Woodlands vs Bowral

Woodlands is the younger of the two, with a median age of 46 against 55 in Bowral. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Woodlands, about half of households are couple families. In Bowral, about half of households are people living alone. Houses cost more in Woodlands: a median of $2.35 million, against $1.43 million in Bowral, though rent is higher in Bowral. On these figures, Woodlands tends to suit couples, while Bowral suits people living alone, 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

Bowral

ahead on 3 of the 5 things we measure here

  • has more parks and reserves (19 vs 1)
  • has more childcare (11 vs 0)
  • has more schools inside the suburb (5 vs 0)
  • But Woodlands is already more of a family suburb (67% vs 47%)

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

First-home buyers

They split

one each way, out of the 2 things we measure here

  • Woodlands leaves households under less mortgage stress (24% vs 33%)
  • Bowral has cheaper houses ($1,425,000 vs $2,350,000)

Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.

Renters

Woodlands

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • leaves renters under less rental stress (14% vs 33%)
  • has cheaper rent ($325/wk vs $500/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Bowral

ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (92/100 vs 10/100)
  • has a shorter drive in (91 min vs 96 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (118.8 km vs 121 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Bowral

ahead on 4 of the 4 things we measure here

  • has more GPs (9 vs 0)
  • has more units and townhouses to downsize into (19% vs 2%)
  • is more walkable (92/100 vs 10/100)

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

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

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

Woodlands Bowral
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.

Woodlands Bowral
Walkability 10 / 92
Woodlands — Walkability: 10/100 Bowral — Walkability: 92/100
Low fire risk 8 / 100
Woodlands — Low fire risk: 8/100 Bowral — Low fire risk: 100/100

Demographics

Bowral has more residents (10,764 vs 294); Bowral rents higher ($500/wk vs $325/wk).

Woodlands Bowral
Population 294 10,764
+3561% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +8.1% +4.2%
Median age 46 55
Median household income $122,720/yr
+35% vs other
 $79,820/yr
Median weekly rent $325/wk $500/wk
+54% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Woodlands Bowral
0-4 2.7% / 3.4%
Woodlands — 0-4: 2.7% Bowral — 0-4: 3.4%
5-14 11.6% / 10.8%
Woodlands — 5-14: 11.6% Bowral — 5-14: 10.8%
15-19 5.4% / 4.8%
Woodlands — 15-19: 5.4% Bowral — 15-19: 4.8%
20-24 6.5% / 3.4%
Woodlands — 20-24: 6.5% Bowral — 20-24: 3.4%
25-34 9.5% / 6.0%
Woodlands — 25-34: 9.5% Bowral — 25-34: 6.0%
35-44 10.9% / 8.8%
Woodlands — 35-44: 10.9% Bowral — 35-44: 8.8%
45-54 14.6% / 12.0%
Woodlands — 45-54: 14.6% Bowral — 45-54: 12.0%
55-64 15.6% / 12.8%
Woodlands — 55-64: 15.6% Bowral — 55-64: 12.8%
65-74 16.0% / 16.9%
Woodlands — 65-74: 16.0% Bowral — 65-74: 16.9%
75-84 5.4% / 15.0%
Woodlands — 75-84: 5.4% Bowral — 75-84: 15.0%
85+ 1.0% / 6.2%
Woodlands — 85+: 1.0% Bowral — 85+: 6.2%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (16.9%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Woodlands 54.7% couple families
Woodlands — Couple Families: 54.7% Woodlands — Lone Person: 32.8% Woodlands — One Parent Families: 12.5% Woodlands — Group Household: 0.0% Woodlands — Other Families: 0.0%
Bowral 34.3% couple families
Bowral — Couple Families: 34.3% Bowral — Lone Person: 48.9% Bowral — One Parent Families: 12.9% Bowral — Group Household: 3.0% Bowral — Other Families: 0.9%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Woodlands 21.1% renting
Woodlands — Owned Outright: 44.2% Woodlands — Mortgage: 34.7% Woodlands — Renting: 21.1%
Bowral 19.9% renting
Bowral — Owned Outright: 53.8% Bowral — Mortgage: 26.3% Bowral — Renting: 19.9%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Woodlands Bowral
Certificate III & IV 20.4% / 11.3%
Woodlands — Certificate III & IV: 20.4% Bowral — Certificate III & IV: 11.3%
Bachelor Degree 12.2% / 16.8%
Woodlands — Bachelor Degree: 12.2% Bowral — Bachelor Degree: 16.8%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 14.6% / 10.8%
Woodlands — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 14.6% Bowral — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 10.8%
Postgraduate Degree 2.0% / 7.1%
Woodlands — Postgraduate Degree: 2.0% Bowral — Postgraduate Degree: 7.1%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate — / 2.8%
Woodlands — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: not among its largest Bowral — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.8%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.4%).

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.

