Garthowen vs Moonbi

Garthowen is the younger of the two, with a median age of 42 against 50 in Moonbi. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Garthowen, most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Moonbi: a median of $648,000, against $285,000 in Garthowen, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Garthowen tends to suit couples and buyers on a tighter budget, while Moonbi suits older residents.

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

They split

one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here

  • Garthowen carries lower crime risk (13/100 vs 61/100)
  • Moonbi has more parks and reserves (4 vs 0)

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

First-home buyers

Garthowen

ahead on 2 of the 2 things we measure here

  • has cheaper houses ($285,000 vs $647,500)
  • leaves households under less mortgage stress (19% vs 25%)

Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.

Renters

Garthowen

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • leaves renters under less rental stress (9% vs 16%)
  • has cheaper rent ($180/wk vs $220/wk)
  • But Moonbi has a bigger rental market to choose from (18% vs 7%)

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

Commuting to the city

Moonbi

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (12/100 vs 0/100)
  • has a shorter drive in (321 min vs 326 min)
  • But Garthowen sits closer to the CBD (435.9 km vs 438 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Moonbi

ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (12/100 vs 0/100)
  • has more residents already 65 and over (28% vs 16%)
  • But Garthowen carries lower crime risk (13/100 vs 61/100)

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

Investors

Garthowen

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (12.7% vs 6.7%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

Garthowen Moonbi
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.

Garthowen Moonbi
Walkability 0 / 12
Garthowen — Walkability: 0/100 Moonbi — Walkability: 12/100
Safety 87 / 39
Garthowen — Safety: 87/100 Moonbi — Safety: 39/100
Low fire risk 75 / 49
Garthowen — Low fire risk: 75/100 Moonbi — Low fire risk: 49/100

Demographics

Moonbi has more residents (1,201 vs 169); Garthowen has higher household incomes ($108,888 vs $70,408).

Garthowen Moonbi
Population 169 1,201
+611% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +12.7% +6.7%
Median age 42 50
Median household income $108,888/yr
+35% vs other
 $70,408/yr
Median weekly rent $180/wk $220/wk
+22% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Garthowen Moonbi
0-4 4.1% / 4.1%
Garthowen — 0-4: 4.1% Moonbi — 0-4: 4.1%
5-14 14.2% / 11.5%
Garthowen — 5-14: 14.2% Moonbi — 5-14: 11.5%
15-19 6.5% / 4.6%
Garthowen — 15-19: 6.5% Moonbi — 15-19: 4.6%
20-24 2.4% / 3.5%
Garthowen — 20-24: 2.4% Moonbi — 20-24: 3.5%
25-34 10.7% / 9.4%
Garthowen — 25-34: 10.7% Moonbi — 25-34: 9.4%
35-44 14.8% / 10.2%
Garthowen — 35-44: 14.8% Moonbi — 35-44: 10.2%
45-54 17.2% / 12.7%
Garthowen — 45-54: 17.2% Moonbi — 45-54: 12.7%
55-64 13.6% / 15.2%
Garthowen — 55-64: 13.6% Moonbi — 55-64: 15.2%
65-74 10.1% / 13.1%
Garthowen — 65-74: 10.1% Moonbi — 65-74: 13.1%
75-84 3.6% / 9.2%
Garthowen — 75-84: 3.6% Moonbi — 75-84: 9.2%
85+ 1.8% / 5.7%
Garthowen — 85+: 1.8% Moonbi — 85+: 5.7%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (17.2%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Garthowen 64.1% couple families
Garthowen — Couple Families: 64.1% Garthowen — Lone Person: 35.9% Garthowen — One Parent Families: 0.0% Garthowen — Other Families: 0.0% Garthowen — Group Household: 0.0%
Moonbi 37.8% couple families
Moonbi — Couple Families: 37.8% Moonbi — Lone Person: 41.2% Moonbi — One Parent Families: 15.6% Moonbi — Other Families: 3.1% Moonbi — Group Household: 2.4%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Other Families Group Household

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Garthowen 6.8% renting
Garthowen — Owned Outright: 39.0% Garthowen — Mortgage: 54.2% Garthowen — Renting: 6.8%
Moonbi 17.5% renting
Moonbi — Owned Outright: 40.1% Moonbi — Mortgage: 42.4% Moonbi — Renting: 17.5%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Garthowen 98.4% houses
Garthowen — Houses: 98.4% Garthowen — Flats / Apartments: 1.6%
Moonbi 89.3% houses
Moonbi — Houses: 89.3% Moonbi — Flats / Apartments: 10.7%
Houses Flats / Apartments

Qualifications

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

Garthowen Moonbi
Certificate III & IV 21.9% / 20.5%
Garthowen — Certificate III & IV: 21.9% Moonbi — Certificate III & IV: 20.5%
Bachelor Degree 11.8% / 6.9%
Garthowen — Bachelor Degree: 11.8% Moonbi — Bachelor Degree: 6.9%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 9.5% / 6.4%
Garthowen — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 9.5% Moonbi — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.4%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 3.6% / 1.0%
Garthowen — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.6% Moonbi — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.0%
Postgraduate Degree — / 2.0%
Garthowen — Postgraduate Degree: not among its largest Moonbi — Postgraduate Degree: 2.0%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.9%).

