Minimbah vs Shallow Bay
In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and about half of households are couple families. Houses cost more in Shallow Bay: a median of $1.52 million, against $1.12 million in Minimbah, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Minimbah tends to suit older residents 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
Too close to call
Nothing among the 6 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Minimbah
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper houses ($1,120,000 vs $1,525,000)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
They split
one each way, out of the 3 things we measure here
- Minimbah leaves renters under less rental stress (24% vs 30%)
- Shallow Bay has a bigger rental market to choose from (16% vs 4%)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Minimbah
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a shorter drive in (200 min vs 230 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (287.7 km vs 300.1 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Minimbah
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has more residents already 65 and over (24% vs 15%)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Shallow Bay
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (54.5% vs -4.3%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Minimbah and Shallow Bay 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
Minimbah has more residents (199 vs 68); Minimbah has higher household incomes ($71,500 vs $60,632).
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 199 +66% vs other | 68 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -4.3% | +54.5% |
| Median age | 52 | 50 |
| Median household income | $71,500/yr +15% vs other | $60,632/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $325/wk | $350/wk +8% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (22.1%).
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 (23.1%).
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 (5.9%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $1,120,000 | $1,525,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
Shallow Bay has more land zoned for conservation (21% vs 5%); Minimbah has more rural and farming land (93% vs 79%).
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 93% | 79% |
| Environmental | 5% | 21% |
| Residential | 2% | 0% |
| 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
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 743 across Mid-Coast same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +327% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 59% of NSW | Higher than 75% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 36% of NSW | Higher than 22% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 6% of NSW | Higher than 13% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 30% of NSW | Higher than 9% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 34% of NSW | Higher than 45% of NSW |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 51% of NSW | Higher than 53% of NSW |
Liveability
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | mid-range socio-economic decile 4/10 | mid-range socio-economic decile 5/10 |
Risk profile
Shallow Bay carries more bushfire risk (81 vs 61).
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Moderate 61/100 | High 81/100 |
| Crime | Low 20/100 | Low 27/100 |
| 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
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 same for both | |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Amenities in the suburb
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Waterways | 9 | 3 |
Mobility
Shallow Bay sits further from the CBD (300.1 km vs 287.7 km).
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Sydney | 287.7 km | 300.1 km +4% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 200 min | 230 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.3% postcode 2312 | 0.4% postcode 2428 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 67 postcode 2312 | 41 postcode 2428 |
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 (60.3%).
Setting
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 48 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 15 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 12.0 km | 8.7 km |
NBN connectivity
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 same for both | |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 97 premises | 0% 38 premises |
Climate
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 1,331 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | — same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | — same for both | |
Council rates
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,560/yr same for both | |
| Council | Mid-Coast same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Lyne same for both | |
| Member | Alison Penfold same for both | |
| Party | The Nationals same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Minimbah | Shallow Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| 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 Minimbah
Other comparisons with Shallow Bay
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.