Cooks Hill vs Newcastle West

Cooks Hill is the younger of the two, with a median age of 35 against 42 in Newcastle West. In both, most households rent. In Cooks Hill, about half of households are people living alone. In Newcastle West, the large majority of homes are flats or apartments and most households are people living alone. Houses cost more in Cooks Hill: a median of $1.82 million, against $848,000 in Newcastle West, though rent is higher in Newcastle West. On these figures, Cooks Hill tends to suit share households, while Newcastle West suits people living alone, older residents, and buyers on a tighter budget.

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

Cooks Hill

ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more separate houses rather than flats (17% vs 2%)
  • is already more of a family suburb (31% vs 18%)

Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.

First-home buyers

Newcastle West

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper houses ($847,500 vs $1,816,000)

Weighs house prices, unit prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

Cooks Hill

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • leaves renters under less rental stress (23% vs 28%)

Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.

Commuting to the city

Too close to call

Nothing among the 4 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

Weighs distance, drive time, rail access, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Newcastle West

ahead on 3 of the 5 things we measure here

  • has more GPs (5 vs 1)
  • has more residents already 65 and over (26% vs 15%)
  • has more units and townhouses to downsize into (98% vs 83%)

Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.

Investors

Newcastle West

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (135.1% vs 4.2%)

Weighs unit yield and population growth.

Where they sit

Cooks Hill and Newcastle West drawn to the same scale. Both outlines are shown together, so the map answers whether they share a border and how their areas compare.

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Hides rows where both suburbs match

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.

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Walkability 95 / 99
Cooks Hill — Walkability: 95/100 Newcastle West — Walkability: 99/100
Safety 8 / 1
Cooks Hill — Safety: 8/100 Newcastle West — Safety: 1/100
Low fire risk 100 / 100
Cooks Hill — Low fire risk: 100/100 Newcastle West — Low fire risk: 100/100

Demographics

Cooks Hill has more residents (3,774 vs 1,453); Newcastle West skews older (42 vs 35).

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Population 3,774
+61% vs other
 1,453
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +4.2% +135.1%
Median age 35 42
Median household income $97,812/yr
+13% vs other
 $85,228/yr
Median weekly rent $430/wk $460/wk
+7% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
0-4 4.0% / 2.4%
Cooks Hill — 0-4: 4.0% Newcastle West — 0-4: 2.4%
5-14 7.3% / 3.0%
Cooks Hill — 5-14: 7.3% Newcastle West — 5-14: 3.0%
15-19 4.0% / 2.1%
Cooks Hill — 15-19: 4.0% Newcastle West — 15-19: 2.1%
20-24 12.2% / 8.9%
Cooks Hill — 20-24: 12.2% Newcastle West — 20-24: 8.9%
25-34 21.6% / 25.5%
Cooks Hill — 25-34: 21.6% Newcastle West — 25-34: 25.5%
35-44 12.2% / 10.3%
Cooks Hill — 35-44: 12.2% Newcastle West — 35-44: 10.3%
45-54 12.2% / 8.5%
Cooks Hill — 45-54: 12.2% Newcastle West — 45-54: 8.5%
55-64 11.5% / 12.9%
Cooks Hill — 55-64: 11.5% Newcastle West — 55-64: 12.9%
65-74 9.8% / 11.6%
Cooks Hill — 65-74: 9.8% Newcastle West — 65-74: 11.6%
75-84 4.1% / 9.4%
Cooks Hill — 75-84: 4.1% Newcastle West — 75-84: 9.4%
85+ 1.2% / 5.0%
Cooks Hill — 85+: 1.2% Newcastle West — 85+: 5.0%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (25.5%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Cooks Hill 49.6% lone person
Cooks Hill — Lone Person: 49.6% Cooks Hill — Couple Families: 19.4% Cooks Hill — Group Household: 18.2% Cooks Hill — One Parent Families: 11.4% Cooks Hill — Other Families: 1.4%
Newcastle West 70.3% lone person
Newcastle West — Lone Person: 70.3% Newcastle West — Couple Families: 12.4% Newcastle West — Group Household: 10.9% Newcastle West — One Parent Families: 5.8% Newcastle West — Other Families: 0.5%
Lone Person Couple Families Group Household One Parent Families Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Cooks Hill 56.6% renting
Cooks Hill — Owned Outright: 22.9% Cooks Hill — Mortgage: 20.5% Cooks Hill — Renting: 56.6%
Newcastle West 56.1% renting
Newcastle West — Owned Outright: 25.3% Newcastle West — Mortgage: 18.6% Newcastle West — Renting: 56.1%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Bachelor Degree 24.1% / 24.0%
Cooks Hill — Bachelor Degree: 24.1% Newcastle West — Bachelor Degree: 24.0%
Certificate III & IV 10.5% / 13.7%
Cooks Hill — Certificate III & IV: 10.5% Newcastle West — Certificate III & IV: 13.7%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 8.3% / 10.0%
Cooks Hill — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.3% Newcastle West — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 10.0%
Postgraduate Degree 9.4% / 8.1%
Cooks Hill — Postgraduate Degree: 9.4% Newcastle West — Postgraduate Degree: 8.1%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 3.3% / 3.0%
Cooks Hill — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.3% Newcastle West — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.0%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (24.1%).

