Babinda QLD 4861
Babinda sits 1,640 km from Brisbane CBD in Queensland, around 18 hours 45 minutes by car. Census data records 1,287 residents with a median age of 48 and a median household income of $54,496 per year. By household income, education, and employment patterns, it ranks in the bottom 20% nationally. The town grew 2.7% between 2016 and 2021. At the 2021 Census, households here paid a median rent of $230 per week and a median monthly mortgage of $1,108. Babinda is characterised by high crime risk and no recorded bushfire exposure. Of 2 schools within the town boundary, 1 ranks above the state average, and walkability is moderate.
Is Babinda a good town?
Babinda scores a C (37/100) on SuburbScan's Liveability grade — weaker on community.
Mixed results
2 schools · 1 above peer schools
Some car dependence
Walkability 55/100 · 1640.5 km · 1124 min drive to Brisbane
Median available
Median $480K
Moderate crime risk
Fire 0/100 · Crime 68/100
Highly disadvantaged
SEIFA decile 1/10 · median age 48 · 1,287 residents
Liveability Rating
37 / 100 · Ranked #804 in QLDEach bar is Babinda's rank among QLD suburbs, from 0 to 100 (higher is better). Scored on 4 of 5 factors: no school data, so the other factors carry its weight.
Flood data for Queensland covers only the areas mapped there — a blank here is not an all-clear.
How do you rate the liveability in Babinda?
Local knowledge beats any dataset. Rate it and see what other residents think.
Our score
37 / 100
From schools, safety and socio-economic data — not opinion.
Residents say
…
Median House Price
Public listings dataBabinda's house market is moving higher: the median sale price reached $480,000, roughly 12% above where it sat a year earlier.
Houses
$480,000
Based on 35 recorded sales in the last 24 months.
Typically sold in 102 days — median across 16 sales that recorded a listing period
By bedrooms
- 2 bed 9 sales $470K
- 3 bed 18 sales $482K
- 4 bed 5 sales $560K
Land
$200,000
Based on only 3 sales — small sample, take as indicative.
Currently for Sale
Last 6 monthsHouses in Babinda are currently listed at around $697,000 on average. Based on 8 houses listed in the past six months.
$697K
8 houses listed in the last 6 months.
8 of the suburb's 497 dwellings (1.6%) were listed for sale in the last 6 months.
Is Babinda safe? Crime statistics
2025Crime in Babinda sits in the moderate band, with 29 incidents recorded in 2025 — down roughly 28% on the prior year.
29 offences
27.5% since 2024Crime Trend
Serious Road Crashes
2020–20247 crashes
where someone was killed or admitted to hospital
Crashes are counted where they happened, so a main road through the town carries people passing through; this is not a measure of risk to residents. Roads are listed with 3 or more serious crashes.
Schools
Two schools serve Babinda, and the cohort skews above peer-suburb performance. Babinda State School leads the pack.
- • 307 students across 2 schools (avg 154)
- • Sectors: 1 Government, 1 Catholic
- • ICSEA 900-931, median 916 (below the national baseline of 1000)
- • Largest: Babinda State School (280 students)
Primary
Combined
Walkability
Babinda is somewhat walkable on foot — at 55/100, a short cluster of errands work on foot but most trips still benefit from a car.
We hold no public transport timetable data for this area, so public transport is not rated here and the score is spread across the remaining components. It is not counted as zero.
NBN connectivity
The internet access technology available across NBN premises in Babinda.
- Full-fibre (FTTP) share
- 38%
- Premises covered
- 694
NBN Co fixed-line and fixed-wireless premises, as at 30 December 2025. Higher-quality technologies (full fibre) score above copper, wireless, and satellite. Actual speeds depend on your plan.
Amenities
Cairns: council population
The three add up to the change above. These are council-wide figures from the ABS, not figures for this town alone — this town's own population is in the census section above.
Socio-economic profile
The ABS scores 6 small areas inside this town and averages them into the single decile above. They fall into 4 different deciles — a wide range, so parts of this town rank well above the average and parts well below it.
