Biggest council rate rises in 2026-27
Queensland councils set their own increases with no cap, and this year they ranged from +4% to +20.8%. New South Wales works the other way: a regulator caps everyone, and a handful apply to exceed it. Both are below, kept apart, because a capped rise and an uncapped one are not the same kind of number.
Somerset Regional Council raised its minimum residential general rate the most in Queensland for 2026-27, up +20.8% to $1,284. Sunshine Coast Council follows at +11.7% and Mackay Regional Council at +10.4%. The smallest rise was Cairns Regional Council at +4%. In New South Wales, Ku-ring-gai has the largest approved increase at 29%, one of seven councils permitted to rise above the IPART rate peg.
Key statistics
- QLD councils measured
- 10
- Largest QLD rise
- +20.8% (Somerset)
- Smallest QLD rise
- +4% (Cairns)
- NSW above the cap
- 7 councils
- Largest NSW approval
- 29% (Ku-ring-gai)
- NSW standard peg range
- 2.7% to 5.7%
Queensland rises ranked, 14 councils
Queensland has no rate peg. Each council adopts its budget in June and sets its own minimum, which is why the range is far wider than anything possible in New South Wales.
| Rank | Council | 2025-26 | 2026-27 | Change | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Somerset | $1,063 | $1,284 | +20.8% ($221) | QLD minimum general rate |
| 2 | Sunshine Coast | $1,586 | $1,771 | +11.7% ($185) | QLD minimum general rate |
| 3 | Mackay | $1,328 | $1,466 | +10.4% ($138) | QLD minimum general rate |
| 4 | Townsville | $1,253 | $1,343 | +7.2% ($90) | QLD minimum general rate |
| 5 | Toowoomba | $1,351 | $1,444 | +6.9% ($93) | QLD minimum general rate |
| 6 | Noosa | $1,451 | $1,540 | +6.1% ($89) | QLD minimum general rate |
| 7 | Scenic Rim | $1,300 | $1,376 | +5.8% ($76) | QLD minimum general rate |
| 8 | Ipswich | $1,231 | $1,298 | +5.4% ($67) | QLD minimum general rate |
| 9 | Gold Coast | $1,298 | $1,359 | +4.7% ($61) | QLD minimum general rate |
| 10 | Cairns | $1,121 | $1,166 | +4% ($45) | QLD minimum general rate |
Somerset at +20.8% is a small council and a large percentage of a small base, $221 in cash. The number that should hold your attention is further down: Sunshine Coast Council at +11.7% against Cairns Regional Council at +4%. Two large regional councils, one raising rates nearly three times faster than the other in a single year.
The seven New South Wales councils approved above the cap
IPART caps the total rates income a NSW council may collect. For 2026-27 the standard peg runs between 2.7% and 5.7% depending on the council. Exceeding it requires a special variation, assessed publicly and usually granted across several years rather than one.
| Council | Approved increase 2026-27 |
|---|---|
| Ku-ring-gai | 29% |
| Uralla | 28.5% |
| North Sydney | 23.3% |
| Glen Innes Severn | 21.5% |
| Blacktown | 11.54% |
| Hawkesbury | 8.66% |
| Ballina | 6% |
Two councils are commonly and wrongly included in lists like this. Central Coast's variation is a reclassification of its stormwater charge rather than a general rate rise, and Muswellbrook's applies to mining ratepayers, with residential ratepayers staying on the standard peg. Neither belongs here.
What the rises show
The two tables answer different questions and it is worth being explicit about why. The Queensland column is an observed change: last year's published minimum against this year's. The New South Wales column is an approved percentage, published by IPART. We do not publish a year-on-year figure for the other 119 NSW councils, because within our data their increase is the rate peg we applied, and reporting our own assumption back as a finding would be dishonest.
The reason a single year matters is that rates compound and most people hold a home for about a decade. A $1,771 rate rising at Sunshine Coast's +11.7% would pass $3,000 within six years. The same rate rising at Cairns' +4% would still be under $2,250. Neither council will hold this year's rate for a decade, so treat that as an illustration rather than a forecast, but the direction of travel is a real thing to weigh.
And the usual caution applies harder here than on a levels ranking. One year is not a trend. A council can raise sharply after several flat years, or be funding a specific project with a defined end. Before drawing a conclusion from any single figure in these tables, read that council's budget for the years either side of it.
Methodology
Queensland. Change in the minimum residential general rate for an owner-occupied principal place of residence, 2025-26 to 2026-27, from adopted budgets. 10 of 21 councils have a comparable prior-year minimum. Redland City Council is excluded because its basis changed; it publishes its own increase of 5.47% for a median-valued home, which is not a like-for-like minimum comparison. Five councils added to our dataset this year have no prior-year figure yet.
New South Wales. Approved special variation percentages as determined by IPART. These are published approvals, not figures we derived.
Why no full NSW ranking. Our NSW rate figures are the OLG average uplifted by each council's rate peg. The year-on-year change for those councils is therefore the peg itself, an input to our model rather than an observed increase, so we do not present it as one.
Not comparable across states. A Queensland rise is uncapped and self-determined; a New South Wales rise is capped by a regulator. The percentages sit in different systems.
Find out what your council charges now
A percentage rise matters less than the dollar figure behind it. Every council on this page has its own rates page with the current amount and a suburb picker for the rest of the running cost.
Every council ranked by rate →Or compare two suburbs side by side in the SuburbCost tool.
Cite this data
SuburbCost data is free to cite with attribution. Please link to this page as the source.
You can also get every council's running costs as a single file, with the rate basis named on each row.
Rates change every July
One email a year, when the new council budgets land and this ranking is rebuilt. Nothing else.
Done. You will hear from us next July.
A percentage rise on a rate notice is not the same as a rise in what a household pays. The running cost calculator puts the rates line back beside water, commute and insurance so the change can be read in proportion.
Frequently asked questions
Which council raised rates the most in 2026-27?
Among Queensland councils with a comparable prior-year figure, Somerset Regional Council raised its minimum residential general rate the most, up +20.8% to $1,284. Sunshine Coast raised the most of the larger councils at +11.7%. In New South Wales, Ku-ring-gai has the largest IPART-approved special variation at 29%.
How much did council rates go up in 2026-27?
It depends entirely on the state. Queensland has no cap, and across the 10 councils we can measure the rise ranged from +4% to +20.8%. New South Wales caps increases through the IPART rate peg, set between 2.7% and 5.7% for 2026-27, with seven councils approved to exceed it.
Which NSW councils were approved to raise rates above the cap?
Seven for 2026-27: Ku-ring-gai at 29%, Uralla at 28.5%, North Sydney at 23.3%, Glen Innes Severn at 21.5%, Blacktown at 11.54%, Hawkesbury at 8.66% and Ballina at 6%. Central Coast and Muswellbrook are sometimes listed alongside these but should not be, as their variations do not raise residential general rates.