---
title: "Toowoomba vs Townsville for digital nomads"
url: https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/toowoomba-vs-townsville
description: "Under balanced weights Toowoomba edges it, 67 to 66, winning 3 of the 9 factors. Neither leads on any factor by 10 points or more. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you."
dataset: 2026.11.2 (2026-11-09)
license: CC BY 4.0
---

# Toowoomba vs Townsville for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Toowoomba edges it, 67 to 66, winning 3 of the 9 factors. Neither leads on any factor by 10 points or more. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

## Where they differ

- **Climate.** Townsville leads on climate, 83 to 75, against Toowoomba. Comfortable months: 9 vs 10.
- **Getting there & around.** Toowoomba leads on getting there & around, 23 to 17, against Townsville. Non-stop airport destinations: 91 vs 14.

Where they are close: within five points on internet, air quality, cost of living, safety, healthcare, visa ease, quality of life.

**Pick Toowoomba if you want** faster internet (47.4 Mbps measured).

**Pick Townsville if you want** no clear edge over Toowoomba in the data.

## Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

| Metric | Toowoomba | Townsville | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Cost of living | 15 | 15 | tie |
| Safety | 82 | 82 | tie |
| Healthcare | 92 | 92 | tie |
| Internet | 73 | 68 | Toowoomba |
| Visa ease | 42 | 42 | tie |
| Getting there & around | 23 | 17 | Toowoomba |
| Climate | 75 | 83 | Townsville |
| Air quality | 99 | 99 | Toowoomba |
| Quality of life | 98 | 98 | tie |

## Cost

| Metric | Toowoomba | Townsville | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly cost, one person | $3,350 | $3,350 | tie |
| Central one-bedroom rent | no data | no data | — |

## Safety and health (country-level)

| Metric | Toowoomba | Townsville | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Homicides per 100k | 0.94 | 0.94 | tie |
| Political stability (0–100) | 79.3 | 79.3 | tie |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | 89 | 89 | tie |
| Life expectancy | 83 yrs | 83 yrs | tie |

## Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

| Metric | Toowoomba | Townsville | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Download | 47.4 Mbps | 38.7 Mbps | Toowoomba |
| Upload | 15.2 Mbps | 9.1 Mbps | Toowoomba |

## Visa

| Metric | Toowoomba | Townsville | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Nomad visa | none listed | none listed | tie |
| Minimum income for the visa | no data | no data | — |
| Entry, US passport | eTA required (online, before travel) | eTA required (online, before travel) | tie |
| Entry, EU passport | eTA required (online, before travel) | eTA required (online, before travel) | tie |
| Entry, UK passport | eTA required (online, before travel) | eTA required (online, before travel) | tie |

## Getting there and around

| Metric | Toowoomba | Townsville | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Non-stop airport destinations | 91 | 14 | Toowoomba |
| Walkability (1–5, editorial) | 3 | 3 | tie |
| Transit (1–5, editorial) | 1 | 2 | Townsville |

## Climate and air

| Metric | Toowoomba | Townsville | Better |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Comfortable months per year | 9 | 10 | Townsville |
| Annual mean PM2.5 | 5.5 µg/m³ | 5.6 µg/m³ | Toowoomba |

## FAQ

### Which is cheaper, Toowoomba or Townsville?

Toowoomba and Townsville cost about the same: roughly $3,350 per month for one person.

### Is Toowoomba or Townsville safer?

Toowoomba and Townsville score the same on safety (82), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.

### Where is the internet faster, Toowoomba or Townsville?

Toowoomba: a measured median of 47.4 Mbps versus 38.7 Mbps (M-Lab, 2024).

City pages: [Toowoomba](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/toowoomba) · [Townsville](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/townsville). Sources: Cost of Living Global 2026 (city rows); 2026 Cost of Living Index (country level); Digital Nomad Visas 2026; Worldwide Governance Indicators — Political Stability and Absence of Violence (score 0–100); Victims of intentional homicide per 100,000 population (national data, latest year); UHC service coverage index; Life expectancy at birth (years), both sexes; M-Lab NDT statistics (city aggregates, 2024); Airport destinations (Wikipedia airline and destination tables); NASA POWER climatology (2001–2020 monthly means); WHO Ambient Air Quality Database, June 2026 update (V8); Human Development Index (HDR 2025, HDI 2023); EF English Proficiency Index 2024 (band); Walkability and transit ratings (editorial); Passport Index dataset (visa requirements, 199 passports × 199 destinations); OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API); Starlink availability map.

HTML page: https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/toowoomba-vs-townsville