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ABS 2021 Census · Updated 21 May 2026
Dalby is a regional centre in Queensland, Australia, with a population of approximately 12,758, making it a smaller community. Located approximately 178 km from the Brisbane CBD, Dalby is a regional area in Queensland. The median household income is $76,024 per year.
Moderate income levels in Dalby indicate steady rental demand from working households. As a regional location, growth prospects depend on local economic conditions and infrastructure investment.
Official Australia Post postcode for Dalby. A postcode may cover multiple suburbs.
Australia Post Postcode Finder →Usual resident population at the most recent census.
Weekly median rent for occupied homes. Live rental data integration coming soon.
Annual median household income (before tax) across all households.
Straight-line distance from the suburb centroid to the nearest capital city CBD. Actual driving distance will be longer.
Estimated 3 schools within or near this suburb.
Find schools near Dalby on My School →Estimated 5 parks and green spaces near this suburb.
Monthly median mortgage repayment for households currently paying off a mortgage.
Proportion of separate houses versus units, townhouses, and other home types. Useful for investors assessing rental demand mix.
With 12,758 residents, Dalby is one of Queensland's more populous suburbs — roughly 2.3× the state median of 5,474 — giving it a deep buyer and tenant pool that typically supports higher transaction volumes and shorter average days on market. Household income of $76,024/year is 16% below the Queensland median of $90,298, typically translating into lower entry prices and a tenant base more sensitive to rent increases. Rent of $260/week (87% coverage of the $1,300/month median mortgage) leaves a gap of roughly $173/month that a typical investor bridges with negative gearing, depreciation and capital growth. Dalby is 178 km from Brisbane, so the local market tracks regional employment and lifestyle drivers more than CBD-driven commuter demand.
This suburb suits yield-focused investors who are comfortable with lower liquidity. Employment concentration and local population trends matter more here than in metro markets. Local rents consume roughly 18% of household income — a useful sanity check on tenant affordability.
How Dalby stacks up against the median of all Queensland suburbs in our dataset. Positive values mean Dalby sits above the state median; negative means below.
| Metric | Dalby | QLD median | Δ vs state |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 12,758 | 5,474 | +133% |
| Median household income | $76,024/yr | $90,298/yr | -16% |
| Median rent (weekly) | $260 | $385 | -32% |
| Median mortgage (monthly) | $1,300 | $1,733 | -25% |
| Distance to CBD | 178 km | 62 km | +187% |
| Separate houses | 81% | 77% | +4pp |
Pre-inspection briefing for Dalby — every item is derived from public datasets, with full citations in our data sources page.
Moderate buy-and-hold potential: Dalby's 12,758-person market and $76,024 median household income work for investors who are selective on street location and property quality rather than counting on a suburb-wide rerating.
Strong rental coverage: $260/week (~$1,127/month) covers 87% of the $1,300/month median mortgage repayment, so the shortfall sits at just $173/month. Investors targeting positive cash flow should shortlist this suburb.
With 81% houses in a 12,758-person market, renovation margins depend on individual street and aspect rather than any suburb-wide story — do comparable-sales analysis before committing capital.
Run the numbers on a Dalby property
Scenario comparison, cash flow analysis, tax modelling, and PDF export — all in one place.
Create free account →Capital-growth expectations for Dalby are modest for 2026 — incomes 16% below the QLD median of $90,298 suggest gains will lag headline metro markets. Rental coverage runs at ~87% of the typical mortgage ($1,127/month rent vs $1,300/month repayment), keeping cash flow in positive or near-neutral territory. The EquitySight investment score of 44/100 places Dalby in the mid tier of Australian suburbs we profile, and overall investor sentiment is cautious heading into the second half of 2026.
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Dalby scores 44/100 on our EquitySight investment framework — a moderate rating. That score is driven by a population of 12,758, median household income of $76,024/year and median weekly rent of $260. Whether it fits your portfolio depends on whether you are targeting cash flow, capital growth, or a value-add renovation — all three are scored with suburb-specific numbers elsewhere on this page.
The main demand drivers in Dalby are a median household income of $76,024/year, a dwelling mix that is 81% separate houses, roughly 3 schools and 5 parks within the catchment. Together these shape both owner-occupier and tenant demand and are the factors we weight most heavily in the suburb's investment score.
Dalby has a usual resident population of approximately 12,758, compared with a Queensland suburb median of 5,474 — placing it in the upper half of the state's suburbs by size. Population is the clearest proxy for market depth: more residents mean more transactions and typically a shorter average days-on-market on resale.
Dalby sits 178 km straight-line from the Brisbane CBD. This is a regional market where CBD distance is only indicative — local industry diversity and commute alternatives matter more.
The most recent census recorded a median weekly rent of $260 in Dalby, equating to approximately $13,520/year in gross rental income (state median $385/week). Market rents have typically drifted above the recorded figure — verify against current listings on realestate.com.au and Domain before making an offer.
The median monthly mortgage repayment in Dalby is $1,300, or approximately $15,600/year (vs $1,733/month state median). Stress-test your own borrowing at rates 1–2 percentage points above today's to make sure you can still service the loan through an RBA tightening cycle.
A median weekly rent of $260 works out to $1,127/month, covering 87% of the median mortgage repayment of $1,300/month. That leaves a $173/month shortfall (around $2,076/year before tax benefits), so a typical owner-occupier-priced property here is negatively geared. Actual cash flow depends on your deposit, loan terms, ownership costs and marginal tax rate — run the full numbers in our rental yield calculator.
The main risks are interest-rate sensitivity on the $1,300 median mortgage, below-median household incomes ($76,024 vs $90,298 state median), the broader Queensland market cycle. Each of these is covered in the Risk Factors section above with suburb-specific numbers rather than generic warnings.
Every number on this page comes from the ABS 2021 Census of Population and Housing, Australia Post postcode reference data, and OpenStreetMap amenity tiles. The investment score, strategy verdicts, and comparison table are computed deterministically from those inputs — no opinion, no estimation. See our full methodology and the data sources and licences for the formulas we use.