Where residents were born

Largest overseas birthplaces, as a share of all residents, 2021 Census. A dash means that country is not among the suburb's own eight largest.

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
England 3.2% / 3.6%
Cooks Hill — England: 3.2% Newcastle West — England: 3.6%
New Zealand 1.3% / 1.5%
Cooks Hill — New Zealand: 1.3% Newcastle West — New Zealand: 1.5%
India 0.3% / 1.6%
Cooks Hill — India: 0.3% Newcastle West — India: 1.6%
China — / 1.6%
Cooks Hill — China: not among its largest Newcastle West — China: 1.6%
Vietnam — / 0.8%
Cooks Hill — Vietnam: not among its largest Newcastle West — Vietnam: 0.8%
Germany 0.7% / —
Cooks Hill — Germany: 0.7% Newcastle West — Germany: not among its largest
Philippines 0.7% / —
Cooks Hill — Philippines: 0.7% Newcastle West — Philippines: not among its largest
Canada 0.7% / —
Cooks Hill — Canada: 0.7% Newcastle West — Canada: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (3.6%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Cooks Hill 31.4% flats / apartments
Cooks Hill — Flats / Apartments: 31.4% Cooks Hill — Townhouses: 51.2% Cooks Hill — Houses: 17.4%
Newcastle West 96.9% flats / apartments
Newcastle West — Flats / Apartments: 96.9% Newcastle West — Townhouses: 1.4% Newcastle West — Houses: 1.7%
Flats / Apartments Townhouses Houses

Property market

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Median house price $1,816,000 $847,500
Median unit price $810,000 $870,000
Median land price —
same for both
Typical days to sell (houses) 25 days
from 16 sales
 —

Unit price by bedroom count

Only bed counts both suburbs published enough sales for. Sale counts are shown because the buckets differ in depth.

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
1 bed $655K / $635K
Cooks Hill — 1 bed: $655K (11 sales) Newcastle West — 1 bed: $635K (31 sales)

11 vs 31 sales

2 bed $795K / $800K
Cooks Hill — 2 bed: $795K (25 sales) Newcastle West — 2 bed: $800K (83 sales)

25 vs 83 sales

3 bed $1.25M / $1.14M
Cooks Hill — 3 bed: $1.25M (15 sales) Newcastle West — 3 bed: $1.14M (24 sales)

15 vs 24 sales

Zoning mix

Newcastle West has more commercially zoned land (18% vs 4%).

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Residential 89% 41%
Parks and recreation 7% 30%
Commercial 4% 18%
Infrastructure and transport 0% 10%
Planning zones cover 100% of Cooks Hill and 99% of Newcastle West. The rest is unzoned land such as water or road reserve.
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

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
New dwellings approved 912
across Newcastle
same for both
Approvals change year on year +77%
same for both

Gross rental yield

Gross — before strata, rates, management, insurance and vacancy. From median advertised rents and median asking prices over the last 6 months. How we calculate.

