Darbys Falls vs Cowra

Cowra is the younger of the two, with a median age of 46 against 55 in Darbys Falls. In both, most 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 Darbys Falls: a median of $630,000, against $449,000 in Cowra. On these figures, Cowra tends to suit 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

Cowra

ahead on 3 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more parks and reserves (23 vs 1)
  • has more schools inside the suburb (7 vs 0)
  • has more childcare (7 vs 0)
  • But Darbys Falls carries lower crime risk (54/100 vs 84/100)

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

First-home buyers

They split

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

  • Darbys Falls has cheaper land ($85,000 vs $272,500)
  • Cowra has cheaper houses ($448,550 vs $630,000)

Weighs house prices, land prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

Cowra

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a bigger rental market to choose from (29% vs 8%)
  • leaves renters under less rental stress (21% vs 26%)

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

Commuting to the city

Cowra

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (14/100 vs 0/100)
  • sits closer to the CBD (318.6 km vs 361.5 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

They split

one each way, out of the 4 things we measure here

  • Darbys Falls carries lower crime risk (54/100 vs 84/100)
  • Cowra is more walkable (14/100 vs 0/100)

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

Investors

Too close to call

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

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

Darbys Falls Cowra
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.

Darbys Falls Cowra
Walkability 0 / 14
Darbys Falls — Walkability: 0/100 Cowra — Walkability: 14/100
Safety 46 / 16
Darbys Falls — Safety: 46/100 Cowra — Safety: 16/100
Low fire risk 69 / 70
Darbys Falls — Low fire risk: 69/100 Cowra — Low fire risk: 70/100

Demographics

Cowra has more residents (10,145 vs 243); Cowra has higher household incomes ($57,564 vs $43,940).

Darbys Falls Cowra
Population 243 10,145
+4075% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) -3.2% +0.8%
Median age 55 46
Median household income $43,940/yr $57,564/yr
+31% vs other
Median weekly rent $220/wk $230/wk
+5% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Darbys Falls Cowra
0-4 6.2% / 5.5%
Darbys Falls — 0-4: 6.2% Cowra — 0-4: 5.5%
5-14 7.8% / 12.1%
Darbys Falls — 5-14: 7.8% Cowra — 5-14: 12.1%
15-19 5.3% / 5.8%
Darbys Falls — 15-19: 5.3% Cowra — 15-19: 5.8%
20-24 3.3% / 5.4%
Darbys Falls — 20-24: 3.3% Cowra — 20-24: 5.4%
25-34 12.3% / 10.4%
Darbys Falls — 25-34: 12.3% Cowra — 25-34: 10.4%
35-44 5.8% / 9.7%
Darbys Falls — 35-44: 5.8% Cowra — 35-44: 9.7%
45-54 12.8% / 11.9%
Darbys Falls — 45-54: 12.8% Cowra — 45-54: 11.9%
55-64 18.9% / 13.1%
Darbys Falls — 55-64: 18.9% Cowra — 55-64: 13.1%
65-74 23.5% / 13.7%
Darbys Falls — 65-74: 23.5% Cowra — 65-74: 13.7%
75-84 7.4% / 8.6%
Darbys Falls — 75-84: 7.4% Cowra — 75-84: 8.6%
85+ 1.6% / 3.7%
Darbys Falls — 85+: 1.6% Cowra — 85+: 3.7%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (23.5%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Darbys Falls 46.0% lone person
Darbys Falls — Lone Person: 46.0% Darbys Falls — Couple Families: 38.0% Darbys Falls — One Parent Families: 16.0% Darbys Falls — Group Household: 0.0% Darbys Falls — Other Families: 0.0%
Cowra 47.1% lone person
Cowra — Lone Person: 47.1% Cowra — Couple Families: 31.0% Cowra — One Parent Families: 17.3% Cowra — Group Household: 3.2% Cowra — Other Families: 1.5%
Lone Person Couple Families One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Darbys Falls 7.7% renting
Darbys Falls — Owned Outright: 58.2% Darbys Falls — Mortgage: 34.1% Darbys Falls — Renting: 7.7%
Cowra 29.3% renting
Cowra — Owned Outright: 43.4% Cowra — Mortgage: 27.4% Cowra — Renting: 29.3%
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.

Darbys Falls Cowra
England 2.5% / 1.3%
Darbys Falls — England: 2.5% Cowra — England: 1.3%
Philippines 1.6% / 0.4%
Darbys Falls — Philippines: 1.6% Cowra — Philippines: 0.4%
New Zealand — / 0.6%
Darbys Falls — New Zealand: not among its largest Cowra — New Zealand: 0.6%
India — / 0.4%
Darbys Falls — India: not among its largest Cowra — India: 0.4%
Germany — / 0.3%
Darbys Falls — Germany: not among its largest Cowra — Germany: 0.3%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (2.5%).

