Cow Bay vs Forest Creek

Forest Creek is the younger of the two, with a median age of 49 against 52 in Cow Bay. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Cow Bay, most households are people living alone. On these figures, Cow Bay tends to suit people living alone.

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

Forest Creek

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is already more of a family suburb (35% vs 22%)

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

First-home buyers

Too close to call

Nothing among the 1 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

Weighs mortgage stress.

Renters

Forest Creek

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • leaves renters under less rental stress (18% vs 27%)

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

Commuting to the city

Forest Creek

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a shorter drive in (1293 min vs 1300 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (1808.9 km vs 1815.4 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Too close to call

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

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

Investors

Forest Creek

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (32.0% vs 8.9%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

Cow Bay and Forest Creek drawn to the same scale. Both outlines are shown together, so the map answers whether they share a border and how their areas compare.

Cow Bay Forest Creek
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.

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Walkability 0 / 0
Cow Bay — Walkability: 0/100 Forest Creek — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 57 / 57
Cow Bay — Safety: 57/100 Forest Creek — Safety: 57/100
Low fire risk 100 / 100
Cow Bay — Low fire risk: 100/100 Forest Creek — Low fire risk: 100/100

Demographics

Cow Bay has more residents (220 vs 136); Forest Creek has higher household incomes ($58,500 vs $39,104).

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Population 220
+38% vs other
 136
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +8.9% +32.0%
Median age 52 49
Median household income $39,104/yr $58,500/yr
+50% vs other
Median weekly rent $200/wk $208/wk
+4% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Cow Bay Forest Creek
0-4 — / 4.4%
Cow Bay — 0-4: not among its largest Forest Creek — 0-4: 4.4%
5-14 6.4% / 7.4%
Cow Bay — 5-14: 6.4% Forest Creek — 5-14: 7.4%
15-19 5.9% / 7.4%
Cow Bay — 15-19: 5.9% Forest Creek — 15-19: 7.4%
20-24 — / —
Cow Bay — 20-24: not among its largest Forest Creek — 20-24: not among its largest
25-34 7.3% / 4.4%
Cow Bay — 25-34: 7.3% Forest Creek — 25-34: 4.4%
35-44 12.3% / 12.5%
Cow Bay — 35-44: 12.3% Forest Creek — 35-44: 12.5%
45-54 22.7% / 18.4%
Cow Bay — 45-54: 22.7% Forest Creek — 45-54: 18.4%
55-64 25.9% / 20.6%
Cow Bay — 55-64: 25.9% Forest Creek — 55-64: 20.6%
65-74 14.1% / 13.2%
Cow Bay — 65-74: 14.1% Forest Creek — 65-74: 13.2%
75-84 4.5% / —
Cow Bay — 75-84: 4.5% Forest Creek — 75-84: not among its largest
85+ — / 2.9%
Cow Bay — 85+: not among its largest Forest Creek — 85+: 2.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (25.9%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Cow Bay 66.7% lone person
Cow Bay — Lone Person: 66.7% Cow Bay — Couple Families: 11.1% Cow Bay — One Parent Families: 11.1% Cow Bay — Group Household: 11.1% Cow Bay — Other Families: 0.0%
Forest Creek 42.5% lone person
Forest Creek — Lone Person: 42.5% Forest Creek — Couple Families: 25.0% Forest Creek — One Parent Families: 10.0% Forest Creek — Group Household: 10.0% Forest Creek — Other Families: 12.5%
Lone Person Couple Families One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Cow Bay 9.7% renting
Cow Bay — Owned Outright: 65.6% Cow Bay — Mortgage: 24.7% Cow Bay — Renting: 9.7%
Forest Creek 12.3% renting
Forest Creek — Owned Outright: 47.4% Forest Creek — Mortgage: 40.4% Forest Creek — Renting: 12.3%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

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.

