Essendon, VIC

By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan · Updated 1 June 2026

Essendon is an established suburb about eight kilometres north-west of central Melbourne, in the City of Moonee Valley. Its recognised traditional owners are the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation. The suburb takes its name from the village of Essendon in Hertfordshire, England; an early settler, Richard Green, named the district after his birthplace, where his family had been connected with the local mill. Growth followed the gold rush of the 1850s, with the post office opening in 1856, a railway to the city in 1871 and an electric tramway in 1906. The grand 1890 mansion Earlsbrae Hall now houses Lowther Hall Anglican Grammar School. Essendon is the home of the Essendon Football Club, one of the most successful clubs in the VFL and AFL, and the birthplace of the singer Judith Durham.

94/100

Suburb Score

Among Australia's more advantaged suburbs

Essendon is more socio-economically advantaged than about 94% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 1092, 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.

Essendon at a glance

Population (2021): 21,240
Median age: 39
Median weekly household income: $2,132
SEIFA score: 1092
Coordinates: -37.7492, 144.9089

Essendon demographics (2021 Census)

The figures below profile Essendon 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%, 36% of homes are rented, and 26% of residents were born overseas.

Age profile

Age group	People	Share
Children (0–14)	3,177	15%
Youth (15–24)	2,813	13%
Young adults (25–44)	6,238	29%
Mid-life (45–64)	5,657	27%
Seniors (65+)	3,365	16%

Share of the 21,250 people counted by age.

Housing and households

Tenure	Dwellings	Share
Owned outright	2,760	32%
Owned with a mortgage	2,527	30%
Rented	3,037	36%

Dwelling type	Dwellings	Share
Houses	4,019	47%
Townhouses & semis	1,671	20%
Flats & apartments	2,810	33%

Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 8,530 occupied private dwellings in Essendon.

Median weekly rent: $380
Median monthly mortgage: $2,275
Average household size: 2.4 people
Median weekly family income: $2,946
Median weekly personal income: $1,067

Community and culture

Born overseas: 5,251 (26%)
Speaks a language other than English at home: 5,037 (25%)
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander: 86 (0%)

Work and education

Completed Year 12: 12,777 (74%)
Labour-force participation: 69%
Unemployment rate: 4.2%
Employed full-time: 7,358
Employed part-time: 3,834

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 Essendon

Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Essendon 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 Essendon

Where is Essendon?

Essendon is a suburb of Victoria, Australia.

What is the population of Essendon?

At the 2021 Census, Essendon had a population of about 21,240.

Is Essendon an advantaged area?

Essendon has an ABS SEIFA score of 1092, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 94 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 94% of Australian suburbs.

What is the weather like in Essendon?

Essendon 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).