Property market

Garthowen Moonbi
Median house price $285,000 $647,500
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price —
same for both
Typical days to sell (houses) — 76 days
from 4 sales

Zoning mix

Garthowen has more rural and farming land (100% vs 88%).

Garthowen Moonbi
Rural and farming 100% 88%
Environmental 0% 6%
Residential 0% 6%
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

Garthowen Moonbi
New dwellings approved 390
across Tamworth
same for both
Approvals change year on year -35%
same for both

Ranking within NSW

Garthowen Moonbi
House price Higher than 7% of NSW Higher than 20% of NSW
Income Higher than 74% of NSW Higher than 34% of NSW
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 35% of NSW Higher than 61% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 97% of NSW Higher than 77% of NSW
EV adoption —
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 28% of NSW Higher than 63% of NSW

Liveability

Moonbi is more walkable (12 vs 0).

Garthowen Moonbi
Grade — D
Score — 24/100
Socio-economic band advantaged area
decile 8/10
 below-average income
decile 3/10

Risk profile

Moonbi carries more crime risk (61 vs 13); Moonbi carries more bushfire risk (51 vs 25).

Garthowen Moonbi
Bushfire Low
25/100
 Moderate
51/100
Crime Low
13/100
 Moderate
61/100
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

Garthowen Moonbi
Inside the suburb 0 1
Rated above peers 0 1
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Schools in Garthowen

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

Schools in Moonbi

  • Moonbi Public School Government · Primary above peers

Amenities in the suburb

Garthowen Moonbi
Parks & reserves 0 4
Banks & Bank@Post 0 1
Fuel stations 0 1
Waterways 0 22

Mobility

Moonbi sits further from the CBD (438 km vs 435.9 km).

Garthowen Moonbi
Walkability score 0/100 12/100
Distance to Sydney 435.9 km 438 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 326 min 321 min
Public transport score 21/100
Bus
 41/100
Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 4.0
7-9am + 5-7pm
 19.8
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 1 min
scheduled, not actual
same for both
Electric vehicle share 0.0%
postcode 2345
 0.0%
postcode 2353
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 62
postcode 2345
 62
postcode 2353

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.

Garthowen Moonbi
Car (driver) 72.3% / 74.6%
Garthowen — Car (driver): 72.3% Moonbi — Car (driver): 74.6%
Worked from Home 27.7% / 17.8%
Garthowen — Worked from Home: 27.7% Moonbi — Worked from Home: 17.8%
Car (passenger) — / 3.8%
Garthowen — Car (passenger): not among its largest Moonbi — Car (passenger): 3.8%
Walked Only — / 2.6%
Garthowen — Walked Only: not among its largest Moonbi — Walked Only: 2.6%
Bus — / 1.2%
Garthowen — Bus: not among its largest Moonbi — Bus: 1.2%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (74.6%).

Setting

Garthowen Moonbi
Elevation 489 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 843 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

Garthowen Moonbi
Connectivity score 18/100 31/100
Most common technology Satellite (Sky Muster) Fixed wireless
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
57 premises
 0%
495 premises

Climate

Garthowen Moonbi
Annual rainfall 784 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 27.5°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 0.1°C
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Garthowen Moonbi
PM2.5 5.8 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 13.6 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ 0.35 pphm
same for both

Council rates

Garthowen Moonbi
Average residential rate $1,397/yr
same for both
Council Tamworth
same for both

Federal electorate

Garthowen Moonbi
Division New England
same for both
Member Barnaby Joyce
same for both
Party The Nationals
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Garthowen Moonbi
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Garthowen

Affordable Rural

Moonbi

Retirees Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Garthowen

Garthowen vs Attunga Garthowen vs Halls Creek

Other comparisons with Moonbi

Moonbi vs Moore Creek Moonbi vs Kootingal Moonbi vs Daruka Moonbi vs Attunga Moonbi vs Bendemeer Moonbi vs Halls Creek
Full data on Garthowen Full data on Moonbi
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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