Doncaster, VIC
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Doncaster rises over the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, about 15 kilometres from the city on the high ground of Doncaster Hill within the City of Manningham. The formally recognised traditional owners of the area are the Wurundjeri people. European settlement followed an 1841 land purchase by Sydney solicitor Frederic Unwin, and from the 1860s German orchardists established a farming community they called Waldau, a name gradually replaced by Doncaster. A Lutheran church and school opened around 1860, and Schramm's Cottage survives as a reminder of that era. In 1889 Doncaster was the starting point for Melbourne's first electric tram, which ran to Box Hill along what became Tram Road. Orchards covered the district until the 1970s, when the landmark Westfield Doncaster centre anchored rapid suburban growth.
Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs
Doncaster is more socio-economically advantaged than about 86% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 1057, where about 1000 is the national average).
A socio-economic measure from ABS Census data — not a measure of how good a suburb is to live in or visit. How we calculate this.
Doncaster at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 25,020
- Median age
- 40
- Median weekly household income
- $1,592
- SEIFA score
- 1057
- Coordinates
- -37.7828, 145.1221
Doncaster demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Doncaster using the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census; every percentage is a share of a clearly stated Census count, so each one traces back to the source. At a glance, the largest age group is young adults (25–44) at 29%, 30% of homes are rented, and 56% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 3,491 | 14% |
| Youth (15–24) | 2,853 | 11% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 7,371 | 29% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 5,794 | 23% |
| Seniors (65+) | 5,509 | 22% |
Share of the 25,018 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 3,724 | 37% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 2,685 | 27% |
| Rented | 3,027 | 30% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 5,272 | 53% |
| Townhouses & semis | 1,946 | 20% |
| Flats & apartments | 2,712 | 27% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 9,944 occupied private dwellings in Doncaster.
- Median weekly rent
- $450
- Median monthly mortgage
- $2,167
- Average household size
- 2.4 people
- Median weekly family income
- $1,958
- Median weekly personal income
- $719
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 13,655 (56%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 14,555 (60%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 60 (0%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 15,141 (73%)
- Labour-force participation
- 57.1%
- Unemployment rate
- 6.1%
- Employed full-time
- 6,669
- Employed part-time
- 4,127
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021 (General Community Profile, by Suburb and Locality). © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. How we group bands and derive each share is set out on our methodology page.
Weather and climate in Doncaster
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Doncaster is January (average daytime high around 27°C) and the coolest is July (around 12.9°C). The area receives roughly 724 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 27°C | 14.9°C | 62 mm |
| Feb | 25.8°C | 14.1°C | 32 mm |
| Mar | 24°C | 13.3°C | 47 mm |
| Apr | 20°C | 10.5°C | 62 mm |
| May | 16°C | 8.4°C | 63 mm |
| Jun | 13.4°C | 6.5°C | 63 mm |
| Jul | 12.9°C | 6.1°C | 50 mm |
| Aug | 13.7°C | 6.2°C | 59 mm |
| Sep | 16.3°C | 7.3°C | 65 mm |
| Oct | 19.6°C | 8.8°C | 76 mm |
| Nov | 21.6°C | 10.8°C | 79 mm |
| Dec | 24.5°C | 12.6°C | 66 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Common questions about Doncaster
Where is Doncaster?
Doncaster is a suburb of Victoria, Australia.
What is the population of Doncaster?
At the 2021 Census, Doncaster had a population of about 25,020.
Is Doncaster an advantaged area?
Doncaster has an ABS SEIFA score of 1057, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 86 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 86% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Doncaster?
Doncaster has average daytime highs of about 19.6°C and overnight lows of about 10°C, with roughly 724 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
Nearby suburbs in Victoria
More suburb guides in Victoria
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.