home Owner Grant available in Chelsea?
First-home buyers in VIC may be eligible for $10,000 towards new homes with a purchase price up to $750,000. The grant is administered by State Revenue Office Victoria; confirm current eligibility before signing a contract — state rules and amounts can change.
What council does Chelsea belong to?
Chelsea sits within the Kingston (Vic.) local government area. Council rates, planning approvals, and waste collection fall under this LGA.
How much are council rates in Chelsea?
The average residential rates bill through Kingston (Vic.) is $1,940 a year (2024). Every suburb in this LGA shares the same schedule — individual bills vary with land value.
How much is being built near Chelsea?
Across Kingston (Vic.), 465 new residential dwellings were approved in the year to August 2026 (source: ABS Building Approvals). That's down 36.4% on the same period a year earlier. These are LGA-level totals — every suburb in the council shares the same figure.
Which federal electorate is Chelsea in?
Chelsea sits within the federal Division of Dunkley, currently held by Jodie Belyea (Australian Labor Party).
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Data freshness
- Census · 2021
- Median sale prices · Oct 2026
- For-sale & rental market · Oct 2026
- Council rates · FY 2024–25
- Building approvals · Aug 2026
- Schools · 2025
- Public transport · Oct 2026
- NBN connectivity · Dec 2025
- Crime · 2026
- Road crashes · 2021–2025
- Air quality · 2025
- Climate · 2006–2026
- Socio-economic (SEIFA) · 2021
- EV adoption · Jan 2025
- First Home Owner Grant · Sep 2026
- Federal electorate · 2025
- Short-stay rentals · Jun 2026
- State electorate · 2022
- Amenities · Sep 2026
- Health & emergency facilities · Sep 2026
- Industrial emissions (NPI) · 2024/2025
- Coastal erosion · 1988–2025
- Aircraft noise · 2024
Vintages show when each source's data is from. See all data sources.
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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.