Dorrigo Mountain vs Darkwood
Darkwood is the younger of the two, with a median age of 47 against 61 in Dorrigo Mountain. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Dorrigo Mountain, most households are people living alone. In Darkwood, about half of households are people living alone. Houses cost more in Dorrigo Mountain: a median of $1.22 million, against $1.1 million in Darkwood. On these figures, Dorrigo Mountain tends to suit people living alone and older residents, while Darkwood suits families with children.
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
Darkwood
ahead on 3 of the 6 things we measure here
- has more schools rated above their peers (2 vs 0)
- carries lower crime risk (70/100 vs 93/100)
- is already more of a family suburb (42% vs 33%)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Darkwood
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper houses ($1,100,000 vs $1,220,000)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Dorrigo Mountain
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves renters under less rental stress (25% vs 32%)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Dorrigo Mountain
ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here
- is more walkable (15/100 vs 0/100)
- has a shorter drive in (365 min vs 384 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (540 km vs 548.7 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Dorrigo Mountain
ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here
- is more walkable (15/100 vs 0/100)
- has more residents already 65 and over (39% vs 25%)
- But Darkwood carries lower crime risk (70/100 vs 93/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Darkwood
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (33.9% vs -10.2%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Dorrigo Mountain and Darkwood 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
Darkwood has more residents (237 vs 88); Dorrigo Mountain skews older (61 vs 47).
| Dorrigo Mountain | Darkwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 88 | 237 +169% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -10.2% | +33.9% |
| Median age | 61 | 47 |
| Median household income | $60,112/yr +18% vs other | $49,348/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $290/wk | $300/wk +3% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (31.8%).
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 (5.7%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.5%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Dorrigo Mountain | Darkwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $1,220,000 | $1,100,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
Darkwood has more land zoned for conservation (90% vs 48%); Dorrigo Mountain has more rural and farming land (52% vs 10%).
| Dorrigo Mountain | Darkwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Environmental | 48% | 90% |
| Rural and farming | 52% | 10% |
| 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
| Dorrigo Mountain | Darkwood | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 40 across Bellingen same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +12% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Dorrigo Mountain | Darkwood | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 64% of NSW | Higher than 57% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 22% of NSW | Higher than 10% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 65% of NSW | Higher than 27% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 16% of NSW | Higher than 12% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 37% of NSW | Higher than 80% of NSW |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 54% of NSW | Higher than 14% of NSW |
Liveability
Dorrigo Mountain is more walkable (15 vs 0).
| Dorrigo Mountain | Darkwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | advantaged area decile 7/10 | mid-range socio-economic decile 4/10 |
Risk profile
Darkwood carries more bushfire risk (63 vs 39); Dorrigo Mountain carries more crime risk (93 vs 70).
| Dorrigo Mountain | Darkwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Low 39/100 | Moderate 63/100 |
| Crime | High 93/100 | High 70/100 |
| 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
| Dorrigo Mountain | Darkwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 | 2 |
| Rated above peers | 0 | 2 |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Schools in Dorrigo Mountain
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Schools in Darkwood
- Chrysalis School for Rudolf Steiner Education Independent · Combined above peers
- Orama Public School Government · Primary above peers
Amenities in the suburb
| Dorrigo Mountain | Darkwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Cafes & restaurants | 2 | 0 |
| Parks & reserves | 0 | 2 |
| Childcare | 0 | 1 |
| Waterways | 6 | 32 |
Mobility
Darkwood sits further from the CBD (548.7 km vs 540 km).
| Dorrigo Mountain | Darkwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 15/100 | 0/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 540 km | 548.7 km +2% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 365 min | 384 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.4% postcode 2453 | 0.9% postcode 2454 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 55 postcode 2453 | 70 postcode 2454 |
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 (58.3%).
Setting
| Dorrigo Mountain | Darkwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 626 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 170 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 31.7 km | 38.3 km |
NBN connectivity
| Dorrigo Mountain | Darkwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 | 15/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless | Satellite (Sky Muster) |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 54 premises | 0% 79 premises |
Council rates
| Dorrigo Mountain | Darkwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,592/yr same for both | |
| Council | Bellingen same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Dorrigo Mountain | Darkwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Cowper same for both | |
| Member | Pat Conaghan same for both | |
| Party | The Nationals same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Dorrigo Mountain | Darkwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Dorrigo Mountain
Other comparisons with Darkwood
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.