Median house price
—
No data available
QLD · Cassowary Coast Council
Cardwell, 4849
Est. population · Jun 2025
1,427
Growth (1 yr)
+1.5%
Growth (5 yr)
+7.0%
Median age
60
Median income
$846/wk
Employment rate
34.5%
Languages at home
5.6%non-English
Most common: Punjabi, Filipino, Nepali
2021 Census · usual residence
Desirability score
- Green suburb
- National parks
- Education hub
- Heritage area
- High desirability
Suburb profile
Cardwell is a quieter smaller community in Cassowary Coast Council, where peace, space and a country-town pace still dominate. Retirees and empty-nesters are well represented here, with multiple generations sharing the same neighbourhood. Everyday life leans local, with a handful of trusted shops, a familiar main street and neighbours who know your name.
Outdoor life is easy here, with generous parks and room for kids, dogs and weekend strolls. A car helps for most daily errands, with fewer amenities clustered within an easy walk. Homes are relatively cheap compared with the wider market, which keeps entry costs lower.
Local crime has been trending higher of late. The streetscape feels settled and established, with older homes giving the area a familiar, lived-in look.
Desirability sits below average overall, with local dining and lifestyle amenities the main drag compared with similar regional towns. Limited access to some essential local services also trimmed the result.
At a glance
Cardwell snapshot
A quick read of housing, growth, livability, and risk
Median rent
$400/wk
Population (ERP)
1,427
+1.5% annual growth
Dwelling vacancy
25.4%
Census unoccupied dwellings
Livability profile
Desirability pillars vs the peer median (50th percentile)
How it compares
Relative standing using percentiles, ranks, and national deciles
Desirability
#363
among Country & regional · Mature
Safety
34th
percentile in state (higher = safer)
Pop. growth
62nd
percentile in QLD
Advantage (IRSAD)
1/10
national SEIFA decile
School ICSEA
19th
percentile among schools with ICSEA
Population growth
Recent ERP change over 1 and 5 years
Housing mix
Dwelling types from the 2021 Census
Risks & flags
Quick scan — open a section below for full context
Living here
Desirability
Ranks & confidence
- Desirability score
- 27.1/100 — Below average
- National rank
- 5996th in Australia
- State rank
- 1319th in QLD
- Peer rank
- #363 among Country & regional · Mature suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #808 among Country & regional suburbs
- Data confidence
- 71%
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived) · current · Updated
Housing
- All types (Mar 2026)
- $400
Median weekly rent from Queensland RTA rental bond data. Figures can be unreliable where few bonds were lodged in the quarter.
Contributes to desirability score · Housing (15%) · Future Growth (7%)
Median price, rental yield and vacancy Recent price momentum
Data sources & freshness
- RTA bond statistics — Residential Tenancies Authority (Queensland) · Mar 2026 · Updated · Quarterly releases
Population
Estimated resident population
1,427(June 2025)
+1.5% annual · +7.0% over 5 years · 62th percentile in QLD
Growth figures & methodology
- Annual growth
- +1.5%
- 5-year growth
- +7.0%
- Change in 1 year
- +21
- Change in 5 years
- +93
- Growth rank in QLD
- 62th percentile
ABS Estimated Resident Population allocated to this suburb from SA2-level data. Not an official ABS suburb count.
Methodology
Figures are allocated from ABS Estimated Resident Population at Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2), using 2021 Census share within overlapping SA2 regions. Where Census data is unavailable, area overlap is used instead.
The dashed chart line is a simple growth-trend estimate to June 2030 (~1,500), extrapolated at +0.8% average annual growth since 2011. It is illustrative only — not an official ABS forecast.
2021 Census figures
2021 Census
- Population
- 1,320
- Median age
- 60
- Median household income / week
- $846
- Dwelling vacancy
- 25.4%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 199 of 785
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,278
- Employment rate
- 34.5%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 410 / 82 / 57 (+ 24 other)
Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)
Employment, household income and age diversity (2021 Census)
Data sources & freshness
- 2021 Census — General Community Profile — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Updated
The 2026 Census runs in August 2026; suburb-level updates are expected from mid-2027.