Qualifications

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

Darbys Falls Cowra
Certificate III & IV 21.8% / 16.8%
Darbys Falls — Certificate III & IV: 21.8% Cowra — Certificate III & IV: 16.8%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 7.0% / 5.9%
Darbys Falls — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 7.0% Cowra — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.9%
Bachelor Degree 6.6% / 6.2%
Darbys Falls — Bachelor Degree: 6.6% Cowra — Bachelor Degree: 6.2%
Postgraduate Degree — / 1.2%
Darbys Falls — Postgraduate Degree: not among its largest Cowra — Postgraduate Degree: 1.2%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate — / 1.2%
Darbys Falls — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: not among its largest Cowra — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.2%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.8%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Darbys Falls 100.0% houses
Darbys Falls — Houses: 100.0% Darbys Falls — Townhouses: 0.0% Darbys Falls — Flats / Apartments: 0.0%
Cowra 90.4% houses
Cowra — Houses: 90.4% Cowra — Townhouses: 6.5% Cowra — Flats / Apartments: 3.1%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Darbys Falls Cowra
Median house price $630,000 $448,550
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price $85,000 $272,500
Typical days to sell (houses) — 30 days
from 39 sales

Zoning mix

Darbys Falls Cowra
Rural and farming 99% 93%
Residential 0% 3%
Environmental 0% 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

Darbys Falls Cowra
New dwellings approved 33
across Cowra
same for both
Approvals change year on year +0%
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.

Darbys Falls Cowra
Houses — 4.1%
$395/wk on $503K
Units —
same for both

Ranking within NSW

Darbys Falls Cowra
House price Higher than 22% of NSW Higher than 13% of NSW
Income Higher than 6% of NSW Higher than 17% of NSW
Schools — Higher than 61% of NSW
Walkability Higher than 28% of NSW Higher than 65% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 37% of NSW Higher than 79% of NSW
EV adoption — Higher than 12% of NSW
NBN connectivity Higher than 38% of NSW Higher than 68% of NSW
Rental yield (houses) — Higher than 77% of NSW

Liveability

Cowra is more walkable (14 vs 0).

Darbys Falls Cowra
Grade — C
Score — 31/100
Socio-economic band mid-range socio-economic
decile 4/10
 below-average income
decile 2/10

Risk profile

Cowra carries more crime risk (84 vs 54).

Darbys Falls Cowra
Bushfire Low
31/100
 Low
30/100
Crime Moderate
54/100
 High
84/100
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
 1
within 5 km

Schools

Darbys Falls Cowra
Inside the suburb 0 7
Rated above peers 0 2
Rated at peers 0 4
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Schools in Darbys Falls

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

Schools in Cowra

  • Cowra High School Government · Secondary above peers
  • Holmwood Public School Government · Primary above peers
  • Cowra Public School Government · Primary at peers
  • Mulyan Public School Government · Primary at peers
  • OneSchool Global NSW - Cowra Independent · Primary at peers
  • St Raphael's Catholic School Cowra Catholic · Combined at peers

Amenities in the suburb

Darbys Falls Cowra
Supermarkets 0 3
Cafes & restaurants 0 3
Parks & reserves 1 23
Childcare 0 7
GPs 0 3
Pharmacies 0 2
Hospitals 0 2
Police stations 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 5
Fuel stations 0 4
EV chargers 0 2
Waterways 10 54

Mobility

Darbys Falls sits further from the CBD (361.5 km vs 318.6 km).

Darbys Falls Cowra
Walkability score 0/100 14/100
Distance to Sydney 361.5 km
+12% vs other
 318.6 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 264 min 262 min
Electric vehicle share 0.0%
postcode 2793
 0.1%
postcode 2794
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 53
postcode 2793
 51
postcode 2794

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.

Darbys Falls Cowra
Car (driver) 72.1% / 78.9%
Darbys Falls — Car (driver): 72.1% Cowra — Car (driver): 78.9%
Worked from Home 20.6% / 9.2%
Darbys Falls — Worked from Home: 20.6% Cowra — Worked from Home: 9.2%
Car (passenger) 7.4% / 6.3%
Darbys Falls — Car (passenger): 7.4% Cowra — Car (passenger): 6.3%
Walked Only — / 5.2%
Darbys Falls — Walked Only: not among its largest Cowra — Walked Only: 5.2%
Bicycle — / 0.3%
Darbys Falls — Bicycle: not among its largest Cowra — Bicycle: 0.3%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (78.9%).

Setting

Darbys Falls Cowra
Elevation 474 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 296 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

Darbys Falls Cowra
Connectivity score 26/100 54/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless Fibre to the node
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
125 premises
 23%
5,530 premises

Council rates

Darbys Falls Cowra
Average residential rate $583/yr
same for both
Council Cowra
same for both

Federal electorate

Darbys Falls Cowra
Division Riverina
same for both
Member Michael Mccormack
same for both
Party The Nationals
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Darbys Falls Cowra
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Darbys Falls

Affordable Retirees Rural

Cowra

Affordable Retirees Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Darbys Falls

Darbys Falls vs Woodstock Darbys Falls vs Wyangala

Other comparisons with Cowra

Cowra vs Canowindra Cowra vs Woodstock Cowra vs Koorawatha Cowra vs Gooloogong Cowra vs Wattamondara Cowra vs Billimari
Full data on Darbys Falls Full data on Cowra
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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