Darlington vs Gowrie
Darlington is the younger of the two, with a median age of 35 against 42 in Gowrie. In both, most households own their home and most homes are detached houses. In Gowrie, most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Gowrie: a median of $1.02 million, against $720,000 in Darlington, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Darlington tends to suit young adults, people living alone, and buyers on a tighter budget, while Gowrie suits 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
Gowrie
ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here
- is already more of a family suburb (84% vs 53%)
- has more separate houses rather than flats (95% vs 72%)
Weighs schools, house stock, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Darlington
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper houses ($720,000 vs $1,025,000)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Darlington
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a bigger rental market to choose from (29% vs 8%)
- has cheaper rent ($333/wk vs $478/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Darlington
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- is more walkable (79/100 vs 17/100)
- sits closer to the CBD (203.9 km vs 206.1 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Darlington
ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here
- has more units and townhouses to downsize into (28% vs 5%)
- is more walkable (79/100 vs 17/100)
Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, and walkability.
Where they sit
Darlington and Gowrie 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
Gowrie has higher household incomes ($159,224 vs $92,872); Gowrie rents higher ($478/wk vs $333/wk).
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 378 +11% vs other | 338 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | — | +4.6% |
| Median age | 35 | 42 |
| Median household income | $92,872/yr | $159,224/yr +71% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $333/wk | $478/wk +44% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (19.5%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
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.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (2.6%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (25.4%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $720,000 | $1,025,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
Gowrie has more rural and farming land (45% vs 8%); Gowrie has more land zoned for conservation (21% vs 0%).
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| Residential | 60% | 20% |
| Rural and farming | 8% | 45% |
| Parks and recreation | 27% | 10% |
| Environmental | 0% | 21% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 5% | 3% |
| 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
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 121 across Singleton same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +46% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 79% of NSW | Higher than 53% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 60% of NSW | Higher than 96% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 92% of NSW | Higher than 68% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 22% of NSW | Higher than 87% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 26% of NSW same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 71% of NSW | Higher than 68% of NSW |
Liveability
Darlington is more walkable (79 vs 17).
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | below-average income decile 2/10 | advantaged area decile 7/10 |
Risk profile
Gowrie carries more bushfire risk (36 vs 0).
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 | Low 36/100 |
| Crime | — same for both | |
| 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 | 2 within 5 km | 1 within 5 km |
Schools
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 1 | 0 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 1 | 0 |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Amenities in the suburb
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks & reserves | 0 | 1 |
Mobility
Gowrie sits further from the CBD (206.1 km vs 203.9 km).
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 79/100 | 17/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 203.9 km | 206.1 km +1% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 144 min | 146 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.2% postcode 2330 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 54 postcode 2330 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.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (85.4%).
Setting
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 42 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 67 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 62/100 | 56/100 |
| Most common technology | Fibre to the node same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 31% 186 premises | 27% 119 premises |
Climate
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 804 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 30.0°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 5.1°C same for both | |
Air quality (annual mean)
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 | 6.7 µg/m³ same for both | |
| PM10 | 19.2 µg/m³ same for both | |
| NO₂ | 0.64 pphm same for both | |
Council rates
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,287/yr same for both | |
| Council | Singleton same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Hunter same for both | |
| Member | Dan Repacholi same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Darlington | Gowrie | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Darlington
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Darlington
Other comparisons with Gowrie
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.