Cumborah vs Lightning Ridge

Lightning Ridge is the younger of the two, with a median age of 53 against 58 in Cumborah. In both, most households own their home and most households are people living alone. In Cumborah, most homes are flats or apartments. In Lightning Ridge, most homes are detached houses. Houses cost more in Lightning Ridge: a median of $250,000, against $160,000 in Cumborah, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Cumborah tends to suit people living alone 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

Lightning Ridge

ahead on 3 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more parks and reserves (3 vs 0)
  • is already more of a family suburb (36% vs 20%)
  • has more separate houses rather than flats (62% vs 37%)

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

First-home buyers

Cumborah

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper houses ($160,000 vs $250,000)

Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.

Renters

Cumborah

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has cheaper rent ($50/wk vs $200/wk)
  • leaves renters under less rental stress (10% vs 25%)
  • But Lightning Ridge has a bigger rental market to choose from (32% vs 8%)

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

Commuting to the city

They split

one each way, out of the 3 things we measure here

  • Cumborah sits closer to the CBD (729 km vs 767.1 km)
  • Lightning Ridge has a shorter drive in (554 min vs 564 min)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Cumborah

ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here

  • has more units and townhouses to downsize into (63% vs 38%)
  • has more residents already 65 and over (36% vs 29%)
  • But Lightning Ridge has more GPs (2 vs 0)

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

Investors

Lightning Ridge

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (-14.8% vs -20.5%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

Cumborah and Lightning Ridge drawn to the same scale. Both outlines are shown together, so the map answers whether they share a border and how their areas compare.

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
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.

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Walkability 0 / 0
Cumborah — Walkability: 0/100 Lightning Ridge — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 10 / 3
Cumborah — Safety: 10/100 Lightning Ridge — Safety: 3/100
Low fire risk 54 / 71
Cumborah — Low fire risk: 54/100 Lightning Ridge — Low fire risk: 71/100

Demographics

Lightning Ridge has more residents (1,946 vs 198); Lightning Ridge rents higher ($200/wk vs $50/wk).

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Population 198 1,946
+883% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) -20.5% -14.8%
Median age 58 53
Median household income $25,844/yr $41,184/yr
+59% vs other
Median weekly rent $50/wk $200/wk
+300% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
0-4 — / 4.6%
Cumborah — 0-4: not among its largest Lightning Ridge — 0-4: 4.6%
5-14 7.6% / 9.9%
Cumborah — 5-14: 7.6% Lightning Ridge — 5-14: 9.9%
15-19 3.5% / 4.5%
Cumborah — 15-19: 3.5% Lightning Ridge — 15-19: 4.5%
20-24 — / 3.3%
Cumborah — 20-24: not among its largest Lightning Ridge — 20-24: 3.3%
25-34 5.1% / 9.8%
Cumborah — 25-34: 5.1% Lightning Ridge — 25-34: 9.8%
35-44 7.6% / 8.9%
Cumborah — 35-44: 7.6% Lightning Ridge — 35-44: 8.9%
45-54 19.7% / 11.4%
Cumborah — 45-54: 19.7% Lightning Ridge — 45-54: 11.4%
55-64 19.7% / 18.2%
Cumborah — 55-64: 19.7% Lightning Ridge — 55-64: 18.2%
65-74 28.8% / 15.8%
Cumborah — 65-74: 28.8% Lightning Ridge — 65-74: 15.8%
75-84 7.6% / 10.9%
Cumborah — 75-84: 7.6% Lightning Ridge — 75-84: 10.9%
85+ — / 2.5%
Cumborah — 85+: not among its largest Lightning Ridge — 85+: 2.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (28.8%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Cumborah 75.6% lone person
Cumborah — Lone Person: 75.6% Cumborah — Couple Families: 15.1% Cumborah — One Parent Families: 4.7% Cumborah — Group Household: 4.7% Cumborah — Other Families: 0.0%
Lightning Ridge 57.0% lone person
Lightning Ridge — Lone Person: 57.0% Lightning Ridge — Couple Families: 18.1% Lightning Ridge — One Parent Families: 17.9% Lightning Ridge — Group Household: 5.3% Lightning Ridge — Other Families: 1.6%
Lone Person Couple Families One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Cumborah 8.0% renting
Cumborah — Owned Outright: 86.7% Cumborah — Mortgage: 5.3% Cumborah — Renting: 8.0%
Lightning Ridge 32.0% renting
Lightning Ridge — Owned Outright: 53.8% Lightning Ridge — Mortgage: 14.2% Lightning Ridge — Renting: 32.0%
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.

