West Prairie vs St Ruth

St Ruth is the younger of the two, with a median age of 30 against 55 in West Prairie. In both, most households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In West Prairie, most households are people living alone. In St Ruth, most households are couple families. On these figures, West Prairie tends to suit people living alone and older residents, while St Ruth suits families with children and couples.

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

St Ruth

ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here

  • is already more of a family suburb (73% vs 44%)
  • carries lower crime risk (26/100 vs 36/100)

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

Renters

They split

one each way, out of the 3 things we measure here

  • West Prairie has cheaper rent ($150/wk vs $220/wk)
  • St Ruth has a bigger rental market to choose from (38% vs 17%)

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

Commuting to the city

West Prairie

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • sits closer to the CBD (193.6 km vs 220.3 km)
  • has a shorter drive in (149 min vs 160 min)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

They split

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

  • West Prairie has more residents already 65 and over (20% vs 10%)
  • St Ruth carries lower crime risk (26/100 vs 36/100)

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

Investors

St Ruth

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (18.7% vs -1.3%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

West Prairie St Ruth
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.

West Prairie St Ruth
Walkability 0 / 0
West Prairie — Walkability: 0/100 St Ruth — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 64 / 74
West Prairie — Safety: 64/100 St Ruth — Safety: 74/100
Low fire risk 100 / 100
West Prairie — Low fire risk: 100/100 St Ruth — Low fire risk: 100/100

Demographics

St Ruth has more residents (165 vs 78); West Prairie skews older (55 vs 30).

West Prairie St Ruth
Population 78 165
+112% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) -1.3% +18.7%
Median age 55 30
Median household income $107,224/yr
+12% vs other
 $94,224/yr
Median weekly rent $150/wk $220/wk
+47% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

West Prairie St Ruth
0-4 10.3% / 9.1%
West Prairie — 0-4: 10.3% St Ruth — 0-4: 9.1%
5-14 10.3% / 22.4%
West Prairie — 5-14: 10.3% St Ruth — 5-14: 22.4%
15-19 5.1% / 9.7%
West Prairie — 15-19: 5.1% St Ruth — 15-19: 9.7%
20-24 5.1% / 4.2%
West Prairie — 20-24: 5.1% St Ruth — 20-24: 4.2%
25-34 12.8% / 10.9%
West Prairie — 25-34: 12.8% St Ruth — 25-34: 10.9%
35-44 10.3% / 12.7%
West Prairie — 35-44: 10.3% St Ruth — 35-44: 12.7%
45-54 7.7% / 9.7%
West Prairie — 45-54: 7.7% St Ruth — 45-54: 9.7%
55-64 23.1% / 11.5%
West Prairie — 55-64: 23.1% St Ruth — 55-64: 11.5%
65-74 7.7% / 7.3%
West Prairie — 65-74: 7.7% St Ruth — 65-74: 7.3%
75-84 6.4% / 3.0%
West Prairie — 75-84: 6.4% St Ruth — 75-84: 3.0%
85+ 6.4% / —
West Prairie — 85+: 6.4% St Ruth — 85+: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (23.1%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

West Prairie 43.8% couple families
West Prairie — Couple Families: 43.8% West Prairie — Lone Person: 56.2% West Prairie — Group Household: 0.0% West Prairie — One Parent Families: 0.0%
St Ruth 63.6% couple families
St Ruth — Couple Families: 63.6% St Ruth — Lone Person: 12.1% St Ruth — Group Household: 15.2% St Ruth — One Parent Families: 9.1%
Couple Families Lone Person Group Household One Parent Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

West Prairie 16.7% renting
West Prairie — Owned Outright: 58.3% West Prairie — Mortgage: 25.0% West Prairie — Renting: 16.7%
St Ruth 38.5% renting
St Ruth — Owned Outright: 35.9% St Ruth — Mortgage: 25.6% St Ruth — Renting: 38.5%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

West Prairie 100.0% houses
West Prairie — Houses: 100.0%
St Ruth 100.0% houses
St Ruth — Houses: 100.0%
Houses

Qualifications

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

West Prairie St Ruth
Certificate III & IV 17.9% / 13.9%
West Prairie — Certificate III & IV: 17.9% St Ruth — Certificate III & IV: 13.9%
Bachelor Degree 12.8% / 3.0%
West Prairie — Bachelor Degree: 12.8% St Ruth — Bachelor Degree: 3.0%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 6.4% / 5.5%
West Prairie — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.4% St Ruth — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (17.9%).

Development activity

West Prairie St Ruth
New dwellings approved 1,513
across Toowoomba
 53
across Western Downs
Approvals change year on year -25% -40%

Ranking within QLD

West Prairie St Ruth
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 79% of QLD Higher than 67% of QLD
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 49% of QLD Higher than 34% of QLD
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption — Higher than 32% of QLD
NBN connectivity Higher than 45% of QLD Higher than 36% of QLD

Liveability

West Prairie St Ruth
Grade —
same for both
Score —
same for both
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 9/10
 advantaged area
decile 8/10

Risk profile

West Prairie carries more crime risk (36 vs 26).

West Prairie St Ruth
Bushfire None
0/100
same for both
Crime Low
36/100
 Low
26/100
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

West Prairie St Ruth
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

West Prairie St Ruth
Waterways 0 3

Mobility

St Ruth sits further from the CBD (220.3 km vs 193.6 km).

West Prairie St Ruth
Walkability score 0/100
same for both
Distance to Brisbane 193.6 km 220.3 km
+14% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 149 min 160 min
Electric vehicle share 0.0%
postcode 4403
 0.2%
postcode 4405
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 64
postcode 4403
 54
postcode 4405

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.

West Prairie St Ruth
Car (driver) 35.3% / 64.7%
West Prairie — Car (driver): 35.3% St Ruth — Car (driver): 64.7%
Worked from Home 52.9% / 35.3%
West Prairie — Worked from Home: 52.9% St Ruth — Worked from Home: 35.3%
Walked Only 11.8% / —
West Prairie — Walked Only: 11.8% St Ruth — Walked Only: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (64.7%).

Setting

West Prairie St Ruth
Elevation 354 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 343 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

West Prairie St Ruth
Connectivity score 29/100 27/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
37 premises
 0%
46 premises

Climate

West Prairie St Ruth
Annual rainfall 577 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 31.0°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 3.9°C
same for both

Council rates

West Prairie St Ruth
Average residential rate $1,618/yr $1,238/yr
Council Toowoomba Western Downs

Federal electorate

West Prairie St Ruth
Division Groom Maranoa
Member Garth Hamilton David Littleproud
Party Liberal National Party of Queensland
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

West Prairie St Ruth
Grant amount $30,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

West Prairie

Rural Young Families

St Ruth

Family Rural Young Families

More comparisons

Other comparisons with West Prairie

West Prairie vs Jondaryan West Prairie vs Norwin West Prairie vs Formartin West Prairie vs Bongeen West Prairie vs Nangwee

Other comparisons with St Ruth

St Ruth vs Dalby St Ruth vs Cecil Plains St Ruth vs Bowenville St Ruth vs Nandi St Ruth vs Formartin St Ruth vs Springvale
Full data on West Prairie Full data on St Ruth
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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