Top 10 Cheapest Places to Live in Australia

Wondering about the cheapest place to live in Australia? 

This might come as a surprise to you, but the most cheapest cities in Australia, Adelaide and Hobart, have come across as two of the most popular choices, though, and it's a city in Queensland, in 2026, which is the cheapest place to live in Australia. Even some of the once expensively considered cities have become more affordable.

This is a guide to the top 10 cheapest place to live in Australia for 2026, along with the rent, wages, groceries and petrol prices. If you're a student, a working professional or a family, this roadmap will help you find where your money can go further. 

Which are the Top 10 Cheapest Place to Live in Australia?

So, if you're thinking, where the cheapest place to live in Australia is, in 2026? The answer is Townsville, Queensland. The 2026 cost of living report produced by StandOut Resume looked at the after-tax income and the essential costs of housing, food, electricity, gas, public transport and internet. 

With these costs, Townsville in Queensland ranks as the most cheapest city in Australia to live in due to its decent average wages and reduced expenses. Here’s a list of the top 10 cheapest place to live in Australia.

1. Townsville, QLD

2. Rockingham, WA

3. Launceston, TAS

4. Wollongong, NSW

5. Melbourne, VIC

6. Perth, WA

7. Ballarat, VIC

8. Hobart, TAS

9. Brisbane, QLD

10. Bendigo, VIC

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Cheapest Place to Live in Australia at a Glance

Before the full breakdown of the cheapest and best places to live in Australia, here's the version of what each cheapest city in Australia to live in has to offer:

• Townsville (QLD): Highest income after expenses in any city studied. Strong wages and cheap groceries mean Townsville has an income of around $27,442 a year after expenses.

• Rockingham (WA): This is a coastal alternative to Perth with a similar cost of living but slightly higher pay.

• Launceston (TAS): Cheapest place to live in Australia at 25% lower than the national average.

• Wollongong (NSW): Sydney is an hour and a half's drive away, and Wollongong (NSW) beachfront living at Sydney rent.

• Melbourne (VIC): The latest data from Domain sees Melbourne (VIC) as the cheapest capital in the country to rent a house in, a true flipping from a few years ago.

• Perth (WA): Mining/tech pay is greater than the cost of living; rents rise.

• Ballarat (VIC): Australia's Happiest City in 2026, with family-friendly local rates.

• Hobart (TAS): Despite the fact that rents are climbing up, Hobart remains meaningfully cheaper than all the other mainland capitals.

• Brisbane (QLD): Reasonable rents and an Australian job market that is growing fast outpacing 2032.

• Bendigo (VIC): The cheapest city in australia to live for a truly comfortable single's budget is Bendigo (VIC). 

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Top 10 Affordable Cities in Australia

Here is the breakdown of the cheapest place in Australia to live.

1. Townsville, QLD

The cheapest city to live in Australia is Townsville, QLD, due to the high wages and low living costs. This is where residents make about $56,858 after tax and still have some money to spare after their basic living expenses. Residents keep about $27,442 a year in disposable income after paying for basic needs.

• Rent: Rental is about $364 per week. Also offers some of the lowest gas prices ($460/month) and grocery prices in the country.

• Lifestyle: A tropical paradise on Magnetic Island's doorstep

• Jobs: Demand for jobs is high in health, defence and mining services. 

2. Rockingham, WA

Rockingham is 45 minutes south of Perth, where you can get capital city rates for capital city pay. Rockingham is one of the lesser-known names on this list and one of the more underrated, for anyone looking for a beach holiday and a job in WA that is not available in Perth due to its rent. It is the highest on this list in its average after-tax salary ($58,702).

• Rent: Residents now have $26,887 left each year, as rent goes up on a daily basis.

• Lifestyle: A relaxed beach vibe next to Penguin Island

• Jobs: Perfect for those who commute to the WA resources and mining industries.

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3. Launceston, TAS

There's one number which Tasmania's second city scales back on, and it's the most important one: rent. It's the most affordable place on the list of cheapest city to live in Australia. 

• Rent: The average rent in Launceston is the lowest at $331 per week, which is roughly 25% lower than the national average. 

• Lifestyle: Colonial history, Cataract Gorge and upscale food.

• Jobs: Primarily focused on the tourist industry, education and health care. 

4. Wollongong, NSW

Again on the list of the cheapest places to live in Australia is Wollongong, where you won't be paying as much as you do in Sydney. The train will take about 90 minutes to get to the CBD, which is home to the University of Wollongong. 

