Cowper vs Calliope
In both, most households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Calliope, about half of households are couple families. On these figures, Calliope tends to suit 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
Calliope
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- carries lower crime risk (11/100 vs 71/100)
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
Calliope
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves renters under less rental stress (16% vs 23%)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Cowper
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- is more walkable (13/100 vs 5/100)
- has a shorter drive in (414 min vs 419 min)
- But Calliope sits closer to the CBD (623.5 km vs 633.4 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Cowper
ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here
- has more residents already 65 and over (19% vs 7%)
- is more walkable (13/100 vs 5/100)
- But Calliope carries lower crime risk (11/100 vs 71/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Cowper
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (-6.4% vs -18.7%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Cowper and Calliope 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
Calliope has higher household incomes ($93,184 vs $67,600); Cowper skews older (48 vs 46).
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 88 +1% vs other | 87 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -6.4% | -18.7% |
| Median age | 48 | 46 |
| Median household income | $67,600/yr | $93,184/yr +38% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $300/wk +7% vs other | $280/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (26.4%).
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 (17.2%).
Property market
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $680,000 | — |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | $15,448 | — |
Zoning mix
Calliope has more rural and farming land (100% vs 89%).
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 89% | 100% |
| Environmental | 8% | 0% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 2% | 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
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 246 across Clarence Valley same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -80% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 25% of NSW | — |
| Income | Higher than 30% of NSW | Higher than 60% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 62% of NSW | Higher than 48% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 63% of NSW | — |
| EV adoption | Higher than 18% of NSW | Higher than 21% of NSW |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 59% of NSW | Higher than 58% of NSW |
Liveability
Cowper is more walkable (13 vs 5).
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | below-average income decile 2/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Cowper carries more bushfire risk (24 vs 0); Cowper carries more crime risk (71 vs 11).
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Low 24/100 | None 0/100 |
| Crime | High 71/100 | Low 11/100 |
| 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
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 1 | 0 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Schools in Cowper
- Cowper Public School Government · Primary
Schools in Calliope
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Amenities in the suburb
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| Waterways | 5 | 2 |
Mobility
Cowper sits further from the CBD (633.4 km vs 623.5 km).
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 13/100 | 5/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 633.4 km +2% vs other | 623.5 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 414 min | 419 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.2% postcode 2460 | 0.2% postcode 2462 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 60 postcode 2460 | 55 postcode 2462 |
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 (84.6%).
Setting
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 3 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | -1 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 23.6 km | 23.8 km |
NBN connectivity
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 same for both | |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 49 premises | 0% 40 premises |
Climate
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 1,060 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 30.0°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 8.3°C same for both | |
Council rates
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,380/yr same for both | |
| Council | Clarence Valley same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Page same for both | |
| Member | Kevin Hogan same for both | |
| Party | The Nationals same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Cowper | Calliope | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Cowper
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Cowper
Other comparisons with Calliope
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.