What is the cost of living in Cairns?

Compared with Australia's capital cities, Cairns is a far more affordable place to buy a house, send a child to private school, use childcare and park your car!

Cost-of-living estimates for Cairns come in around $1500-$2100 monthly*, far lower than capital cities and on par with other major regional centres.

Housing

Buying a house in Cairns will cost less than half of what people are paying in a major capital city. Or you could buy a far bigger, more beautiful home in Cairns for your city budget. It follows that mortgage repayments are lower too.

Families

For families, childcare costs are lower in Cairns. Fees at our highly-regarded private schools are a pleasant surprise for families who are new to Cairns, who find they are paying far less for great private schools. If your family prefers a public school education, we have some incredibly well-equipped schools with great teachers.

Getting around in Cairns

On the road, you'll save too. Our parking is $1.80 an hour, around $20 an hour less than Sydney. If you're lucky, you might even get free parking. Look for the centre parking in the city. These spots are free.

* Cairns commute times have been estimated based on living <15km from the city centre. Commute times from the Cairns Northern Beaches to the City will be longer than 25 minutes, but will rarely exceed 50 minutes. Commute times to the city from the Cairns region's smaller towns and localities will also exceed 25 minutes.