Boorowa vs Barwang
Barwang is the younger of the two, with a median age of 46 against 50 in Boorowa. In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and about half of households are people living alone. Houses cost more in Barwang: a median of $1.5 million, against $505,000 in Boorowa. On these figures, Boorowa tends to suit older residents and buyers on a tighter budget, while Barwang suits couples.
Which one suits you?
There is no overall winner — the suburb that suits a family with school-age kids is routinely the wrong one for someone commuting into the city. So each of these answers its own question, against a checklist you can see, using the same figures in the tables below.
Families with school-age kids
They split
one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here
- Boorowa has more schools inside the suburb (2 vs 0)
- Barwang carries lower crime risk (10/100 vs 51/100)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Boorowa
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper houses ($505,000 vs $1,500,000)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Barwang
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves renters under less rental stress (13% vs 20%)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Boorowa
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a shorter drive in (214 min vs 228 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (332.2 km vs 353.8 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Boorowa
ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here
- has more GPs (3 vs 0)
- has more residents already 65 and over (28% vs 19%)
- But Barwang carries lower crime risk (10/100 vs 51/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Barwang
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (73.8% vs 15.1%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Boorowa and Barwang drawn to the same scale. Both outlines are shown together, so the map answers whether they share a border and how their areas compare.
Bars start at zero. Scores, risks and rankings are drawn against their full 0–100 range; other rows are drawn in proportion to the larger of the two.
Side by side, out of 100
Risks are inverted — shown as safety and low exposure — so a longer bar always means better.
Demographics
Boorowa has more residents (1,888 vs 139); Barwang has higher household incomes ($97,500 vs $62,348).
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 1,888 +93% vs other | 139 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +15.1% | +73.8% |
| Median age | 50 | 46 |
| Median household income | $62,348/yr | $97,500/yr +56% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $245/wk | $250/wk +2% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (18.0%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (14.8%).
Property market
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $505,000 | $1,500,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | $405,000 | — |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | 95 days from 20 sales | — |
Zoning mix
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 98% | 100% |
| Residential | 1% | 0% |
| Zoning sets what may be built, not what is there today. A single address can sit in a different zone to the suburb around it. Zones as at 2026-09. | ||
Development activity
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 48 across Hilltops same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -47% same for both | |
Gross rental yield
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 4.2% $495/wk on $615K | — |
| Units | — same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 18% of NSW | Higher than 75% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 25% of NSW | Higher than 66% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 7% of NSW | Higher than 27% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 72% of NSW | Higher than 32% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 4% of NSW | Higher than 13% of NSW |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 66% of NSW | Higher than 35% of NSW |
| Rental yield (houses) | Higher than 81% of NSW | — |
Liveability
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | C | — |
| Score | 30/100 | — |
| Socio-economic band | mid-range socio-economic decile 4/10 | advantaged area decile 7/10 |
Risk profile
Boorowa carries more crime risk (51 vs 10).
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Moderate 40/100 | Low 35/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 51/100 | Low 10/100 |
| Flood | Not mapped no mapped data here same for both | |
| Coastal erosion | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 0 within 5 km same for both | |
Schools
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 2 | 0 |
| Rated above peers | 1 | 0 |
| Rated at peers | 1 | 0 |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Schools in Boorowa
- St Joseph's Primary School Catholic · Primary above peers
- Boorowa Central School Government · Combined at peers
Schools in Barwang
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Amenities in the suburb
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| Supermarkets | 1 | 0 |
| Cafes & restaurants | 7 | 0 |
| Parks & reserves | 2 | 0 |
| Childcare | 1 | 0 |
| GPs | 3 | 0 |
| Hospitals | 1 | 0 |
| Police stations | 1 | 0 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 2 | 0 |
| Fuel stations | 3 | 0 |
| EV chargers | 1 | 0 |
| Waterways | 64 | 22 |
Mobility
Barwang sits further from the CBD (353.8 km vs 332.2 km).
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Sydney | 332.2 km | 353.8 km +7% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 214 min | 228 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.1% postcode 2586 | 0.2% postcode 2594 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 62 postcode 2586 | 45 postcode 2594 |
How people get to work
Method of travel on census day 2021 — which fell during COVID restrictions, so working from home is inflated and every travel mode understated.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (70.0%).
Setting
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 501 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 515 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 46/100 | 25/100 |
| Most common technology | Fibre to the node | Fixed wireless |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 7% 809 premises | 0% 55 premises |
Climate
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 541 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | — same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | — same for both | |
Council rates
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $714/yr same for both | |
| Council | Hilltops same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Riverina same for both | |
| Member | Michael Mccormack same for both | |
| Party | The Nationals same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Boorowa | Barwang | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Boorowa
Barwang
More comparisons
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Information shown is provided as-is from Australian government and commercial data sources.
Always verify with the relevant authority before making property decisions.
See Data Sources and How We Calculate for details.