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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Ranking of cities in Australia for 2026. Darwin leads with a cost index of 112 and rent of $2,100/month.
Ranking of cities in Australia for 2026. Darwin leads with a cost index of 112 and rent of $2,100/month.
Darwin ranks #1 with a cost index of 112 and rent of $2,100/month.
Average cost index across these cities: 104 (-3 vs national average of 107).
Average quality of life: 60/100. Top: Darwin at 56/100.
Safest city: Cairns (58/100 safety score).
Here's the finding that keeps coming up in different analyses: Darwin stands out as the top-ranked city in this analysis. With a cost index of 112 and median income of $76,000, it offers competitive value despite costs slightly above the national median. That's a strong position by any measure.
On quality of life, Cairns leads with a composite score of 64/100 — reflecting its safety (58), healthcare (62), and walkability (55) metrics. But here's the flip side: affordability and QoL don't always move in the same direction, and Australia is a good example of that tension.
Darwin — cost index 112, rent $2,100/mo, income $76,000, QoL 56/100.
Cairns — cost index 95, rent $1,600/mo, income $62,000, QoL 64/100.
The country average QoL score is 64/100. Darwin leads with 56/100, 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.
Darwin (ranked #1) has a cost index of 112 and rent of $2,100/mo. Cairns (#2) has index 95 and rent $1,600/mo — a 17-point gap.
This analysis uses data from ABS, CoreLogic, ATO to rank cities in Australia. The cost of living index is benchmarked to 100 (national median). Quality of life scores combine safety, healthcare, walkability, air quality, green space, and transit metrics. Salary ranges use national occupation data adjusted for local cost differences. Data is updated regularly to reflect current market conditions.