Forest Hill is a suburb in Whitehorse, Victoria (postcode 3131), located in the Greater Melbourne region. At the ABS Census 2021 it had a population of 10,780 people.

At a glance

Population (2021)

10,780

Median age

Household income

$1,658/wk

Weekly rent

$396

Unemployment

5.4%

SEIFA IRSD decile

6 / 10

Age distribution

0-4

5.1%

5-14

11.2%

15-19

5.4%

20-24

5.7%

25-34

11.3%

35-44

14.1%

45-54

13.5%

55-64

11.8%

65-74

9.8%

75-84

7.9%

85+

4.2%

Housing tenure

Owned

38.1%

Mortgage

32.7%

Rented

25.7%

Other

2.2%

Key statistics

Indicator	Value
Postcode	3131
Population (2021)	10,780
Males	5,139 (47.7%)
Females	5,636 (52.3%)
Median age	42 years
Average household size	2.5
Median weekly household income	$1,658
Median weekly family income	$2,120
Median weekly rent	$396
Median monthly mortgage	$2,123
Labour force	5,211
Unemployment rate	5.4%
Participation rate	60%
Born overseas	42.4%
Separate houses	66.8%
Worked at home	32.7%
SEIFA IRSD decile	6 of 10
Bachelor degree or higher	63.5%
Completed Year 12 or equivalent	72.6%
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander residents	0.3%
Residents needing assistance with core activities	7.8%
Households with 2+ vehicles	52.0%
Distance from Melbourne CBD	18.5 km (straight line)

Age profile

Median age: 42 years. Residents under 15: 16.3%. Residents aged 65 and over: 21.9%.

Age group	People	Share of population
0-4	552	5.1%
5-14	1,205	11.2%
15-19	582	5.4%
20-24	615	5.7%
25-34	1,218	11.3%
35-44	1,522	14.1%
45-54	1,457	13.5%
55-64	1,267	11.8%
65-74	1,056	9.8%
75-84	849	7.9%
85 and over	456	4.2%

Households and families

Household type	Count	Share of households
Total households	4,083
Average household size	2.5
One person	1,123	27.5%
Two persons	1,231	30.1%
Three persons	681	16.7%
Four persons	739	18.1%
Five persons	212	5.2%
Six or more persons	94	2.3%

Family type	Count	Share of families
Total families	2,928
Couples with children	123	4.2%
Couples without children	1,005	34.3%
One-parent families	464	15.8%
Other families	65	2.2%

Children ever born

Measure	Value
Average children per woman aged 15+	1.5
Women with no children	32.0%
Women with three or more children	20.0%

Of the 1,398 couple families with children in Forest Hill, 4.6% are step or blended families.

Marital status

Marital status of residents aged 15 and over in Forest Hill.

Status	Share of adults
Married (registered marriage)	50.5%
Married (de facto)	6.0%
Not married	43.6%

Housing

Dwellings	Count	Share of dwellings
Total dwellings	4,404
Occupied	4,083	92.7%
Unoccupied	320	7.3%

Dwelling structure	Count	Share of dwellings
Separate house	2,941	66.8%
Semi-detached or townhouse	1,015	23.0%
Flat or apartment	127	2.9%
Other dwelling	0	0.0%

Tenure	Count	Share of households
Owned outright	1,555	38.1%
Owned with a mortgage	1,336	32.7%
Rented	1,049	25.7%
Other tenure	90	2.2%

Weekly rent

Rent band	Share of renting households
Under $350 per week	29.8%
$350 to $549 per week	59.5%
$550 or more per week	10.7%

18.5% of renting households rent through a state or community housing provider.

Monthly mortgage repayments

Repayment band	Share of mortgaged households
Under $1,000	17.7%
$1,000 to $1,799	21.9%
$1,800 to $2,999	32.6%
$3,000 or more	27.7%

Bedrooms per dwelling

Bedrooms	Share of dwellings
None or one bedroom	4.2%
Two bedrooms	16.4%
Three bedrooms	48.0%
Four or more bedrooms	31.4%

Employment

Labour force status	Count	Share
Labour force	5,211
Employed	4,928	94.6%
Unemployed	280	5.4%
Not in the labour force	3,477
Unemployment rate	5.4%
Participation rate	60%

37.9% of employed residents work part time, fewer than 35 hours per week.