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Houses 3.0%
$810/wk on $1.39M
 —
Units 4.3%
$630/wk on $768K
 4.3%
$778/wk on $938K

Ranking within NSW

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
House price Higher than 77% of NSW Higher than 82% of NSW
Income Higher than 66% of NSW Higher than 55% of NSW
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 98% of NSW Higher than 100% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 29% of NSW Higher than 14% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 91% of NSW Higher than 74% of NSW
NBN connectivity Higher than 69% of NSW Higher than 77% of NSW
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 23% of NSW —
Rental yield (units) Higher than 35% of NSW Higher than 38% of NSW

Liveability

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Grade B
same for both
Score 64/100 61/100
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 10/10
 very advantaged area
decile 9/10

Risk profile

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Bushfire None
0/100
same for both
Crime High
92/100
 High
99/100
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 11
within 5 km
 15
within 5 km

Schools

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Inside the suburb 1 2
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0 1
Rated below peers 0 1
Universities within 10 km 2
The University of Newcastle (Newcastle City), 1.3 km
 2
The University of Newcastle (Newcastle City), 1.7 km
Full-time students aged 15–24 5.8% 4.6%

Schools in Cooks Hill

  • Newcastle Grammar Park School Campus Independent · Primary

Schools in Newcastle West

  • Novoschool Independent · Secondary at peers
  • Newcastle High School Government · Secondary below peers

Amenities in the suburb

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Supermarkets 2 3
Cafes & restaurants 25 15
Parks & reserves 1 3
Childcare 3
same for both
GPs 1 5
Pharmacies 2
same for both
Banks & Bank@Post 0 5
EV chargers 0 1

Mobility

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Walkability score 95/100 99/100
Distance to Sydney 160 km 159.1 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 124 min 122 min
Public transport score 79/100
Bus
 82/100
Rail · Tram · Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 57.8
7-9am + 5-7pm
 253.5
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 1 min
scheduled, not actual
 0 min
scheduled, not actual
Electric vehicle share 1.7%
postcode 2300
 0.8%
postcode 2302
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 12
postcode 2300
 3
postcode 2302

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.

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Car (driver) 49.8% / 47.6%
Cooks Hill — Car (driver): 49.8% Newcastle West — Car (driver): 47.6%
Worked from Home 34.7% / 35.1%
Cooks Hill — Worked from Home: 34.7% Newcastle West — Worked from Home: 35.1%
Walked Only 9.4% / 9.0%
Cooks Hill — Walked Only: 9.4% Newcastle West — Walked Only: 9.0%
Bus 1.5% / 3.2%
Cooks Hill — Bus: 1.5% Newcastle West — Bus: 3.2%
Car (passenger) 2.1% / 2.0%
Cooks Hill — Car (passenger): 2.1% Newcastle West — Car (passenger): 2.0%
Bicycle 2.3% / 1.1%
Cooks Hill — Bicycle: 2.3% Newcastle West — Bicycle: 1.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (49.8%).

Setting

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Elevation 10 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
same for both
Distance to the ocean 737 m
998 m to a named beach
 1.4 km
1.6 km to a named beach

NBN connectivity

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Connectivity score 57/100 70/100
Most common technology Fibre to the node
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 21%
2,333 premises
 44%
1,880 premises

Climate

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Annual rainfall 1,025 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 25.4°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 10.2°C
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
PM2.5 6.5 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 21.7 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ 0.64 pphm
same for both

Council rates

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Average residential rate $1,783/yr
same for both
Council Newcastle
same for both

Federal electorate

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Division Newcastle
same for both
Member Sharon Claydon
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Cooks Hill Newcastle West
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Cooks Hill

Apartments Beach Cafe Culture Coastal Nightlife Parks Professionals Townhouses Urban

Newcastle West

Apartments Coastal Parks Professionals Retirees River Transport Hub

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Cooks Hill

Cooks Hill vs Hamilton South Cooks Hill vs Newcastle Cooks Hill vs The Hill Cooks Hill vs Bar Beach Cooks Hill vs The Junction

Other comparisons with Newcastle West

Newcastle West vs Hamilton Newcastle West vs Hamilton South Newcastle West vs Newcastle Newcastle West vs Wickham Newcastle West vs Hamilton East
Full data on Cooks Hill Full data on Newcastle West
Unlock full address-level data — $29/month

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.

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