Ourimbah vs Palm Grove

Ourimbah is the younger of the two, with a median age of 39 against 55 in Palm Grove. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Ourimbah, about half of households are couple families. In Palm Grove, about half of households are people living alone. On these figures, Ourimbah tends to suit families with children and couples, while Palm Grove suits people living alone and 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

Ourimbah

ahead on 4 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more parks and reserves (9 vs 0)
  • has more childcare (3 vs 0)
  • is already more of a family suburb (67% vs 55%)
  • But Palm Grove has more separate houses rather than flats (100% vs 76%)

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

First-home buyers

Ourimbah

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • leaves households under less mortgage stress (23% vs 34%)

Weighs mortgage stress.

Renters

Palm Grove

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper rent ($320/wk vs $400/wk)

Weighs rent and rental stress.

Commuting to the city

Palm Grove

ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (10/100 vs 0/100)
  • has a shorter drive in (80 min vs 90 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (91.6 km vs 96 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

They split

one each way, out of the 4 things we measure here

  • Ourimbah has more GPs (3 vs 0)
  • Palm Grove is more walkable (10/100 vs 0/100)

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

Investors

Ourimbah

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (1.7% vs -17.9%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

Ourimbah Palm Grove
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.

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Walkability 0 / 10
Ourimbah — Walkability: 0/100 Palm Grove — Walkability: 10/100
Safety 17 / 6
Ourimbah — Safety: 17/100 Palm Grove — Safety: 6/100
Low fire risk 44 / 37
Ourimbah — Low fire risk: 44/100 Palm Grove — Low fire risk: 37/100

Demographics

Ourimbah has more residents (4,019 vs 87); Palm Grove skews older (55 vs 39).

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Population 4,019
+98% vs other
 87
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +1.7% -17.9%
Median age 39 55
Median household income $100,880/yr
+27% vs other
 $73,632/yr
Median weekly rent $400/wk
+20% vs other
 $320/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Ourimbah Palm Grove
0-4 5.6% / 3.4%
Ourimbah — 0-4: 5.6% Palm Grove — 0-4: 3.4%
5-14 12.9% / 9.2%
Ourimbah — 5-14: 12.9% Palm Grove — 5-14: 9.2%
15-19 7.1% / —
Ourimbah — 15-19: 7.1% Palm Grove — 15-19: not among its largest
20-24 6.1% / 4.6%
Ourimbah — 20-24: 6.1% Palm Grove — 20-24: 4.6%
25-34 12.5% / 6.9%
Ourimbah — 25-34: 12.5% Palm Grove — 25-34: 6.9%
35-44 13.4% / 8.0%
Ourimbah — 35-44: 13.4% Palm Grove — 35-44: 8.0%
45-54 13.7% / 18.4%
Ourimbah — 45-54: 13.7% Palm Grove — 45-54: 18.4%
55-64 14.3% / 20.7%
Ourimbah — 55-64: 14.3% Palm Grove — 55-64: 20.7%
65-74 8.6% / 18.4%
Ourimbah — 65-74: 8.6% Palm Grove — 65-74: 18.4%
75-84 4.3% / 5.7%
Ourimbah — 75-84: 4.3% Palm Grove — 75-84: 5.7%
85+ 1.3% / 3.4%
Ourimbah — 85+: 1.3% Palm Grove — 85+: 3.4%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.7%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Ourimbah 48.8% couple families
Ourimbah — Couple Families: 48.8% Ourimbah — Lone Person: 27.4% Ourimbah — One Parent Families: 17.8% Ourimbah — Group Household: 4.3% Ourimbah — Other Families: 1.8%
Palm Grove 35.0% couple families
Palm Grove — Couple Families: 35.0% Palm Grove — Lone Person: 45.0% Palm Grove — One Parent Families: 20.0% Palm Grove — Group Household: 0.0% Palm Grove — Other Families: 0.0%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Ourimbah 23.6% renting
Ourimbah — Owned Outright: 32.4% Ourimbah — Mortgage: 43.9% Ourimbah — Renting: 23.6%
Palm Grove 0.0% renting
Palm Grove — Owned Outright: 75.0% Palm Grove — Mortgage: 25.0% Palm Grove — Renting: 0.0%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

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.

Ourimbah Palm Grove
England 4.6% / 3.4%
Ourimbah — England: 4.6% Palm Grove — England: 3.4%
New Zealand 1.9% / —
Ourimbah — New Zealand: 1.9% Palm Grove — New Zealand: not among its largest
China 0.8% / —
Ourimbah — China: 0.8% Palm Grove — China: not among its largest
Philippines 0.8% / —
Ourimbah — Philippines: 0.8% Palm Grove — Philippines: not among its largest
South Africa 0.6% / —
Ourimbah — South Africa: 0.6% Palm Grove — South Africa: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (4.6%).