Babinda is home to about 1,300 residents, with a median age of 48, a touch above the national 38. Median household income runs at $54,000 a year, with unemployment at 9.3%.
2021 Census · change since 2016
Population
1,287
Median Age
48
Median Household Income
$54,496/yr
Census Median Rent
$230/wk
Census Median Mortgage
$1,108/mo
Avg Household Size
2.3
Median Personal Income
$28,496/yr
Unemployment Rate
9.3%
Unoccupied Dwellings
14.3%
Total Dwellings
497
Owner-Occupier Rate
68.8%
Houses
94.0%
Rental Stress
21.9%
Mortgage Stress
24.4%
Work From Home
9.8%
Dwelling Types
Property Ownership
15 rented from a state or territory housing authority and 15 from a community housing provider, as a share of the 148 rented dwellings above — not of all dwellings.
Demographics
- Born in Australia
- 77.1%
- English Spoken at Home
- 84.6%
- Employment Rate
- 43.4%
- Completed Year 12
- 28.2%
Occupations
Religion
Country of Birth (overseas)
Largest overseas birthplaces, as a share of all residents.
When They Arrived
Share of all residents by the year they arrived in Australia. Periods cover different numbers of years, so compare the shape rather than the bar widths.
17 residents (1.3%) arrived since 2016. Australia’s borders were closed to most arrivals from March 2020, so the last two years of that period are much smaller than the ones before them — nationally 260,799 people arrived in 2019 against 28,521 in 2021.
Where New Residents Came From
Where residents aged five and over lived five years before the 2021 Census, for those who lived somewhere else.
2.6% of residents (32) lived in a capital city five years earlier, most of them in Brisbane (18).
Top places newcomers came from, as a share of the 1,234 residents aged five and over. Areas are ABS statistical regions. Small counts are approximate: the ABS adjusts every figure slightly to protect privacy.
Languages Spoken at Home
Top languages other than English, as a share of all residents.
Age Distribution
Family & Household Composition
Commute to Work
Local Jobs
People who work in this town against employed people who live here, 2021 Census.
About 378 people work here; 466 employed residents live here.
Roughly as many jobs as working residents (0.8 per resident). At least 19% of employed residents must work outside the town.
Counts are by place of work and place of usual residence. The ABS counts jobs in zones; where a zone spans several places, its jobs are shared out by land use. The ABS also adjusts every figure slightly to protect privacy.
Education
Cars per Dwelling
Council Rates
Households face an average residential rates bill of $1,354 a year through Cairns based on 2025 figures.
Building Approvals: Cairns
In the year to August 2026, 767 new dwellings were approved across Cairns. That mix is 681 houses and 86 units. Approvals are down 81.0% on the same period a year earlier.
New Homes Planned
New homes planned in this town: 110 to 230 homes
- In 2 to 5 years 6 to 20 homes
- In 5 to 10 years 51 to 100 homes
- In 10 years or more 52 to 105 homes
- No timeframe set 1 to 5 homes
Land the Queensland Government's residential land supply study identifies for future housing (5 parcels), by when it expects lots to be registered. Yields are published in ranges, so these are too.
Aboriginal Cultural Heritage
No native title party is registered for this area. Under the Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Act 2003 the Aboriginal party is then whoever is recognised under tradition or custom as responsible for the area — which a native title register cannot show.
Climate & Setting
from Innisfail, 23.4 kmHigh rainfall — warm summers, mild winters.
- Elevation
- 11 m
- above sea level, at the town centre
- Distance to the ocean
- 8.8 km
- Annual rainfall
- 3,531 mm
- 166 rainy days
- Summer max (Jan)
- 31.2°C
- 3 days ≥ 35°C
- Winter min (Jul)
- 17.0°C
- 0 frost days ≤ 0°C
Elevation is the ground at the town centre, from Geoscience Australia's National Digital Elevation Model. Approximate — it reads high in dense built-up areas. It is a measure of height above sea level and not an indicator of flood risk, which depends on height above nearby waterways.