Household income

Household incomes in Forest Hill are distributed across the following weekly bands.

Weekly household income	Share of households
Under $650	20.9%
$650 to $1,499	25.7%
$1,500 to $2,999	29.1%
$3,000 or more	24.3%

For residents aged 15 and over, personal weekly income is distributed as follows.

Weekly personal income	Share of residents 15+
Under $500	40.1%
$500 to $999	21.1%
$1,000 to $1,999	25.7%
$2,000 or more	13.1%

Travel to work

Method	Count	Share of workers
Car driver	2,208	44.8%
Car passenger	150	3.0%
Train	87	1.8%
Bus	41	0.8%
Tram	3	0.1%
Bicycle	8	0.2%
Walked only	71	1.4%
Worked at home	1,612	32.7%

Religious affiliation

Religion	Count	Share of residents
Christianity	4,470	41.5%
No religion	4,251	39.4%
Islam	237	2.2%
Hinduism	341	3.2%
Buddhism	745	6.9%
Judaism	21	0.2%
Other or not stated	715	6.6%

Socio-economic profile (SEIFA 2021)

SEIFA deciles run from 1 (most disadvantaged) to 10 (least disadvantaged) nationally.

Index	Score	Decile	Percentile
IRSD (disadvantage)	1021	6	55
IRSAD (advantage and disadvantage)	1036	8
IER (economic resources)	999	4
IEO (education and occupation)	1059	9

Where residents were born

56.3% of residents were born in Australia and 43.7% were born overseas. The most common overseas birthplaces in Forest Hill are listed below.

Country of birth	People	Share of residents
China (excludes SARs and Taiwan)	1,203	11.5%
India	357	3.4%
Malaysia	352	3.4%
Vietnam	262	2.5%
England	209	2.0%
Sri Lanka	208	2.0%

When overseas-born residents arrived

Year of arrival	Share of overseas-born residents
2016 to 2021	14.7%
2011 to 2015	17.6%
2001 to 2010	25.5%
Before 2001	42.1%

Languages spoken at home

55.5% of residents speak only English at home. The most common other languages in Forest Hill are listed below. Across all households, 8.7% of residents speak English not well or not at all.

Language	People	Share of residents
Chinese: Mandarin	1,516	14.5%
Chinese: Cantonese	778	7.5%
Greek	322	3.1%
Vietnamese	193	1.9%
Indo-Aryan: Sinhalese	172	1.7%
Indo-Aryan: Hindi	146	1.4%

Ancestry

Residents of Forest Hill most commonly report the following ancestries.

Ancestry	Responses	Share of responses
Chinese	2,870	21.0%
English	2,415	17.7%
Australian	2,323	17.0%
Irish	798	5.8%
Scottish	747	5.5%
Greek	497	3.6%

Work and industry

The largest employment sectors for Forest Hill residents are listed below.

Industry of employment	Workers	Share of workers
Health Care and Social Assistance	682	14.5%
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services	545	11.6%
Retail Trade	539	11.5%
Education and Training	489	10.4%
Manufacturing	327	7.0%
Construction	311	6.6%

The most common occupations among Forest Hill residents are listed below.

Occupation	Workers	Share of workers
Professionals	1,527	31.5%
Clerical and Administrative Workers	695	14.3%
Managers	652	13.5%
Community and Personal Service Workers	493	10.2%
Technicians and Trades Workers	489	10.1%
Sales Workers	476	9.8%

Education

Of residents attending an education institution in Forest Hill, 21.0% are at university or higher education, 8.8% are at TAFE or vocational education, and 66.1% are at school.

72.6% of residents aged 15 and over have completed Year 12 or equivalent.

The most common fields of study among Forest Hill residents with qualifications are listed below.