Qualifications

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

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Bachelor Degree 12.6% / 21.8%
Ourimbah — Bachelor Degree: 12.6% Palm Grove — Bachelor Degree: 21.8%
Certificate III & IV 18.4% / 13.8%
Ourimbah — Certificate III & IV: 18.4% Palm Grove — Certificate III & IV: 13.8%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 8.8% / 10.3%
Ourimbah — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.8% Palm Grove — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 10.3%
Postgraduate Degree 3.3% / 4.6%
Ourimbah — Postgraduate Degree: 3.3% Palm Grove — Postgraduate Degree: 4.6%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 1.9% / 4.6%
Ourimbah — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.9% Palm Grove — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 4.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.8%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Ourimbah 75.9% houses
Ourimbah — Houses: 75.9% Ourimbah — Townhouses: 22.7% Ourimbah — Flats / Apartments: 1.5%
Palm Grove 100.0% houses
Palm Grove — Houses: 100.0% Palm Grove — Townhouses: 0.0% Palm Grove — Flats / Apartments: 0.0%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Median house price $1,030,000 —
Median unit price $655,000 —
Median land price $1,577,500 —
Typical days to sell (houses) 20 days
from 30 sales
 —

Zoning mix

Palm Grove has more land zoned for conservation (81% vs 56%); Ourimbah has more rural and farming land (39% vs 19%).

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Environmental 56% 81%
Rural and farming 39% 19%
Infrastructure and transport 3% 0%
Residential 1% 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

Ourimbah Palm Grove
New dwellings approved 1,441
across Central Coast (NSW)
same for both
Approvals change year on year +67%
same for both

Gross rental yield

Gross — before strata, rates, management, insurance and vacancy. From median advertised rents and median asking prices over the last 6 months. How we calculate.

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Houses 3.6%
$750/wk on $1.07M
 —
Units —
same for both

Ranking within NSW

Ourimbah Palm Grove
House price Higher than 60% of NSW —
Income Higher than 69% of NSW Higher than 40% of NSW
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 4% of NSW Higher than 56% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 54% of NSW —
EV adoption Higher than 82% of NSW
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 71% of NSW Higher than 29% of NSW
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 52% of NSW —

Liveability

Palm Grove is more walkable (10 vs 0).

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Grade C —
Score 30/100 —
Socio-economic band advantaged area
decile 7/10
 very advantaged area
decile 9/10

Risk profile

Palm Grove carries more crime risk (94 vs 83).

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Bushfire Moderate
56/100
 Moderate
63/100
Crime High
83/100
 High
94/100
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

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Inside the suburb 1 0
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 1 0
Universities within 10 km 1
The University of Newcastle (Central Coast), 0.0 km
 1
The University of Newcastle (Central Coast), 2.9 km

Schools in Ourimbah

  • Ourimbah Public School Government · Primary below peers

Schools in Palm Grove

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

Amenities in the suburb

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Cafes & restaurants 7 0
Parks & reserves 9 0
Childcare 3 0
GPs 3 0
Pharmacies 1 0
Banks & Bank@Post 1 0
Fuel stations 4 0
Waterways 26 2

Mobility

Ourimbah sits further from the CBD (96 km vs 91.6 km).

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Walkability score 0/100 10/100
Distance to Sydney 96 km
+5% vs other
 91.6 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 90 min 80 min
Electric vehicle share 1.1%
postcode 2258
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 47
postcode 2258
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.

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Car (driver) 62.1% / 38.1%
Ourimbah — Car (driver): 62.1% Palm Grove — Car (driver): 38.1%
Worked from Home 30.7% / 61.9%
Ourimbah — Worked from Home: 30.7% Palm Grove — Worked from Home: 61.9%
Car (passenger) 3.3% / —
Ourimbah — Car (passenger): 3.3% Palm Grove — Car (passenger): not among its largest
Train 2.2% / —
Ourimbah — Train: 2.2% Palm Grove — Train: not among its largest
Walked Only 1.1% / —
Ourimbah — Walked Only: 1.1% Palm Grove — Walked Only: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (62.1%).

Setting

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Elevation 177 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 90 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 15.5 km 18.2 km

NBN connectivity

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Connectivity score 62/100 20/100
Most common technology Fibre to the node Satellite (Sky Muster)
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 33%
1,629 premises
 0%
40 premises

Climate

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Annual rainfall 1,272 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 26.4°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 10.6°C
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Ourimbah Palm Grove
PM2.5 5.1 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 14.8 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ 0.36 pphm
same for both

Council rates

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Average residential rate $1,409/yr
same for both
Council Central Coast (NSW)
same for both

Federal electorate

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Division Dobell
same for both
Member Emma Mcbride
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Ourimbah Palm Grove
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Ourimbah

Rural Townhouses Transport Hub

Palm Grove

Retirees River Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Ourimbah

Ourimbah vs Tumbi Umbi Ourimbah vs Lisarow Ourimbah vs Mardi Ourimbah vs Niagara Park Ourimbah vs Glenning Valley Ourimbah vs Somersby

Other comparisons with Palm Grove

Palm Grove vs Somersby Palm Grove vs Central Mangrove
Full data on Ourimbah Full data on Palm Grove
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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