Industrial Emissions Nearby
1 facility within 5 km- 1.0 kmSewerage and Drainage ServicesTop reported: Chlorine & compounds
EV adoption
In postcode 4861, 5 of 1,324 registered light vehicles are battery-electric on 31 January 2025. A further 1.7% (23 vehicles) are hybrid or plug-in hybrid, taking the non-petrol, non-diesel share to 2.1%.
Rooftop solar
In postcode 4861, 277 rooftop-solar systems totalling 2.3 MW have been installed since 2001, against 686 dwellings recorded in the 2021 Census. 17 went up in the last year.
Counts every system certified since 2001, so a roof re-fitted with a newer system is counted twice, and small commercial systems are included alongside houses — useful for comparing postcodes, not an estimate of how many homes have working panels today.
2026 covers part of the year only, to 2026-07.
First Home Owner Grant
FY2026-27$30,000 for new homes priced up to $750,000.
$30,000 for contracts signed on or after 20 November 2023, with no end date. IT DID NOT REVERT TO $15,000: the tier was due to end 30 June 2026 and the 2026-27 Queensland Budget (23 June 2026) continued it for contracts signed from 1 July 2026. This file carried a "due to revert" note until 2026-09-18 — it was never true, and a note predicting a change is not the same as a change. Cap is "less than $750,000" including land and contract variations — less than, not up to. New homes only: "There are no home owner grants for established homes."
Mortgage repayments
Transfer duty at the owner-occupier rate, and it excludes first home buyer concessions — those can cut it substantially or remove it entirely. Excludes legal, inspection and lender fees. Check with Queensland Revenue Office
The First Home Owner Grant applies to newly built homes only, so it isn't available on an established purchase. A first home buyer building or buying new under $750,000 may qualify for $30,000 — see what qualifies with Queensland Revenue Office.
At $480,000 this is under the $750,000 First Home Owner Grant cap. A first home buyer may qualify for $30,000 on a newly built home — check eligibility with Queensland Revenue Office.
A deposit under 20% usually attracts Lenders Mortgage Insurance, which this doesn't include.
Principal and interest over 30 years, fixed rate. Excludes fees, offset, redraw and LMI. Default rate is the median comparison rate across 1788 advertised products as at 2026-10-27 — indicative only, and not an offer. Your rate depends on the lender, your deposit and your circumstances. Not financial advice.
Federal Electorate
Currently held by Bob Katter Katter's Australian Party (KAP)
| Year | Winner | 2PP ALP | 2PP LNP | Swing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Bob Katter | 40.7% | 59.3% | +0.8 |
| 2022 | Bob Katter | 39.8% | 60.2% | -4.3 |
| 2019 | Bob Katter | 35.5% | 64.5% | +7.8 |
Results are per division — federal electoral boundaries are redrawn periodically, so the history reflects this division's past, not necessarily the exact town's voters across time.
State Electorate
Currently held by Shane Knuth Katter's Australian Party (KAP)
Next state election: 28 October 2028.
| Year | Winner | Won with |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Shane Knuth KAP | 63.7% |
| 2020 | Shane Knuth KAP | 72.5% |
Results are per district. Districts were last redrawn in 2017, so results from before then describe the district of that name, not necessarily this town's voters. Results: Electoral Commission of Queensland.
Looking at a specific address in Babinda?
Every figure above is a town average, and an average smooths over the difference between a street of family homes and a block of flats. Look up one address and you get the census for the few hundred people around it, its own nearest schools and stops, and what the state has mapped for that block.
- The census for a few hundred neighbours, not all 1,287 residents
- Nearest and zoned schools, with the walk from that door
- Flood, bushfire and noise mapping, where the state publishes it
Free to look up. Subscribers see every section in full — $29/month.
Nearby suburbs
Compare Babinda to another suburb
Side-by-side stats for any other QLD suburb — type a name and pick one.
