Cost of living in Gold Coast
Major non-capital city in south-east Queensland. Significant tourism-driven employment but tight rental supply and rising house rents.
The numbers
| Item | AUD | Period | Annual |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median unit rent | $620 | weekly | $32,240 |
| Median house rent | $800 | weekly | $41,600 |
| Weekly groceries (one person) | $150 | weekly | $7,800 |
| Public transport | $175 | monthly | $2,100 |
| Utilities | $240 | monthly | $2,880 |
| Essential outlay (unit rent baseline) | - | $45,020 | |
Check your budget in Gold Coast
The graduate budget calculator applies the 50/30/20 framework to your take-home weekly wage. Pick Gold Coast from the dropdown to see whether the $620 median weekly unit rent fits the 50 percent needs envelope on a graduate salary.
Careers that can comfortably afford median unit rent here
We define "comfortable" as weekly take-home pay at least twice the median unit rent in Gold Coast. Take-home pay is estimated with the 2024-25 ATO resident tax scale, the 2% Medicare levy and HECS-HELP compulsory repayment.
$1850/week before tax
$2750/week before tax
$2500/week before tax
$1800/week before tax
$1950/week before tax
$2000/week before tax
$3000/week before tax
$1900/week before tax
$2200/week before tax
$1850/week before tax
$1700/week before tax
$1700/week before tax
$1700/week before tax
$2500/week before tax
$1900/week before tax
$2200/week before tax
$2500/week before tax
$1700/week before tax