Cost of Living inCairns, Australia
Image credit: Donaldytong
Purchasing Power vs. United States
Based on GDP per capita (PPP). Australia: $60,304/capita.
How Far Your Money Goes
Prices are 29% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).
Using the country-level NYC comparison for now. We do not have a defensible city-level aggregate cost index for this city yet.
Income Category
Happiness
7.1 / 10
#9 globally
GDP per Capita
City Population
Child Education
Public-school quality, expat access, instruction language, and homeschool legality for relocating families.
Public schools
Public-schooling rules are set nationally for Australia; Cairns-specific enrollment notes are still being verified.
Quality
Good public schools
Assessment snapshot: 2022
Expat access
Open to resident families
openInstruction
English
Language fit is more manageable.
PISA / outcomes
488
Above OECD avg
PISA 2022 Β· OECD avg ~480
Why this quality rating
Australia has a solid public school system with generally good outcomes, particularly in English-medium states. Quality varies somewhat by state and local school area.
Why the expat-access rating looks like this
Resident families can typically enroll in local public schools. Some areas require proof of residency and vaccination records, but the system is broadly accessible.
πΊοΈ Homeschooling
Varies by state/territoryLegal in all states and territories with registration required. NSW, Victoria, and Queensland have structured requirements including learning plans. Some states provide funding or access to resources. Registration processes vary significantly.
Homeschool legality in Australia β check current regulations before committing.
Source: User-curated family relocation research (initial seed) (2026-04-14)
Childcare & Domestic Help
Estimate-only country fallback for the family-support costs we track in Australia.
Full-time nanny (5 days)
$3,600-$5,200
Estimate-only country fallback
Live-in / 24-7 nanny
$4,300-$6,200
Estimate-only country fallback
Source: curated family relocation research(derived country fallback)
Getting Around
Neighborhood mobility profiles are rolling out city by city.Cairns is still missing a verified walkability, transit, airport, and rideshare profile.
Healthcare
System strength, outcome signals, facility coverage, and self-pay visibility in Australia.
Method: country metrics come from public system indicators, facility coverage reflects mapped providers we can inventory, direct pricing only reflects observed self-pay pages, and relative care cost can fall back to broad cost-of-living healthcare indices. Sparse pricing does not imply sparse healthcare availability.
Healthcare system
StrongHigh national coverage, strong doctor availability, and deep nursing capacity support this rating.
Public care
StrongBroad public coverage, strong public funding, and relatively low patient cost-sharing support this rating.
Private care
LimitedThe private footprint is not very visible yet and self-pay pricing transparency is still sparse weigh on this rating.
UHC coverage
89/100
2023
Physicians
4.09/1k
2022
Hospital beds
3.82/1k
2016
Out of pocket
16%
2023
Outcome signals
Life expectancy
83.1 yrs
2024
Maternal mortality
2/100k
2023
Neonatal mortality
2.3/1k
2024
International patient readiness
LimitedCountry-level outcomes are comparatively strong help, but the private footprint is still thin and price transparency is still sparse.
Pricing transparency
LimitedPublished self-pay prices are scarce weigh on this rating.
Facility coverage
Self-pay pricing visibility
No verified self-pay prices are published for the tracked facilities in Australia yet.
This usually reflects low online price transparency rather than a lack of healthcare providers.
Notable facilities
System metrics: World Bank WDI Β· Updated 2026-07-01
Safety & Governance
Street Safety
Source: Numbeo where a city row is matched; otherwise World Bank WGI and country-level safety context.
Political Stability
World Bank WGI scale: -2.5 to +2.5.
Wages by Sector
| Sector | Median |
|---|---|
| Agriculture & Farming | β |
| Construction | β |
| Finance & Insurance | β |
| Information & Technology | β |
| Manufacturing | β |
| Real Estate | β |
2023 annual wages in Cairns, Australia Β· Source: ABS (region-adjusted)
Price Comparison vs. US
Visa Information (US passport)
Short-stay entry
US passport holders need advance travel authorization or a visa before entry.
Long-Term Visa Programs
working holiday
Work and Holiday Visa (Subclass 462)working holiday
Working Holiday Visa (Subclass 417)Quick comparison FAQ
Structured from the deltas already shown on this page β no invented facts, no extra data sources.
How far does your money go in Cairns compared with the US?
Your money goes about 1.4x further in Cairns than in the US, based on the current PPP estimate. We are using the country-level cost index for Australia here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
Is Cairns cheaper or more expensive overall than New York City?
Cairns is cheaper overall than New York City β overall living costs are about 29% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City) for Cairns. We are using the country-level cost index for Australia here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
How does rent in Cairns compare with New York City?
Rent in Cairns is about 67% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City). We are using the country-level cost index for Australia here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
How expensive are groceries and restaurants in Cairns?
Groceries in Cairns are about 18% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City), and restaurant prices are about 33% cheaper than the same benchmark. We are using the country-level cost index for Australia here because a defensible city-level aggregate index is not available yet.
About Cairns
Cairns is the principal city of Far North Queensland, Australia, sitting on the Coral Sea coast about 1,700 kilometers north of Brisbane and serving as the main gateway to the Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree rainforest. The local economy is heavily oriented around tourism, marine industries, education, healthcare, and agriculture in the surrounding Atherton Tableland. Cairns Airport offers direct international flights into Asia, an unusual feature for a city of this size, alongside extensive domestic connections. The climate is tropical, with a hot humid wet season from November through April that includes real cyclone exposure, and a warm dry season for the rest of the year. For relocators, Cairns offers genuine tropical Australian living with full first-world infrastructure; English is universal, costs run below the major capital cities, and labor demand concentrates in tourism, health, and trades.
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