Or jump straight to a nearby comparison:
Common questions about Babinda
Is Babinda a safe place to live?
Recorded crime in Babinda is moderate (68/100, ranked against other QLD suburbs on offences per resident).
What natural hazards affect Babinda?
Babinda has no recorded bushfire history. These are town-wide figures; check the address, as flood and bushfire exposure change street by street.
Is Babinda a good place to live?
Babinda has a SuburbScan Liveability grade of C (37/100), ranked against other QLD suburbs on school quality (25%), safety (25%), SEIFA socio-economic advantage (25%), walkability (15%) and CBD access (10%). Whether it suits you depends on what you weigh — each of those is on this page.
What is the population of Babinda?
Babinda, QLD had a population of 1,287 at the 2021 Australian Bureau of Statistics census.
What is the postcode for Babinda, QLD?
The postcode for Babinda, QLD is 4861.
How far is Babinda from Brisbane?
Babinda is 1,640 km from Brisbane CBD by road, about 1124 minutes by car in normal traffic. Distance is the most-direct driving route, not straight-line.
What is the median household income in Babinda?
At the 2021 ABS Census, median household income in Babinda was $54,496 a year. It is the most recent suburb-level income figure until 2026 Census results are released in 2027.
What is the median weekly rent in Babinda?
There are too few current rental listings in Babinda for a reliable median. At the 2021 ABS Census the median weekly rent was $230, across all dwelling types.
What is the median age in Babinda?
The median age of residents in Babinda was 48 at the 2021 ABS Census.
How are the schools in Babinda?
There are 2 schools inside the Babinda boundary: 1 above and 1 at similar schools on NAPLAN, compared with same-state, same-type schools of similar socio-educational advantage (ICSEA).
Is Babinda walkable?
Babinda scores 55/100 on the SuburbScan Walkability Score, making it somewhat walkable. The score is a weighted average of public transport, schools, parks, supermarkets, GPs, pharmacies, childcare, and hospitals within walking distance.
What is the weather like in Babinda?
At the nearest Bureau of Meteorology station to Babinda, Innisfail (23.4 km away), summer days average 31.2°C, winter nights 17°C, 3,531 mm of rain a year over 166 rainy days, and 3 days a year above 35°C over 2006-2026.
Is the First Home Owner Grant available in Babinda?
First-home buyers in QLD may be eligible for $30,000 towards new homes with a purchase price up to $750,000. The grant is administered by Queensland Revenue Office; confirm current eligibility before signing a contract — state rules and amounts can change.
What council does Babinda belong to?
Babinda sits within the Cairns local government area. Council rates, planning approvals, and waste collection fall under this LGA.
How much are council rates in Babinda?
The average residential rates bill through Cairns is $1,354 a year (2025). Every suburb in this LGA shares the same schedule — individual bills vary with land value.
How much is being built near Babinda?
Across Cairns, 767 new residential dwellings were approved in the year to August 2026 (source: ABS Building Approvals). That's down 81.0% on the same period a year earlier. These are LGA-level totals — every suburb in the council shares the same figure.
Which federal electorate is Babinda in?
Babinda sits within the federal Division of Kennedy, currently held by Bob Katter (Katter's Australian Party (KAP)).
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Data freshness
- Census · 2021
- Median sale prices · Oct 2026
- For-sale & rental market · Oct 2026
- Council rates · FY 2025–26
- Building approvals · Aug 2026
- Schools · 2025
- NBN connectivity · Dec 2025
- Crime · 2025
- Road crashes · 2020–2024
- Climate · 2006–2026
- Socio-economic (SEIFA) · 2021
- EV adoption · Jan 2025
- First Home Owner Grant · Sep 2026
- Federal electorate · 2025
- State electorate · 2024
- Amenities · Sep 2026
- Health & emergency facilities · Sep 2026
- Industrial emissions (NPI) · 2024/2025
- Coastal erosion · 1988–2025
- Aircraft noise · 2024
Vintages show when each source's data is from. See all data sources.
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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.