Loading
Assembling your view…
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Melbourne vs Darwin in 2026: cost index 118 vs 112, rent $2,400 vs $2,100, income $80,000 vs $76,000, QoL 63 vs 56.
Melbourne vs Darwin in 2026: cost index 118 vs 112, rent $2,400 vs $2,100, income $80,000 vs $76,000, QoL 63 vs 56.
Melbourne ranks #1 with a cost index of 118 and rent of $2,400/month.
Average cost index across these cities: 115 (+8 vs national average of 107).
Average quality of life: 60/100. Top: Melbourne at 63/100.
Safest city: Melbourne (64/100 safety score).
The conventional wisdom says one thing. The data says another: Melbourne stands out as the top-ranked city in this analysis. With a cost index of 118 and median income of $80,000, it offers competitive value despite costs slightly above the national median. That's a strong position by any measure.
On quality of life, Melbourne leads with a composite score of 63/100 — reflecting its safety (64), healthcare (84), and walkability (80) metrics. Pair that with the housing data, and the pattern sharpens. affordability and QoL don't always move in the same direction, and Australia is a good example of that tension.
The country average QoL score is 64/100. Melbourne leads with 63/100, reflecting its safety, healthcare access, walkability, and green space.
Our index is benchmarked to 100 (national median). Sub-categories cover housing, food, transport, utilities, and healthcare. Data sources include ABS, CoreLogic, ATO.
Melbourne (ranked #1) has a cost index of 118 and rent of $2,400/mo. Darwin (#2) has index 112 and rent $2,100/mo — a 6-point gap.