Compared to Sydney, Wollongong is a more affordable option and yet provides a marvellous coastal living experience only a short distance from the city.

• Rent: The median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment is approximately $450 per week, which is one of the most budget-friendly in the Wollongong region.

• Lifestyle: Living by the beach, beaches, the Illawarra Escarpment, and a laid-back city vibe.

• Jobs: mainly in health care, education, retail, tourism, property and business services, including the University of Wollongong.

5. Melbourne, VIC

Melbourne has been named the most affordable capital city in Australia for renters. 

• Rent: Melbourne's median house rent is $600 a week, the lowest of all Australian capital cities, and even lower than Perth's $750 or Sydney's $850, according to Domain's June 2026 Rental Report. 

• Lifestyle: 3rd most liveable city in the world for its world-class art and food culture.

• Jobs: 2nd highest average salary in the country with strong markets in finance and tech.

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6. Perth, WA

Perth is one of the more affordable cities in Australia to live in for your income and is also one of the healthiest income-to-cost ratios of any capital.

• Rent: Relatively higher in Perth, but local wages are booming to compensate for the higher rents. Median rent for a home is $750 per week. But the paydays at mining and resource jobs are great.

• Lifestyle: There is a lot of sun and a very laid-back coastline vibe.

• Jobs: Strongly rooted in mining, oil, gas, and tech startups.

7. Ballarat, VIC

On the Happy City Index, Ballarat is 16th in the world and is the top city in Australia based on cost. But it's also a mention on this list for another reason: Ballarat was recently voted the happiest city in Australia for 2026. 

• Rent: Rents in Ballarat typically range from $330 to $605 a week (hovering slightly above Melbourne levels).

• Lifestyle: Gold-rush architecture, with double the national average of green space per person.

• Jobs: local services, manufacturing, powered by Federation University.

8. Hobart, TAS

Hobart is still cheaper than all other main capital cities and comes under the list of cheapest places to live in Australia.

• Rent: Rents in Ballarat typically range from $330 to $605 a week (hovering slightly above Melbourne levels).

• Lifestyle: Located between river and mountain, with a big local arts and wine scene.

• Jobs: mainly in the tourism, education and healthcare sectors.

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9. Brisbane, QLD

Brisbane is a dynamic middle-range budget and lifestyle location. 

• Rent: While rents in Brisbane are now about $700 a week for a house, the city's employment base is growing at a fast pace as infrastructure spending increases in preparation for the 2032 Olympics.

• Lifestyle: A sunny, subtropical climate and huge hype in the lead up to the 2032 Olympics.

• Jobs: There are thousands of new positions in tech and health care because of the huge infrastructure spending.

10. Bendigo, VIC

Bendigo rounds out the rest in terms of the cheapest city to live comfortably in Australia but is the most expensive in terms of rent. 

• Rent: One person would require only $30,276 per year to live comfortably here, according to a study. This is the lowest amount of any city surveyed.

• Lifestyle: A historic city with buildings, museums, galleries, and a slower pace of life, located in the middle of the gold rush.

• Jobs: Local employment base of healthcare, education, and manufacturing jobs.

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Cheapest Cities in Australia for Students and Professionals

The most affordable cities for students and professionals in Australia are listed below. The cost calculation changes depending on whether the person is a student or a professional.

For students, the most expensive part of college is not just the rent itself. It is also the rent compared to part-time work rights.

• The cheapest city to live while studying in Australia is usually the one where the part-time income of a Subclass 500 visa holder can cover most of the living costs for the course, including the available working hours during breaks.

• Regional university cities such as Wollongong, Launceston, and Bendigo are among the winners because:

• Rent for a shared room is significantly lower than in capital cities.

• A number of regional areas offer migration incentives for graduates.

• The current requirement for most Subclass 500 visa applicants is to be able to budget for 12 months of living expenses.

• This includes a visa minimum of AUD 29,710, which is significantly higher than a comfortable budget, especially in expensive cities such as Sydney or Melbourne.

For professionals, the calculation is different and focuses more on salary and earning potential.

• Perth and Rockingham: Skilled workers can earn more in the resources sector than in other parts of Western Australia.

• Melbourne and Brisbane: These cities have some of the most competitive job markets among the more affordable Australian capitals.

• Townsville: Its healthcare, defence, and mining-services industries mean that skilled workers can earn many times the cost of living in the city.

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Cost of Living in the Cheapest Australian Cities

Cost of living is not just a number; it's rent, food, transport, energy and healthcare, and it's not the same across every Australian city. 