- Estimated Resident Population — Australian Bureau of Statistics · 2025 · Updated · SA2 ERP allocated to suburb boundaries
Community & culture
No 2021 Census cultural diversity data for this suburb yet.
Data sources & freshness
- 2021 Census — General Community Profile — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Updated
The 2026 Census runs in August 2026; suburb-level updates are expected from mid-2027.
Crime & safety
Reported offences are running lower than the same point last year.
Offence counts & rates
- Total offences (Jan 2026 to Aug 2026)
- 50
- Against the person
- 11
- Against property
- 17
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 35
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 120 residents
- State safety percentile
- 34th (lower crime is better)
- Increase (daily rate, partial year)
- +21.1%
Most common offence types
- Assault13
- Drug Offences24
- Other Property Damage15
- Traffic And Related Offences18
- Other Theft (Excl. Unlawful Entry)18
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Crime rate and year-on-year trend
Data sources & freshness
- QPS Online Crime Map — Queensland Police Service · Jan 2025 to Dec 2025 → Jan 2026 to Aug 2026; Jan 2026 to Aug 2026 · Updated · Calendar-year aggregates
Family & Lifestyle
Schools & preschools
- Schools within 2 km
- 1
- Median school ICSEA
- 932
- Median ICSEA percentile
- 19th
School list
- Cardwell State SchoolPrimary · Government · ICSEA 932 · 19th percentile · LBOTE 14% · 76 students · Top SEA quarter 7%View on My School →
Contributes to desirability score · Education (15%)
School and preschool counts, median school ICSEA
Data sources & freshness
- ACARA school locations — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · 2025 · Updated · Annual release
- School ICSEA scores — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · 2025 · Updated · Annual release
Amenities
No OpenStreetMap amenities mapped for this suburb yet.
Contributes to desirability score · Lifestyle (15%)
Food, shopping, recreation and sport (OpenStreetMap)
Data sources & freshness
- Local amenity insights — Suburb Guide (derived) · current · Updated
- OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · current · Updated
Parks & reserves
5 parks and public open space in this suburb
- Cardwell Lions ParkPark
- Cardwell ParkPark
- Colleen Mclaughlin ParkPark
- Coral Sea Battle Memorial ParkPark
- White Street ParkPark
Data sources & freshness
- Parks & reserves — State government + ABS LGA boundaries · current · Updated
Green cover
- Parks & woodland (OSM)
- 13
- Parks (OSM)
- 9
OpenStreetMap parks and natural woodland features mapped within the suburb boundary.
Contributes to desirability score · Environment (10%)
Parks and green cover (OpenStreetMap)
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap green cover — OpenStreetMap contributors · current · Updated
Health access
- Hospitals & GP clinics in suburb
- 2
- Nearest hospital
- Tully Hospital (39.7 km)
- Nearest hospital type
- Hospital
- Nearest hospital emergency
- Emergency department
- Emergency department in suburb
- Not in suburb
- Cardwell PharmacyPharmacy
- Sullivan Nicolaides PathologySample_Collection
Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (15%)
Hospitals and GP clinics
Data sources & freshness
- Hospitals & clinics — OpenStreetMap + state health datasets · current · Updated
NDIS participation
- NDIS participants (31 March 2026)
- 30
- Participants per 1,000 residents
- 21.0
Active NDIS participants allocated from NDIA Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2, ASGS 2016) counts to this suburb boundary. Not an official suburb-level NDIS figure · as at 31 March 2026.
For NDIS spend and service-demand exploration by SA2 or postcode, see the Care Sector Demand Map.
Data sources & freshness
- NDIS participants by SA2 — National Disability Insurance Agency · 2026-Q1 · Updated · Quarterly SA2 counts allocated to suburb boundaries
Weather
Typical conditions by season for suburbs in the same ~44 km climate area. Rainfall totals are summed from monthly WorldClim layers; rainy-day counts are approximate.
