Best Brisbane suburbs for families with good high schools
Ashgrove tops the ranking: 2 of its 2 schools rate above their ACARA peer group. The strongest results cluster between 2 and 9 km of the Brisbane CBD. These 30 suburbs came from a field of 40 eligible Brisbane suburbs.
This ranking scores every eligible Brisbane suburb on the share of secondary-school students at schools that outperform their ACARA peer group, adjusted for socio-economic advantage, walkability, and safety. Public and private results are ranked separately since the buyer decisions differ.
For each Brisbane suburb we compute the share of high-school enrolments at schools rated above their ACARA peer group, blended with the ABS SEIFA socio-economic index, OpenStreetMap walkability, and a composite safety score. The share is Bayesian-smoothed so a suburb with two-of-two above-peer schools can't leapfrog a suburb with eight-of-ten. A small volume bonus rewards suburbs offering more school choice — families weighing multiple secondary options value optionality that a single-school suburb can't deliver.
Best Brisbane suburbs for good public high schools
Public/government-sector secondary schools — includes standalone secondaries and the secondary component of K-12 government schools within the suburb boundary.
South Brisbane
QLD 4101 · 14,292 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Coorparoo
QLD 4151 · 18,132 residents1/5 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Aspley
QLD 4034 · 12,871 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Mitchelton
QLD 4053 · 9,244 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Kelvin Grove
QLD 4059 · 7,909 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Holland Park West
QLD 4121 · 6,468 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · walkable
Calamvale
QLD 4116 · 17,994 residents0/2 above peer schools · advantaged area · walkable
Sunnybank
QLD 4109 · 8,892 residents0/2 above peer schools · mid-range socio-economic · very walkable
Bracken Ridge
QLD 4017 · 17,488 residents0/2 above peer schools · mid-range socio-economic · walkable
Alexandra Hills
QLD 4161 · 16,472 residents0/2 above peer schools · mid-range socio-economic · walkable
Newtown
QLD 4305 · 1,498 residents0/2 above peer schools · mid-range socio-economic · walkable
Redcliffe
QLD 4020 · 10,460 residents0/2 above peer schools · below-average income · very walkable
Ipswich
QLD 4305 · 2,468 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Logan Central
QLD 4114 · 6,210 residents0/3 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Goodna
QLD 4300 · 10,391 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Ranked from 18 qualifying suburbs.
Best Brisbane suburbs for good private high schools
Catholic and independent secondary schools — includes standalone secondaries and the secondary component of K-12 combined schools.
Ashgrove
QLD 4060 · 13,450 residents2/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
South Brisbane
QLD 4101 · 14,292 residents2/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Coorparoo
QLD 4151 · 18,132 residents2/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Kedron
QLD 4031 · 9,907 residents2/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Indooroopilly
QLD 4068 · 13,622 residents2/3 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Fortitude Valley
QLD 4006 · 9,708 residents3/5 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Toowong
QLD 4066 · 12,556 residents1/3 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Clayfield
QLD 4011 · 10,897 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Milton
QLD 4064 · 3,144 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Corinda
QLD 4075 · 5,555 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Spring Hill
QLD 4000 · 6,593 residents2/8 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Brisbane City
QLD 4000 · 12,587 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Woodend
QLD 4305 · 1,483 residents2/3 above peer schools · mid-range socio-economic · very walkable
Salisbury
QLD 4107 · 6,790 residents0/3 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Gaythorne
QLD 4051 · 3,158 residents0/2 above peer schools · advantaged area · very walkable
Ranked from 40 qualifying suburbs.
40% share of schools above their peer group · 20% socio-economic advantage (SEIFA) · 25% walkability · 15% safety (bushfire, crime, flood risks combined). Plus a small volume bonus rewarding suburbs offering more school choice. See how we calculate for the full methodology.
Common questions about this ranking
What are the best Brisbane suburbs for families with good high schools?
Ashgrove tops the ranking: 2 of its 2 schools rate above their ACARA peer group. The strongest results cluster between 2 and 9 km of the Brisbane CBD. These 30 suburbs came from a field of 40 eligible Brisbane suburbs.
How is this ranking scored?
Each eligible Brisbane suburb is scored on four factors: 40% share of schools rated above their ACARA peer group (Bayesian-smoothed so a tiny suburb with 2/2 can't outrank a suburb with 8/10), 20% ABS SEIFA socio-economic advantage, 25% OpenStreetMap-derived walkability, and 15% safety (bushfire, crime and flood risks combined). A small volume bonus rewards suburbs offering more school choice.
Why are public and private schools ranked separately?
Buyer decisions differ: parents choosing between government-sector primary schools weigh very different factors from parents choosing between Catholic and independent schools. Blending the two hides the signal a reader is actually looking for, so we publish both lists on the same page.
Which suburbs are eligible for the ranking?
To appear on the list, a suburb needs at least 2 qualifying schools inside its boundary and a resident population of at least 500. Suburbs that fall below either threshold are excluded — not penalised — so the ranking isn't dominated by tiny, high-signal outliers.
How often is this list updated?
The top 15 is recomputed automatically after each ACARA schools data refresh, so the ranking reflects the most recent published NAPLAN-adjusted peer comparisons. See the footer of this page for the last computed date.
Same list in other cities
- Best Sydney suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Melbourne suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Perth suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Adelaide suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Hobart suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Darwin suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Canberra suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Newcastle suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Central Coast suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Sunshine Coast suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Gold Coast suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Wollongong suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Geelong suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Townsville suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Toowoomba suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Busselton suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Ballarat suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Cairns suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Albany suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Ballina suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Geraldton suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Warragul suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Bundaberg suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Launceston suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Bendigo suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Rockhampton suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Mackay suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Albury – Wodonga suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Camden Haven suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Burnie suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Wagga Wagga suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Coffs Harbour suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Alice Springs suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Mount Isa suburbs for families with good high schools
Related
Rankings last computed 12 October 2026. Recomputed after each ACARA schools data refresh.
Was the information on this page useful to you?
Thanks! Anything we could improve?
We hate spam as much as you do — we'll never use your email for marketing, and we might not be able to reply to everyone.
Thanks for your feedback! 🙏