Lamb Island vs Macleay Island
In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are people living alone. Houses cost more in Macleay Island: a median of $570,000, against $452,000 in Lamb Island, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Lamb Island tends to suit people living alone and 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
They split
one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here
- Lamb Island carries lower crime risk (44/100 vs 67/100)
- Macleay Island has more parks and reserves (7 vs 1)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Lamb Island
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has cheaper houses ($452,500 vs $570,000)
- has cheaper land ($95,000 vs $115,000)
Weighs house prices, land prices, and mortgage stress.
Renters
Lamb Island
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($240/wk vs $260/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Macleay Island
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is more walkable (30/100 vs 12/100)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Macleay Island
ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here
- has more GPs (2 vs 0)
- is more walkable (30/100 vs 12/100)
- But Lamb Island carries lower crime risk (44/100 vs 67/100)
Weighs smaller dwellings, 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
Lamb Island and Macleay Island 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
Macleay Island has more residents (3,193 vs 504); Macleay Island has higher household incomes ($39,260 vs $34,684).
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 504 | 3,193 +534% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +16.7% | +19.1% |
| Median age | 63 | 62 |
| Median household income | $34,684/yr | $39,260/yr +13% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $240/wk | $260/wk +8% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (27.8%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (22.2%).
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 (7.2%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $452,500 | $570,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | $95,000 | $115,000 |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | 94 days from 6 sales | 74 days from 76 sales |
House price by bedroom count
Only bed counts both suburbs published enough sales for. Sale counts are shown because the buckets differ in depth.
7 vs 78 sales
8 vs 96 sales
Development activity
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 1,598 across Redland same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -26% same for both | |
Gross rental yield
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | — | 4.3% $548/wk on $668K |
| Units | — same for both | |
Ranking within QLD
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 2% of QLD | Higher than 4% of QLD |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 73% of QLD | Higher than 82% of QLD |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 34% of QLD same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 68% of QLD | Higher than 92% of QLD |
| Rental yield (houses) | — | Higher than 66% of QLD |
Liveability
Macleay Island is more walkable (30 vs 12).
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | C same for both | |
| Score | 43/100 | 39/100 |
| Socio-economic band | high-need area decile 1/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Macleay Island carries more crime risk (67 vs 44).
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Crime | Moderate 44/100 | Moderate 67/100 |
| Flood | Not mapped no mapped data here same for both | |
| Coastal erosion | Low 38/100 | Moderate 63/100 |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 0 within 5 km same for both | |
Schools
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 | 1 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 | 1 |
Schools in Lamb Island
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Schools in Macleay Island
- MacLeay Island State School Government · Primary below peers
Amenities in the suburb
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Supermarkets | 0 | 1 |
| Cafes & restaurants | 0 | 3 |
| Parks & reserves | 1 | 7 |
| Childcare | 0 | 1 |
| GPs | 0 | 2 |
| Pharmacies | 0 | 1 |
| Police stations | 0 | 1 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 0 | 1 |
| Fuel stations | 0 | 1 |
| Beaches | 0 | 1 |
Mobility
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 12/100 | 30/100 |
| Distance to Brisbane | 49.4 km | 50.8 km +3% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 91 min | 88 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.2% postcode 4184 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 70 postcode 4184 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 (52.1%).
Setting
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 9 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 7 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 319 m 4.0 km to a named beach | 213 m 1.2 km to a named beach |
NBN connectivity
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 45/100 | 82/100 |
| Most common technology | Fibre to the node | Fibre to the premises |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 456 premises | 55% 2,231 premises |
Climate
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 1,351 mm | 1,032 mm |
| Summer max (Jan) | 28.9°C | 30.5°C |
| Winter min (Jul) | 12.5°C | 8.9°C |
Air quality (annual mean)
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 | 5.3 µg/m³ same for both | |
| PM10 | 14.6 µg/m³ same for both | |
| NO₂ | 0.48 pphm same for both | |
Council rates
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,879/yr same for both | |
| Council | Redland same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Bowman same for both | |
| Member | Henry Pike same for both | |
| Party | Liberal National Party of Queensland same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Lamb Island | Macleay Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $30,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Lamb Island
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Lamb Island
Other comparisons with Macleay Island
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.