Summer (Dec–Feb)
- Usual max / min
- 31° / 23°
- Rainfall
- 883 mm · ~90 rainy days
Autumn (Mar–May)
- Usual max / min
- 29° / 21°
- Rainfall
- 553 mm · ~69 rainy days
Winter (Jun–Aug)
- Usual max / min
- 25° / 15°
- Rainfall
- 124 mm · ~16 rainy days
Spring (Sep–Nov)
- Usual max / min
- 29° / 20°
- Rainfall
- 196 mm · ~24 rainy days
Contributes to desirability score · Lifestyle (15%)
Temperature and humidity comfort
Data sources & freshness
- Seasonal climate normals — WorldClim 2.1 · Updated
Future & Planning
Heritage
2 heritage places
- Cardwell Divisional Board Hall (former) and Honour BoardState heritage place
- Cardwell Post Office - Residence (former)State heritage place
Data sources & freshness
- State heritage register — State heritage authority · current · Updated
Hazards
- Bushfire planning zone
- No overlay at centroid
Bushfire overlay checked at suburb centroid via Queensland Bushfire Prone Area mapping.
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Bushfire hazard overlays
Data sources & freshness
- Hazard planning overlays — State government hazard layers · current · Updated
Politics & representation
- Federal electorate
- Kennedy
- Member of Parliament
- Bob KATTER (Katter's Australian Party (KAP))
- Results from
- 2025 federal election
- Electorate enrolment (2025)
- 123,696
- Turnout (2025)
- 83.8%
- Swing since 2022 (2025)
- +0.8 pp toward Labor
Two-party preferred (2025)
Coalition 59.3%Labor 40.7%
Estimated suburb voting profile
Estimated from 8 nearby ordinary polling places (up to 40.5 km away).
Coalition 64.5%Labor 35.5%
5.2 percentage points more Coalition-leaning than the electorate
Estimated swing since 2022: +2.3 pp toward Labor
Nearest polling places
- CardwellLabor 36.8% · Coalition 63.2% TPP (2025)3.0 km away
- Kennedy CentralLabor 23.3% · Coalition 76.7% TPP (2025)9.3 km away
- Murray UpperLabor 41.0% · Coalition 59.0% TPP (2025)25.7 km away
- Long PocketLabor 28.5% · Coalition 71.5% TPP (2025)27.8 km away
- Lower TullyLabor 41.2% · Coalition 58.8% TPP (2025)30.6 km away
Federal electorate from AEC federal division boundaries (2025 redistribution). Division-level results are official AEC figures from the latest general election, with by-election updates where applicable. The estimated suburb profile blends up to eight nearest ordinary polling booths in the same electorate using inverse-distance weighting from the suburb centroid — an approximation, not official AEC data. Nearest polling places are shown for reference.
Data sources & freshness
- Federal election results — Australian Electoral Commission · Updated · 2025 election with by-election overlays
Socio-economic
- IRSAD decile (2021)
- 1/10
- IRSD decile (2021)
- 1/10
ABS Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA), 2021 release — the latest available, derived from the 2021 Census. Deciles rank suburbs nationally from 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest).
What do IRSAD and IRSD measure?
IRSAD — Index of Relative Socio-economic Advantage and Disadvantage. Combines indicators of advantage (e.g. high income, skilled occupations) and disadvantage. Higher decile = more advantaged relative to other Australian areas.
IRSD — Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage. Focuses on disadvantage only (e.g. low income, unemployment, limited education). Higher decile = less disadvantage nationally.
A new SEIFA edition typically follows each census; the ABS has not announced a release date beyond 2021.
Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)
Socio-economic advantage (IRSAD decile)
Data sources & freshness
- SEIFA 2021 (IRSAD / IRSD) — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Updated
More in Cassowary Coast Council
Other suburbs in the same local government area.
Comparable suburbs
Similar population and socio-economic profile in other parts of Queensland.