Sydney and Melbourne have the headline rents, but there are many regional and secondary cities that have rents significantly lower and provide good infrastructure and employment.

Note: Rent data is from Domain's Rental Report June 2026 for the capital cities and a StandOut Resume cost-of-living study for Townsville and Launceston 2025. The figures for Rockingham, Wollongong, Ballarat and Bendigo are consistently below their nearest capital but are not reported at the same level of detail as the city figures and so are expressed as a percentage of the nearest capital.

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Cheapest States in Australia to Live In

There are many different ways of answering the question of “What is the cheapest state in Australia?” depending on what element you'd like to focus on while searching for cheapest state in Australia. 

• Tasmania: Wins on rent, with Launceston and Hobart having the lowest housing costs among the state capitals and regional hubs.

• Queensland: Performs best in the income-to-expense ratio, largely due to Townsville. The cost of living in Brisbane is relatively affordable, and there is a developing job market.

• Victoria: Is one of the most interesting states in 2026. The top ten Australian cities with the lowest cost of living also have Melbourne, Ballarat and Bendigo. Victoria is also a good value compared with other capitals, as rent has decreased in Melbourne.

• Western Australia: Operates well despite the high wages and not the low living costs. Though Perth and Rockingham are not the cheapest places to live, resource-sector wages can easily cover the price, particularly in Rockingham.

• South Australia: Adelaide has been cited as one of the most affordable places to reside in Australia, and its real estate prices are also lower than Sydney and Melbourne. A 2025 cost of living study, comparing costs with local wages, however, revealed Adelaide as one of the least affordable cities in the world, with wages failing to keep up with living costs as they have in Townsville, Melbourne and Perth.

Takeaway: The low rent doesn't necessarily mean the city is low cost. Another important measure to consider when comparing the cheapest state in Australia and affordable cities in Australia is income-to-cost ratios.

Factors Contributing to Affordability in These Australian Cities

Here are some factors contributing to the affordability in these cities in Australia and being them the cheapest places to live

• Unbalanced rent growth in capitals: According to Domain's 2026 data, rental growth is picking up quickly in Sydney, Brisbane, Canberra and Darwin but has peaked in Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth and Hobart and is slowing significantly. This is the one primary reason Melbourne is now considered cheap.

• Regional migration: Indeed, remote and hybrid working has made commuting to a capital city less essential for people, and for this reason, they are moving to cities like Ballarat, Bendigo and Wollongong because it has become a more viable and liveable option.

• Wages-to-cost mismatches: As other examples indicate, low prices are not the only component of affordability; it also depends on whether local income levels have matched the drop in prices, as was the case in Adelaide. Townsville and Rockingham have done particularly well on this indicator as wages in the mining, defence and health industries have increased at a rate faster than that of the everyday cost.

• State and local housing policy: There has been an uptake by several state governments of a build-to-rent incentives and land release framework until 2025 and 2026, especially in regional Queensland and Victoria, which has helped to limit the extent to which supply has lagged behind demand in Sydney.

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Tips for Living Affordably in Australia

Whenever you end up answering the question 'What is the cheapest place in Australia to live' there are a few good habits that can make a big difference to your monthly budget:

• Spread housing costs around: The single largest contributor of expenses is usually the shared house or apartment, and this is especially significant for students and young professionals.

• Use public transport where it exists: Take the bus or train, if available. Most of the Australian cities, especially Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Wollongong, have commuter trains and/or bus services that are viable alternatives to the car, with registration, insurance and fuel costs taken into account.

• Shop local markets over supermarkets: Try to buy fresh produce in the local market as opposed to supermarkets, as the difference in cost is usually greater than most people think, particularly in regional areas such as Bendigo or Launceston.

• Eat at home more often: This is the most basic, it seems, but it's always the most significant controllable cost in each of the cost-of-living studies cited here.

• Consider a regional postcode if your job allows it: If your employment permits, work from a different region, as designated by postcode. With remote and hybrid work options, you can also earn a job in a capital city while living in Ballarat or Bendigo, which is arguably the biggest affordability hack in 2026.

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Conclusion

To summarise, the list of the cheapest place to live in Australia for 2026 mentions Townsville's decent wages and low cost, making it the No. 1 budget city; Melbourne has become a viable budget capital with its fall in rents; regional cheapest city in Australia such as Ballarat and Bendigo are demonstrating that affordability and quality of life are not at odds. However, the right city for you will depend on your unique combination of career opportunities, quality of life, and financial needs.

With help from TerraTern, you can talk through your visa options, eligibility, and the practicalities of moving to Australia.