Field of study	People	Share
Management and Commerce	1,452	27.6%
Engineering and Related Technologies	735	14.0%
Society and Culture	639	12.1%
Health	568	10.8%
Education	451	8.6%
Information Technology	423	8.0%

Long-term health conditions

54.1% of residents report no long-term health condition. The most commonly reported conditions in Forest Hill are listed below.

Health condition	People	Share of residents
Arthritis	957	7.8%
Mental health condition (including depression or anxiety)	924	7.5%
Asthma	839	6.8%
Diabetes (excluding gestational diabetes)	568	4.6%
Heart disease (including heart attack or angina)	471	3.8%
Cancer (including remission)	320	2.6%
Lung condition (including COPD or emphysema)	154	1.2%
Dementia (including Alzheimer's)	152	1.2%
Stroke	138	1.1%
Kidney disease	113	0.9%

19.5% of residents report one condition, 6.8% report two, and 3.5% report three or more.

Community and care

How residents of Forest Hill contribute to their community (share of residents aged 15 and over).

Community activity	Share
Volunteers for an organisation or group	14.3%
Provides unpaid assistance to a person with a disability or health condition	13.4%
Provides unpaid child care	52.3%
Does 15 or more hours of unpaid domestic work	21.2%
Has served or is serving in the Australian Defence Force	1.9%

Moving and stability

Mobility	Share of residents
Same address 1 year ago	89.9%
Moved within Victoria in the last year	8.1%
Moved interstate in the last year	0.2%
Moved from overseas in the last year	0.9%
Same address 5 years ago	66.2%
Moved within Victoria in the last 5 years	22.6%
Moved interstate in the last 5 years	1.8%
Moved from overseas in the last 5 years	6.8%

Photo: Forest Hill, Victoria. Credit: Lakeyboy / Public domain via Wikimedia Commons.

Crime and safety

Victoria Police recorded 923 offences in Forest Hill in the 12 months to March 2026.

Offence division	Recorded offences
A Crimes against the person	111
B Property and deception offences	646
C Drug offences	29
D Public order and security offences	25
E Justice procedures offences	112
F Other offences	0

That is a calculated rate of 85.6 recorded offences per 1,000 residents, based on the ABS Census 2021 population. This rate was calculated by My Victoria AU and is not a Crime Statistics Agency figure.

For context, the Whitehorse local government area recorded 6,208 offences per 100,000 residents in the same period. That figure is the official Crime Statistics Agency rate for the LGA.

Five-year trend

2022
494

2023
558

2024
725

2025
921

2026
923

Recorded offences count crimes reported to Victoria Police in this locality, not crimes committed by or against its residents. Areas with shopping centres, transport hubs, hospitals or entertainment precincts record more offences regardless of how safe they are for people who live there. Counts are revised as investigations progress.

Source: Crime Statistics Agency Victoria, Data tables - Recorded offences, Year ending March 2026. Licensed under CC BY 4.0. Rates per 1,000 residents are calculations by My Victoria AU using ABS Census 2021 population and are not CSA figures. View the source dataset.

Location

Nearby suburbs

Blackburn South (2.2 km)
Vermont South (2.3 km)
Burwood East (2.3 km)
Vermont (2.5 km)
Nunawading (2.8 km)

Browse more suburbs in Whitehorse, or explore the wider Greater Melbourne region of Victoria.

Data disclaimer: The statistics on this page are sourced from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), Census of Population and Housing 2021 and SEIFA 2021 (ASGS Edition 3), and are used under the ABS CC BY 4.0 licence. This directory is an independent community resource and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the ABS.

Forest Hill

About

At a glance

Age distribution

Housing tenure

Key statistics

Age profile

Households and families

Children ever born

Marital status

Housing

Weekly rent

Monthly mortgage repayments

Bedrooms per dwelling

Employment

Household income

Travel to work

Religious affiliation

Socio-economic profile (SEIFA 2021)

Where residents were born

When overseas-born residents arrived

Languages spoken at home

Ancestry

Work and industry

Education

Long-term health conditions

Community and care

Moving and stability

Crime and safety

Five-year trend

Location

Nearby suburbs

Reviews

Location & Contact

Location

Contact

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