Winston Hills
Statistical Area - sa2

An assessment of population growth drivers in Winston Hills reveals an overall ranking slightly below national averages considering recent, and medium term trends

Winston Hills' population, as of Aug 2025, is approximately 11,210. This figure represents an increase from the 2021 Census count of 11,199 people. The change was inferred from ABS's estimated resident population of 11,207 in June 2024 and additional validated new addresses since the Census date. This results in a population density ratio of 2,577 persons per square kilometer, placing Winston Hills in the upper quartile relative to national locations assessed by AreaSearch. Overseas migration contributed approximately 82.5% of overall population gains during recent periods.

AreaSearch's projections for Winston Hills are based on ABS/Geoscience Australia data released in 2024 with a base year of 2022, and NSW State Government's SA2 level projections for areas not covered by this data, released in 2022 with a base year of 2021. Growth rates by age group from these aggregations are applied to all areas for years 2032 to 2041. Future population trends indicate an expected increase just below the median of national areas, with Winston Hills projected to expand by 811 persons to 2041, reflecting a total increase of 7.2% over the 17-year period.

AreaSearch assessment of residential development drivers sees a low level of activity in Winston Hills, placing the area among the bottom 25% of areas assessed nationally

Winston Hills has averaged approximately 32 new dwelling approvals per year. The Australian Bureau of Statistics produces development approval data on a financial year basis. Over the past five financial years, from FY-21 to FY-25, there were 161 home approvals, with two more approved in FY-26 so far. Despite population decline in recent years, new supply has likely kept pace with demand, offering buyers good choice.

New properties are constructed at an average expected cost of $569,000. In FY-26, $2.2 million in commercial development approvals have been recorded, indicating a predominantly residential focus. Compared to Greater Sydney, Winston Hills shows significantly reduced construction activity, with 61.0% fewer approvals per person. This constrained new construction typically reinforces demand and pricing for existing homes. The area's activity is also below the national average, reflecting its maturity and possible planning constraints.

Recent construction comprises 79.0% detached houses and 21.0% townhouses or apartments, maintaining Winston Hills' traditional suburban character with a focus on family homes. The location has approximately 390 people per dwelling approval, indicating an established area. Looking ahead, Winston Hills is projected to grow by 808 residents by 2041. At current development rates, new housing supply should comfortably meet demand, providing good conditions for buyers and potentially supporting growth beyond current population projections.

Winston Hills has very high levels of nearby infrastructure activity, ranking in the top 20% nationally

The performance of an area is significantly influenced by changes to its local infrastructure, major projects, and planning initiatives. AreaSearch has identified a total of 18 projects that are expected to impact the area. Notable among these are the Winston Hills Mall Food Court Renovation, Max Ruddock Reserve Amenities Building and Viewing Platform, 25-27 Reynolds Street Old Toongabbie, and Stream Northmead. The following list details those projects likely to be most relevant.

Professional plan users can use the search below to filter and access additional projects.

Employment conditions in Winston Hills rank among the top 10% of areas assessed nationally

Winston Hills has an educated workforce with strong professional services representation. Its unemployment rate was 1.7% in the past year, with estimated employment growth of 2.7%.

As of June 2025, there are 6,687 employed residents, with an unemployment rate of 2.5%, below Greater Sydney's rate of 4.2%. Workforce participation is similar to Greater Sydney at 62.1%. Leading employment industries include health care & social assistance, education & training, and construction. Education & training has notably high concentration, being 1.3 times the regional average.

Transport, postal & warehousing employs 3.2% of local workers, below Greater Sydney's 5.3%. The area offers limited local employment opportunities, as indicated by Census data comparison between working population and resident population. Over a 12-month period ending June 2025, employment increased by 2.7%, labour force by 3.1%, raising unemployment rate by 0.4 percentage points. Greater Sydney recorded similar trends with slightly lower increases. State-level data from Sep-25 shows NSW employment contracted by 0.41% (losing 19,270 jobs), with state unemployment at 4.3%, favourable compared to national rates of 4.5%. National employment forecasts from May 2025 project growth of 6.6% over five years and 13.7% over ten years. Applying these projections to Winston Hills' employment mix suggests local growth of approximately 6.8% over five years and 13.9% over ten years, assuming constant population projections.

Income metrics indicate excellent economic conditions, with the area achieving higher performance than 75% of national locations assessed by AreaSearch

AreaSearch aggregated latest postcode level ATO data released for financial year 2022, indicating Winston Hills had a median taxpayer income of $61,696 and an average income of $81,253. These figures are among the highest in Australia, with Greater Sydney's median being $56,994 and average at $80,856. Based on Wage Price Index growth of 10.6% since financial year 2022, current estimates for Winston Hills would be approximately $68,236 (median) and $89,866 (average) as of March 2025. According to the 2021 Census figures, household incomes in Winston Hills rank at the 89th percentile ($2,421 weekly). The largest income segment comprises 28.7% earning $1,500 - 2,999 weekly (3,217 residents), similar to regional levels where 30.9% fall within this range. Higher earners make up a substantial presence with 40.5% exceeding $3,000 weekly. Housing accounts for 14.9% of income, and residents rank in the 89th percentile for disposable income. The area's SEIFA income ranking places it in the 9th decile.

