# Melton vs Bendigo — 2021 Census comparison

Indigenous Area comparison · about 116 km apart

Melton and Bendigo are two Victorian hubs with very different layouts. Bendigo is much more walkable, with 56.8% of homes in a 15-minute-city walkshed compared to 37.1% in Melton. Living in Bendigo also means better access to essentials; 79.1% of homes are within a 10-minute walk of public transport, while in Melton that figure is 59.5%. In contrast, Melton has far higher street connectivity, with 77 intersections per square kilometre compared to just 8 in Bendigo.

Everyday life shares some similarities across both areas, as First Nations personal incomes are nearly identical at around $590 and about 4% of residents in both places speak a First Nations language. These shared traits sit alongside differences in First Nations outcomes. For example, the First Nations unemployment rate is well higher in Melton at 13.4% than in Bendigo, where it is 9.7%.

## First Nations

| Statistic | Melton | Bendigo | Gap | Trend |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| First Nations people | 2,123 | 2,740 | 617 larger in Bendigo |  |
| Median age | 25 yrs | 22 yrs | 3 yrs older in Melton |  |
| Year 12 | 31.7% | 37.9% | 6.3 pts higher in Bendigo |  |
| Unemployment | 13.4% | 9.7% | 3.7 pts higher in Melton |  |
| Median income | $588 | $595 | $7 higher in Bendigo |  |
| Household income | $1,662 | $1,409 | $253 higher in Melton |  |
| Indigenous language | 4.1% | 3.9% | 0.2 pts higher in Melton |  |

## Walkability

| Statistic | Melton | Bendigo | Gap | Trend |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Walk score | 4.0 | 5.1 | 1.1 higher in Bendigo |  |
| Types ≤15 min | 3.8 | 5.0 | 1.2 more in Bendigo |  |
| 15-min city | 37.1% | 56.8% | 19.7 pts higher in Bendigo |  |
| Walk to shops | 39.0% | 49.8% | 10.8 pts higher in Bendigo |  |
| Walk to transit | 59.5% | 79.1% | 19.6 pts higher in Bendigo |  |
| Walk to school | 60.8% | 66.4% | 5.6 pts higher in Bendigo |  |
| Walk to a park | 93.4% | 88.1% | 5.3 pts higher in Melton |  |
| Walk to health | 28.7% | 44.4% | 15.6 pts higher in Bendigo |  |
| Intersections/km² | 77 | 8 | 69 higher in Melton |  |
| Mean slope | 2.6% | 4.7% | 2.1 pts higher in Bendigo |  |

Interactive comparison: https://censusatlas.au/compare/iare/IARE201013/melton/vs/IARE202003/bendigo