El Arish vs Shell Pocket
Shell Pocket is the younger of the two, with a median age of 41 against 47 in El Arish. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Shell Pocket, about half of households are people living alone. On these figures, Shell Pocket tends to suit share households.
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
Shell Pocket
ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here
- carries lower crime risk (14/100 vs 34/100)
- has more separate houses rather than flats (100% vs 88%)
- But El Arish is already more of a family suburb (50% vs 35%)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
El Arish
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (24% vs 32%)
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
El Arish
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a bigger rental market to choose from (24% vs 11%)
- has cheaper rent ($273/wk vs $300/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
El Arish
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- is more walkable (23/100 vs 0/100)
- has a shorter drive in (1073 min vs 1078 min)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
They split
one each way, out of the 4 things we measure here
- El Arish is more walkable (23/100 vs 0/100)
- Shell Pocket carries lower crime risk (14/100 vs 34/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
El Arish
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (-2.0% vs -8.8%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
El Arish and Shell Pocket 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
El Arish has more residents (337 vs 83); El Arish skews older (47 vs 41).
| El Arish | Shell Pocket | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 337 +75% vs other | 83 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -2.0% | -8.8% |
| Median age | 47 | 41 |
| Median household income | $59,696/yr +2% vs other | $58,500/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $273/wk | $300/wk +10% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (18.4%).
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 (21.7%).
Property market
| El Arish | Shell Pocket | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $440,000 | — |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Development activity
| El Arish | Shell Pocket | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 186 across Cassowary Coast same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +68% same for both | |
Ranking within QLD
| El Arish | Shell Pocket | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 24% of QLD | Higher than 23% of QLD |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 80% of QLD | Higher than 41% of QLD |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | — same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 62% of QLD | Higher than 59% of QLD |
Liveability
El Arish is more walkable (23 vs 0).
| El Arish | Shell Pocket | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | below-average income decile 2/10 | below-average income decile 3/10 |
Risk profile
El Arish carries more crime risk (34 vs 14).
| El Arish | Shell Pocket | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Crime | Low 34/100 | Low 14/100 |
| 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
| El Arish | Shell Pocket | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 1 | 0 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 1 | 0 |
Schools in El Arish
- El Arish State School Government · Primary below peers
Schools in Shell Pocket
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Amenities in the suburb
| El Arish | Shell Pocket | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks & reserves | 1 | 0 |
| Police stations | 1 | 0 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 1 | 0 |
| Fuel stations | 1 | 0 |
| Waterways | 11 | 3 |
Mobility
| El Arish | Shell Pocket | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 23/100 | 0/100 |
| Distance to Brisbane | 1575.8 km | 1575 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 1073 min | 1078 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.0% postcode 4855 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 56 postcode 4855 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 (87.9%).
Setting
| El Arish | Shell Pocket | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 18 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 51 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 8.8 km | 11.1 km |
NBN connectivity
| El Arish | Shell Pocket | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 same for both | |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 163 premises | 0% 34 premises |
Climate
| El Arish | Shell Pocket | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 3,534 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 31.4°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 16.5°C same for both | |
Council rates
| El Arish | Shell Pocket | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,829/yr same for both | |
| Council | Cassowary Coast same for both | |
Federal electorate
| El Arish | Shell Pocket | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Kennedy same for both | |
| Member | Bob Katter same for both | |
| Party | Katter's Australian Party (KAP) same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| El Arish | Shell Pocket | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $30,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Shell Pocket
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.