Winston Hills is characterized by a predominantly suburban housing profile, with above-average rates of outright home ownership

Winston Hills' dwelling structures, as per the latest Census, consisted of 92.9% houses and 7.1% other dwellings. In comparison, Sydney metro had 36.4% houses and 63.6% other dwellings. Home ownership in Winston Hills was 40.3%, with mortgaged dwellings at 46.6% and rented ones at 13.2%. The median monthly mortgage repayment was $2,700, higher than Sydney metro's $2,167. The median weekly rent was $530, compared to Sydney metro's $420. Nationally, Winston Hills' mortgage repayments were significantly higher at $2,700 against the Australian average of $1,863, and rents were substantially above the national figure of $375.

Winston Hills features high concentrations of family households, with a higher-than-average median household size

Family households account for 84.0% of all households, including 48.6% couples with children, 25.1% couples without children, and 9.7% single parent families. Non-family households make up the remaining 16.0%, with lone person households at 14.9% and group households comprising 1.2% of the total. The median household size is 3.0 people, larger than the Greater Sydney average of 2.6.

Winston Hills shows strong educational performance, ranking in the upper quartile nationally when assessed across multiple qualification and achievement indicators

The area faces educational challenges, with university qualification rates at 35.8%, significantly below the SA3 area average of 50.2%. Bachelor degrees are most common at 23.9%, followed by postgraduate qualifications (8.7%) and graduate diplomas (3.2%). Trade and technical skills are prominent, with 30.8% of residents aged 15+ holding vocational credentials - advanced diplomas (11.5%) and certificates (19.3%). Educational participation is high, with 30.0% of residents currently enrolled in formal education.

This includes 11.1% in primary, 8.5% in secondary, and 5.1% in tertiary education. Winston Hills has 3 schools with a combined enrollment of 1,362 students. These schools focus exclusively on primary education, with secondary options available in surrounding areas. School places per 100 residents stand at 12.2, below the regional average of 18.0, indicating some students may attend schools outside the area. Winston Hills demonstrates socio-educational advantages and academic achievement (ICSEA: 1100).

Transport servicing is good compared to other areas nationally based on assessment of service frequency, route connectivity and accessibility

The analysis of public transport in Winston Hills indicates that there are currently 77 active transport stops in operation. These stops serve a mix of bus routes, totaling 52 individual routes. Together, these routes facilitate 2,777 weekly passenger trips.

The accessibility of transport is rated as excellent, with residents on average situated just 157 meters from the nearest transport stop. On a daily basis, service frequency averages at 396 trips across all routes, which translates to approximately 36 weekly trips per individual stop.

The level of general health in Winston Hills is notably higher than the national average with prevalence of common health conditions low among the general population and nearer the nation's average across older, at risk cohorts

Winston Hills shows better-than-average health outcomes with low prevalence of common conditions among its general population. Among older and at-risk groups, however, it approaches national averages. Private health cover is exceptionally high here, at around 61% (6,815 people), compared to Greater Sydney's 53.4% and the national average of 55.3%.

The most prevalent conditions are arthritis (7.2%) and asthma (7.0%), with 71.5% reporting no medical ailments, slightly lower than Greater Sydney's 79.0%. Residents aged 65 and over comprise 18.9% (2,113 people), higher than Greater Sydney's 12.5%, requiring more health attention than the broader population despite above-average outcomes among seniors.

Winston Hills was found to be more culturally diverse than the vast majority of local markets in Australia, upon assessment of a range of language and cultural background related metrics

Winston Hills was found to be more culturally diverse than most local markets, with 30.4% of its population born overseas and 29.2% speaking a language other than English at home. The predominant religion in Winston Hills is Christianity, accounting for 62.5% of the population, compared to 38.1% across Greater Sydney. In terms of ancestry, the top three represented groups are Australian (21.5%), English (20.4%), and Other (11.3%).

These figures differ from regional averages: Australian is substantially higher (11.8%), English is also notably higher (12.2%), while Other is significantly lower (23.7%). There are notable divergences in the representation of certain ethnic groups, with Lebanese at 4.7% (regional average 3.5%), Korean at 1.5% (same as regional), and Maltese at 1.3% (regional average 0.9%).

Winston Hills's population is slightly older than the national pattern

Winston Hills has a median age of 40, which is slightly higher than Greater Sydney's figure of 37 and Australia's figure of 38. Compared to the Greater Sydney average, Winston Hills has an over-representation of the 75-84 cohort (8.0% locally) and an under-representation of the 25-34 age group (8.3%). Between 2021 and the present, the population of the 15 to 24 age group has increased from 11.0% to 13.3%. Conversely, the 65 to 74 cohort has decreased from 9.4% to 8.1%, and the 35 to 44 age group has dropped from 15.6% to 14.6%. By 2041, demographic modeling suggests Winston Hills' age profile will significantly change. The 55 to 64 age cohort is projected to expand by 338 people (28%), growing from 1,203 to 1,542. Conversely, both the 0 to 4 and 75 to 84 age groups are expected to decrease in number.