QLD · Cassowary Coast Council
Cardwell, 4849
Current weather
19°CMainly clear
95% humidity · 1.4 km/h wind · 23.5° / 17° today · 1.7 mm rain
Updated
Desirability score
- Green suburb
- High desirability
Suburb profile
Cardwell is a quieter smaller community in Cassowary Coast, where peace, space and a country-town pace still dominate. Remote from the metro area in the best sense: quiet streets, big skies and a town that runs on its own timetable. Leafy streets and shaded corners make the suburb feel greener and more established than many nearby.
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.
Homes are relatively affordable, which helps families and first-time residents put down roots. The streetscape feels settled and established, with older homes giving the area a familiar, lived-in look.
The desirability score is below average, weighed down by weaker local dining and lifestyle amenities and community and employment against similar regional towns, even with parks and green space and transport and access holding up better. Limited access to some essential local services also trimmed the result.
Population
- 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)
- 59 / 82 / 57
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 · Period: 2021 · Updated on site · 2021 Census release
The 2026 Census runs in August 2026; suburb-level updates are expected from mid-2027.
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) · Period: Mar 2026 · Updated on site · Quarterly releases
Crime & safety
- Total offences (Jan 2026 to Jul 2026)
- 92
- Against the person
- 17
- Against property
- 35
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 69.7
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 78 residents
- State safety percentile
- 83.9th (lower crime is better)
- Increase (daily rate, partial year)
- +30.1%
Reported offences are running lower than the same point last year.
Reported offences by period
Most common offence types
- Assault9
- Drug Offences21
- Other Property Damage14
- Other Theft (Excl. Unlawful Entry)18
- Traffic And Related Offences14
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Crime rate and year-on-year trend
Data sources & freshness
- QPS Online Crime Map — Queensland Police Service · Period: Jan 2025 to Dec 2025 → Jan 2026 to Jul 2026; Jan 2026 to Jul 2026 · Updated on site · Calendar-year aggregates
Schools & preschools
- Schools & preschools
- 1
- Median school ICSEA
- 932
- Cardwell State SchoolPrimary
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 · Period: 2025 · Updated on site · Annual ACARA release
- School ICSEA scores — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · Period: 2025 · Updated on site · Annual ACARA 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
- OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
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 · Period: current · Updated on site
Health access
- Hospitals & GP clinics
- 2
- Emergency department
- 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 · Period: current · Updated on site
Socio-economic (SEIFA)
- IRSAD decile (2021)
- 1/10
- IRSD decile (2021)
- 1/10
SEIFA indexes from ABS 2021. Decile 10 = most advantaged / least disadvantaged in Australia.
Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)
Socio-economic advantage (IRSAD decile)
Data sources & freshness
- SEIFA 2021 (IRSAD / IRSD) — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Period: 2021 · Updated on site · 2021 SEIFA release
Heritage
2 state 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 · Period: current · Updated on site
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 · Period: current · Updated on site
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 features — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
Desirability Index
- Desirability score
- 24.2/100 — Below average
- National rank
- 6161st in Australia
- State rank
- 1426th in QLD
- Peer rank
- #418 among Country & regional · Mature suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #908 among Country & regional suburbs
- Data confidence
- 71%
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived score) · Period: current · Updated on site · Derived from source metrics
Recent changes
- Assaultcrime9
- Drug Offencescrime21
- Other Property Damagecrime14
- Other Theft (Excl. Unlawful Entry)crime18
- Traffic And Related Offencescrime14
- Cardwell Divisional Board Hall (former) and Honour BoardheritageState heritage place
- Cardwell Post Office - Residence (former)heritageState heritage place
- Cardwell Pharmacyhealthpharmacy
- Sullivan Nicolaides Pathologyhealthsample_collection
- Cardwell Lions Parkgovernmentpark
Data sources & freshness
- QPS Online Crime Map — Queensland Police Service · Updated on site · Calendar-year aggregates
- Parks & reserves — State government + ABS LGA boundaries · Updated on site
- Hospitals & clinics — OpenStreetMap + state health datasets · Updated on site
- State heritage register — State heritage authority · Updated on site
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.