Prahran economic profile

A mecca of culture and creativity, Prahran offers a variety of entertainment, arts, and cultural activities.

How we are spending our money

Total local spending in Prahran remains relatively steady at $160 million for the quarter, although September spending is down compared to the same time last year.

Foot traffic has increased in the precinct since last quarter, up by more than 12 per cent on weekends, with Saturday having the highest level of foot traffic and highest spend day for the precinct.

Dining and entertainment remains strong, but shows little growth from last year. Professional services have experienced the biggest increase in spend from quarter 3 of 2022 of all of the industry categories. Vacancies have increased by 3.19 per cent since January, representing an opportunity to consider some pro-active activations.

Key economic indicators

12,982 people live in this precinct. Population growth is expected to grow by 1.2 per cent by 2036.
1,820 businesses in Prahran generated $527M in economic activity in 2021.
The median weekly household income is $1,850.
34 per cent of people are aged 25 to 34, and 26 per cent are aged 35 to 44.
Residents of Prahran spent $131.9M locally in Prahran in 2021, with visitors spending $333.1M.

Read the Place Activation Plan for Prahran or find out more about Prahran in the economic snapshot below.

Economic Snapshot

October 2024 to March 2025(PDF, 468KB)

What's happening in this precinct?

Prahran has a strong pull on surrounding areas, with residents of Albert Park, St Kilda, and the western part of South Yarra all spending consistently in the precinct, despite total local spend trending down 8.1% as compared with the same period of last year. Pubs, bars and taverns are the dominant subsector within tourism and entertainment, accounting for nearly $31M spent from October to March. Greville Street remains a thriving hub, with a vacancy rate under 5%, and Commercial Road has also seen improvements in occupancy rates in the past six months.

The economy

Daytime spend – $137.3M
Night-time spend – $65.2M
Total local spend – $203M (down 8.1% from last year)
Total customers – 254K (down 2.8% from last year)
Highest spend day – 21 December 2024
Highest weekly spend day – Saturdays
Spend origin – 35% residents, 65% visitors

October-March monthly spend
	2023-24	2024-25
October	$36,239,468	$32,688,000
November	$36,572,187	$34,451,000
December	$43,611,364	$38,378,000
January	$32,750,809	$30,360,000
February	$33,602,198	$30,578,000
March	$37,636,743	$36,056,000

October 2024 - March 2025 top spend categories
Category	Subcategory	Total spend
Discretionary Retail	Other discretionary retail	$29,553,000
Discretionary Retail	Department stores, clothing and accessories	$16,764,000
Food retailing	Supermarkets	$40,811,000
Food retailing	Groceries and other food retailing	$26,299,000
Tourism and entertainment	Takeaway and fast food outlets	$4,926,000
	Restaurants	$16,177,000
	Pubs, taverns and bars	$30,745,000
	Cafes	$7,276,000
	Attractions, events and recreation	$1,214,000

Vacancy and occupancy

Vacancies now filled – 33 since August 2024
Changed tenancies - 29 since August 2024
Newly vacant premises - 22 since August 2024

	Jan 25 vacancy rate	Change
Chapel Street	15.87%	Up 1.37%
Commercial Road	10.71%	Down 1.68%
Greville Street	4.88%	Down 2.25%

Street activity

Busiest days - Saturdays
Busiest times – 5 PM

Visitor demographics

Top customer age band – 25-34, 33.6% of visitors
Top customer life stage – Young singles and couples, 39.6% of visitors

Top 5 non-Stonnington spend origin locations
Albert Park	$6.4M
St Kilda – West	$5.8M
St Kilda East	$5.4M
South Yarra – West	$5.3M
St Kilda - Central	$4.4M

Data sourcing: Pedestrian activity data current as of 2 April 2025. Source: City of Stonnington Pedestrian counters. Spend data current as of 20 April 2025 and is subject to revisions. Sourced from banking transaction data. Vacancy data current as of January 2025. Source: Vacancy Review, prepared by E3 valuations and commissioned by City of Stonnington.