Woodlands Bowral
England 3.4% / 7.2%
Woodlands — England: 3.4% Bowral — England: 7.2%
New Zealand 3.1% / 1.7%
Woodlands — New Zealand: 3.1% Bowral — New Zealand: 1.7%
Scotland 1.4% / 0.8%
Woodlands — Scotland: 1.4% Bowral — Scotland: 0.8%
Netherlands 1.4% / —
Woodlands — Netherlands: 1.4% Bowral — Netherlands: not among its largest
Egypt 1.0% / —
Woodlands — Egypt: 1.0% Bowral — Egypt: not among its largest
South Africa — / 1.0%
Woodlands — South Africa: not among its largest Bowral — South Africa: 1.0%
Nepal — / 1.0%
Woodlands — Nepal: not among its largest Bowral — Nepal: 1.0%
India — / 0.9%
Woodlands — India: not among its largest Bowral — India: 0.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (7.2%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Woodlands 98.0% houses
Woodlands — Houses: 98.0% Woodlands — Townhouses: 0.0% Woodlands — Flats / Apartments: 2.0%
Bowral 80.6% houses
Bowral — Houses: 80.6% Bowral — Townhouses: 16.1% Bowral — Flats / Apartments: 3.3%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Woodlands Bowral
Median house price $2,350,000 $1,425,000
Median unit price — $830,000
Median land price — $1,035,000
Typical days to sell (houses) — 48 days
from 127 sales

Zoning mix

Woodlands has more rural and farming land (49% vs 6%).

Woodlands Bowral
Environmental 46% 56%
Rural and farming 49% 6%
Residential 0% 27%
Parks and recreation 0% 8%
Infrastructure and transport 4% 1%
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

Woodlands Bowral
New dwellings approved 335
across Wingecarribee
same for both
Approvals change year on year +6%
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.

Woodlands Bowral
Houses — 3.3%
$915/wk on $1.43M
Units — 4.0%
$650/wk on $840K

Ranking within NSW

Woodlands Bowral
House price Higher than 94% of NSW Higher than 75% of NSW
Income Higher than 85% of NSW Higher than 47% of NSW
Schools — Higher than 44% of NSW
Walkability Higher than 59% of NSW Higher than 97% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 9% of NSW Higher than 18% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 72% of NSW Higher than 92% of NSW
NBN connectivity Higher than 43% of NSW Higher than 74% of NSW
Rental yield (houses) — Higher than 36% of NSW
Rental yield (units) — Higher than 24% of NSW

Liveability

Bowral is more walkable (92 vs 10).

Woodlands Bowral
Grade — B
Score — 69/100
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 10/10
 very advantaged area
decile 9/10

Risk profile

Woodlands carries more bushfire risk (92 vs 0).

Woodlands Bowral
Bushfire High
92/100
 None
0/100
Crime — Low
37/100
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
 4
within 5 km

Schools

Woodlands Bowral
Inside the suburb 0 5
Rated above peers 0 1
Rated at peers 0 3
Rated below peers 0 1

Schools in Woodlands

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

Schools in Bowral

  • Aurora Southern Highlands Steiner School Independent · Combined above peers
  • Bowral High School Government · Secondary at peers
  • Bowral Public School Government · Primary at peers
  • St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Primary School Catholic · Primary at peers
  • Southern Highlands Christian School Independent · Combined below peers

Amenities in the suburb

Woodlands Bowral
Supermarkets 0 5
Cafes & restaurants 1 35
Parks & reserves 1 19
Childcare 0 11
GPs 0 9
Pharmacies 0 5
Hospitals 0 1
Police stations 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 7
Fuel stations 0 3
Waterways 13 26

Mobility

Woodlands sits further from the CBD (121 km vs 118.8 km).

Woodlands Bowral
Walkability score 10/100 92/100
Distance to Sydney 121 km
+2% vs other
 118.8 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 96 min 91 min
Public transport score 22/100
Bus
 79/100
Rail · Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 3.2
7-9am + 5-7pm
 127.2
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 9 min
scheduled, not actual
 0 min
scheduled, not actual
Electric vehicle share 0.7%
postcode 2575
 1.7%
postcode 2576
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 52
postcode 2575
 41
postcode 2576

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.

Woodlands Bowral
Car (driver) 60.8% / 55.0%
Woodlands — Car (driver): 60.8% Bowral — Car (driver): 55.0%
Worked from Home 35.0% / 34.0%
Woodlands — Worked from Home: 35.0% Bowral — Worked from Home: 34.0%
Car (passenger) 4.2% / 5.0%
Woodlands — Car (passenger): 4.2% Bowral — Car (passenger): 5.0%
Walked Only — / 4.8%
Woodlands — Walked Only: not among its largest Bowral — Walked Only: 4.8%
Train — / 0.5%
Woodlands — Train: not among its largest Bowral — Train: 0.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (60.8%).

Setting

Woodlands Bowral
Elevation 667 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 679 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 45.6 km 41.0 km

NBN connectivity

Woodlands Bowral
Connectivity score 28/100 66/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless Fibre to the node
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
106 premises
 39%
6,483 premises

Climate

Woodlands Bowral
Annual rainfall 974 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) —
same for both
Winter min (Jul) —
same for both

Council rates

Woodlands Bowral
Average residential rate $2,072/yr
same for both
Council Wingecarribee
same for both

Federal electorate

Woodlands Bowral
Division Whitlam
same for both
Member Carol Berry
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Woodlands Bowral
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Woodlands

Rural

Bowral

Cafe Culture Parks Regional Centre Retirees River

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Woodlands

Woodlands vs Mittagong Woodlands vs Colo Vale Woodlands vs Berrima Woodlands vs Welby Woodlands vs High Range

Other comparisons with Bowral

Bowral vs Moss Vale Bowral vs Mittagong Bowral vs Burradoo Bowral vs Berrima Bowral vs Glenquarry
Full data on Woodlands Full data on Bowral
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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