Top 10 most expensive council rates in Queensland 2026-27
Sunshine Coast Council sets the highest minimum residential general rate in Queensland for 2026-27 at $1,771. Brisbane City Council sets the lowest at $950. The gap between them is $821, and the median across all 21 councils is $1,369.
Every figure below is the minimum residential general rate for an owner-occupied principal place of residence. It is a floor, not a typical bill. A council with a high minimum is not necessarily a council where most people pay more, and the Brisbane figure at the bottom of this table is the clearest example of that.
Key statistics
- Highest, Sunshine Coast
- $1,771
- Lowest, Brisbane City
- $950
- Median of 21 councils
- $1,369
- Spread, highest to lowest
- $821
Top 10 most expensive council rates in Queensland
| Rank | Council | Minimum residential general rate 2026-27 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sunshine Coast Council | $1,771 |
| 2 | Logan City Council | $1,699 |
| 3 | Noosa Council | $1,540 |
| 4 | Mackay Regional Council | $1,466 |
| 5 | Toowoomba Regional Council | $1,444 |
| 6 | Redland City Council | $1,436 |
| 7 | Southern Downs Regional Council | $1,416 |
| 8 | Cassowary Coast Regional Council | $1,415 |
| 9 | Lockyer Valley Regional Council | $1,395 |
| 10 | Scenic Rim Regional Council | $1,376 |
The top four are coastal or peri-urban councils with large service areas relative to their rate base. Sunshine Coast, Noosa and Mackay all maintain extensive road, waste and beach infrastructure across dispersed populations, which is the usual explanation for a higher floor. Logan sits second at $1,699 without that geography, and its position reflects a rating structure that leans on the minimum more heavily than its neighbours.
Where the remaining 11 councils sit
| Rank | Council | Minimum residential general rate 2026-27 |
|---|---|---|
| 11 | Mareeba Shire Council | $1,369 |
| 12 | City of Gold Coast | $1,359 |
| 13 | Townsville City Council | $1,343 |
| 14 | Moreton Bay Regional Council | $1,309 |
| 15 | Ipswich City Council | $1,298 |
| 16 | Somerset Regional Council | $1,284 |
| 17 | Tablelands Regional Council | $1,189 |
| 18 | South Burnett Regional Council | $1,189 |
| 19 | Cairns Regional Council | $1,166 |
| 20 | Western Downs Regional Council | $1,016 |
| 21 | Brisbane City Council | $950 |
Why Brisbane sits at the bottom
Brisbane City Council sets a minimum of $950 and applies a differential general rate of 0.2134 cents in the dollar to category 1 residential owner-occupied land. Brisbane land values are high enough that the minimum rarely binds, so the great majority of owner-occupiers pay the calculated amount instead. A low floor in Brisbane tells you the floor is seldom reached, not that rates there are low.
Brisbane also applies its rate to a three year average of a property’s own past valuations rather than the current one, along with Ipswich, Logan, Lockyer Valley, South Burnett and Gold Coast. For those six councils the figure a rates notice multiplies is the averaged rateable value, which sits below this year’s land valuation in a rising market.
Methodology
Each figure is the minimum residential general rate for an owner-occupied principal place of residence in 2026-27, taken from each council’s adopted budget, revenue statement or rating resolution. Waste collection, water and sewerage, separate charges and levies are excluded.
The minimum is a floor rather than an average. Where a council’s calculated general rate exceeds the minimum, the calculated amount is charged, so a typical bill in any council sits at or above the figure shown. Queensland and New South Wales figures are not comparable and are never ranked together on this site, because the New South Wales figure is an average rather than a minimum.
Work out the figure for your own council
Supply your own rateable value and the calculator applies your council’s rate in the dollar and its published minimum, with the working shown.
Also available for Gold Coast, Ipswich, Logan, Moreton Bay, Redland, Sunshine Coast and Cairns.
Rates are one of four numbers
Council rates are usually the least variable of the costs that change by suburb. Across the 6,158 suburbs held here, water, building insurance and the commute all move further between two addresses than rates do. A $821 spread in the minimum is real, and it is smaller than the spread in a modelled commute between an inner and an outer suburb of the same city.
See how council rates are calculated for the mechanism, or which Queensland councils raised rates most in 2026-27 for the change rather than the level. This page ranks what councils charge. That one ranks how much they moved.
Frequently asked questions
Which council has the highest rates in QLD?
Sunshine Coast Council sets the highest minimum residential general rate in Queensland for 2026-27 at $1,771. That is the floor for an owner-occupied principal place of residence, not a typical bill. Most owner-occupiers in any council pay more than the minimum, because the rate is calculated on land value and the minimum only applies where that calculation falls below it.
Which Queensland council has the lowest minimum rate?
Brisbane City Council, at $950. Brisbane is the largest council in Queensland by population and sets the lowest minimum of the 21 councils held here. Its land values are high enough that the minimum rarely binds, so most owner-occupiers pay the calculated amount rather than the floor.
What is a minimum general rate?
A Queensland council calculates the general rate by multiplying a property’s rateable value by a rate in the dollar set for its rating category. Where that calculation produces less than the council’s minimum, the minimum is charged instead. It is a floor rather than an average, which is why a ranking of minimums is not a ranking of what residents typically pay.
Why are Queensland and New South Wales rates not compared here?
They are different statistics. The Queensland figure is a minimum set by each council. The New South Wales figure published elsewhere on this site is the Office of Local Government average residential rate uplifted by the IPART rate peg, which is already a typical bill rather than a floor. Ranking one against the other would compare a floor to an average, so this article covers Queensland only.
Do these figures include water and rubbish?
No. These are general rates only. Water and sewerage, waste collection, separate charges and levies are billed on top and are not in any figure on this page.
Cite this data
Data sources
Council budgets, revenue statements and rating resolutions for 2026-27, one per council. Figures are the minimum residential general rate for an owner-occupied principal place of residence. See data sources and methodology.