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
England 4.0% / 1.5%
Cumborah — England: 4.0% Lightning Ridge — England: 1.5%
New Zealand 3.5% / 1.3%
Cumborah — New Zealand: 3.5% Lightning Ridge — New Zealand: 1.3%
Philippines — / 1.4%
Cumborah — Philippines: not among its largest Lightning Ridge — Philippines: 1.4%
Germany — / 0.9%
Cumborah — Germany: not among its largest Lightning Ridge — Germany: 0.9%
Thailand — / 0.5%
Cumborah — Thailand: not among its largest Lightning Ridge — Thailand: 0.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (4.0%).

Qualifications

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

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Certificate III & IV 22.2% / 13.3%
Cumborah — Certificate III & IV: 22.2% Lightning Ridge — Certificate III & IV: 13.3%
Bachelor Degree 8.6% / 5.1%
Cumborah — Bachelor Degree: 8.6% Lightning Ridge — Bachelor Degree: 5.1%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 5.1% / 5.5%
Cumborah — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.1% Lightning Ridge — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.5%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate — / 0.9%
Cumborah — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: not among its largest Lightning Ridge — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 0.9%
Postgraduate Degree — / 0.9%
Cumborah — Postgraduate Degree: not among its largest Lightning Ridge — Postgraduate Degree: 0.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (22.2%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Cumborah 37.3% houses
Cumborah — Houses: 37.3% Cumborah — Flats / Apartments: 62.7% Cumborah — Townhouses: 0.0%
Lightning Ridge 61.9% houses
Lightning Ridge — Houses: 61.9% Lightning Ridge — Flats / Apartments: 33.5% Lightning Ridge — Townhouses: 4.6%
Houses Flats / Apartments Townhouses

Property market

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Median house price $160,000 $250,000
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price $12,000 —
Typical days to sell (houses) — 168 days
from 3 sales

Zoning mix

Cumborah has more land zoned for conservation (12% vs 0%); Lightning Ridge has more rural and farming land (98% vs 87%).

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Rural and farming 87% 98%
Environmental 12% 0%
Infrastructure and transport 1% 2%
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

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
New dwellings approved 13
across Walgett
same for both
Approvals change year on year -100%
same for both

Ranking within NSW

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
House price Higher than 2% of NSW Higher than 1% of NSW
Income Higher than 1% of NSW Higher than 5% of NSW
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 19% of NSW Higher than 20% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 88% of NSW Higher than 97% of NSW
EV adoption —
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 10% of NSW Higher than 64% of NSW

Liveability

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Grade — D
Score — 8/100
Socio-economic band high-need area
decile 1/10
same for both

Risk profile

Cumborah carries more bushfire risk (46 vs 29).

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Bushfire Moderate
46/100
 Low
29/100
Crime High
90/100
 High
97/100
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

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Inside the suburb 0 1
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0 1
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Schools in Cumborah

No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.

Schools in Lightning Ridge

  • Lightning Ridge Central School Government · Combined at peers

Amenities in the suburb

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Cafes & restaurants 1 3
Parks & reserves 0 3
Childcare 0 2
GPs 0 2
Pharmacies 0 1
Hospitals 0 1
Police stations 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 2
Fuel stations 0 3
Waterways 8 6

Mobility

Lightning Ridge sits further from the CBD (767.1 km vs 729 km).

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Walkability score 0/100
same for both
Distance to Sydney 729 km 767.1 km
+5% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 564 min 554 min
Electric vehicle share 0.0%
postcode 2832
 0.0%
postcode 2834
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings —
postcode 2832
 88
postcode 2834

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.

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Car (driver) 73.2% / 68.0%
Cumborah — Car (driver): 73.2% Lightning Ridge — Car (driver): 68.0%
Worked from Home 9.8% / 10.8%
Cumborah — Worked from Home: 9.8% Lightning Ridge — Worked from Home: 10.8%
Walked Only 9.8% / 10.4%
Cumborah — Walked Only: 9.8% Lightning Ridge — Walked Only: 10.4%
Car (passenger) 7.3% / 8.1%
Cumborah — Car (passenger): 7.3% Lightning Ridge — Car (passenger): 8.1%
Bicycle — / 1.9%
Cumborah — Bicycle: not among its largest Lightning Ridge — Bicycle: 1.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (73.2%).

Setting

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Elevation 126 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 146 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Connectivity score 15/100 39/100
Most common technology Satellite (Sky Muster) Fibre to the node
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
42 premises
 0%
1,347 premises

Council rates

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Average residential rate $445/yr
same for both
Council Walgett
same for both

Federal electorate

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Division Parkes
same for both
Member Jamie Chaffey
same for both
Party The Nationals
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Cumborah Lightning Ridge
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Cumborah

Affordable Retirees Rural

Lightning Ridge

Affordable Retirees Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Cumborah

Cumborah vs Walgett Cumborah vs Goodooga

Other comparisons with Lightning Ridge

Lightning Ridge vs Walgett Lightning Ridge vs Collarenebri Lightning Ridge vs Goodooga
Full data on Cumborah Full data on Lightning Ridge
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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