Cow Bay Forest Creek
England 5.0% / 6.6%
Cow Bay — England: 5.0% Forest Creek — England: 6.6%
New Zealand 3.2% / 2.9%
Cow Bay — New Zealand: 3.2% Forest Creek — New Zealand: 2.9%
Germany 2.3% / 2.9%
Cow Bay — Germany: 2.3% Forest Creek — Germany: 2.9%
Thailand 1.8% / —
Cow Bay — Thailand: 1.8% Forest Creek — Thailand: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (6.6%).

Qualifications

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

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Certificate III & IV 20.9% / 12.5%
Cow Bay — Certificate III & IV: 20.9% Forest Creek — Certificate III & IV: 12.5%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 5.5% / 12.5%
Cow Bay — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.5% Forest Creek — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 12.5%
Bachelor Degree 7.7% / 5.1%
Cow Bay — Bachelor Degree: 7.7% Forest Creek — Bachelor Degree: 5.1%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 2.7% / 2.9%
Cow Bay — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.7% Forest Creek — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.9%
Postgraduate Degree 2.3% / 2.9%
Cow Bay — Postgraduate Degree: 2.3% Forest Creek — Postgraduate Degree: 2.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.9%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Cow Bay 98.0% houses
Cow Bay — Houses: 98.0% Cow Bay — Flats / Apartments: 2.0%
Forest Creek 100.0% houses
Forest Creek — Houses: 100.0% Forest Creek — Flats / Apartments: 0.0%
Houses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Median house price $610,000 —
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price —
same for both

Development activity

Cow Bay Forest Creek
New dwellings approved 48
across Douglas
same for both
Approvals change year on year -18%
same for both

Ranking within QLD

Cow Bay Forest Creek
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 4% of QLD Higher than 22% of QLD
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 37% of QLD Higher than 22% of QLD
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption Higher than 47% of QLD
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 12% of QLD Higher than 25% of QLD

Liveability

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Grade —
same for both
Score —
same for both
Socio-economic band below-average income
decile 2/10
 below-average income
decile 3/10

Risk profile

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Bushfire None
0/100
same for both
Crime Moderate
43/100
same for both
Flood Not mapped
no mapped data here
same for both
Coastal erosion Low
36/100
 None
0/100
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 0
within 5 km
same for both

Schools

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Inside the suburb 0
same for both
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Amenities in the suburb

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Cafes & restaurants 2 0
Parks & reserves 4 2
Beaches 1 0
Waterways 14 5

Mobility

Cow Bay sits further from the CBD (1815.4 km vs 1808.9 km).

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Walkability score 0/100
same for both
Distance to Brisbane 1815.4 km 1808.9 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 1300 min 1293 min
Electric vehicle share 0.3%
postcode 4873
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 63
postcode 4873
same for both

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.

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Car (driver) 76.3% / 66.7%
Cow Bay — Car (driver): 76.3% Forest Creek — Car (driver): 66.7%
Worked from Home 18.6% / 22.2%
Cow Bay — Worked from Home: 18.6% Forest Creek — Worked from Home: 22.2%
Car (passenger) 5.1% / 11.1%
Cow Bay — Car (passenger): 5.1% Forest Creek — Car (passenger): 11.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (76.3%).

Setting

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Elevation 7 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 2 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 2.0 km
3.4 km to a named beach
 5.9 km

NBN connectivity

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Connectivity score 15/100 18/100
Most common technology Satellite (Sky Muster)
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
156 premises
 0%
41 premises

Climate

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Annual rainfall 2,186 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 32.2°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 21.3°C
same for both

Council rates

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Average residential rate $1,417/yr
same for both
Council Douglas
same for both

Federal electorate

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Division Leichhardt
same for both
Member Matt Smith
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Cow Bay Forest Creek
Grant amount $30,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Cow Bay

Coastal Quiet Rural

Forest Creek

Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Cow Bay

Cow Bay vs Diwan Cow Bay vs Coral Sea

Other comparisons with Forest Creek

Forest Creek vs Daintree Forest Creek vs Lower Daintree
Full data on Cow Bay Full data on Forest Creek
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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