Sydney consistently ranks alongside the likes of London and Vienna when it comes to the cost of living. More and more Aussies appear to be deciding the NSW capital is unaffordable, with migration to alternative cities – like Newcastle – on the rise.

Though, if you can’t bring yourself to give up on the Sydney lifestyle, you might find the most affordable rentals in these suburbs.

Average rent in Sydney

The average Sydney house costs $750 a week to rent, as per CoreLogic data referencing October 2024 – a 7.3% increase from the same time in 2023. That’s $100 higher than in the ACT – the city with the next highest average rent costs.

The average unit in Sydney cost $690 per week to rent in the year to October.

Cheapest suburbs to rent in Greater Sydney

Unsurprisingly, the most affordable rentals in Sydney tend to be a fair distance from the city centre. The suburb with the cheapest houses to rent, as of December 2024, was Canton Beach (2263), up on the Central Coast. Six of the other ten cheapest rentals were in Blacktown – about 34 kilometres west of the city centre.

For units, South Granville (2142) took the crown with a median rent of just $360.

Cheapest suburbs to rent a house in Sydney

Rank Suburb LGA Median weekly rent
1st Canton Beach Central Coast $450
2nd Willmot Blacktown $450
3rd Tregear Blacktown $460
4th North St Marys Penrith $490
5th Toukley Central Coast $522
6th Blackett Blacktown $470
7th Bidwell Blacktown $480
8th Halekulani Central Coast $522
9th Lethbridge Park Blacktown $480
10th Emerton Blacktown $485

Cheapest suburbs to rent a unit in Sydney

Rank Suburb LGA Median weekly rent
1st South Granville Cumberland $360
2nd Picton Wollondilly $370
3rd Carramar Fairfield $370
4th Bradbury Campbelltown $375
5th Cabramatta Fairfield $390
6th Canley Vale Fairfield $400
7th Ambarvale Campbelltown $400
8th Fairfield Fairfield $417
9th Katoomba Blue Mountains $420
10th Jamisontown Penrith $420

Most affordable areas to rent in Sydney City in 2025

Within the City of Sydney Local Government Area (LGA), the cheapest area to rent a house is Pyrmont (2009), with a median weekly rent of $897.

Meanwhile, the average unit in Rushcutters Bay (2011) is available for $580 per week – lower than anywhere else in the area.

As touched on above, many of the cheapest houses available for rent are found in Blacktown, west of the CBD. The area has a bit of a reputation, but the most recent numbers from the NSW Bureau of Statistics suggest that its violent crime rate isn’t substantially worse than many surrounding areas. The Fairfield LGA, also to the west, boasts many of the suburbs with the lowest rent units.

Cheapest suburbs to rent houses and units in each Sydney LGA

LGA Lowest rent suburb for houses Median weekly rent Lowest rent suburb for units Median weekly rent
Woollahra Edgecliff $1,250 Paddington $620
Wollondilly Buxton $495 Picton $370
Willoughby Naremburn $1,200 North Willoughby $665
Waverley Bondi Junction $1,350 Waverley $800
The Hills Baulkham Hills $770 Rouse Hill $630
Sydney Pyrmont $897 Rushcutters Bay $580
Sutherland Sutherland $850 Jannali/Engadine $600
Strathfield Homebush West $750 Strathfield South $600
Ryde West Ryde $850 West Ryde $550
Randwick Kingsford $1,195 Matraville/Kingsford/Kensington $750
Penrith North St Marys $490 Jamisontown/Kingswood $420
Parramatta Toongabbie/Old Toongabbie/Constitution Hill/Silverwater $650 Harris Park $500
Northern Beaches Scotland Island $725 Belrose $445
North Sydney Crows Nest $1,050 Lavender Bay $677
Liverpool Busby $520 Warwick Farm $455
Ku-ring-gai West Pymble $1,070 Warrawee $700
Inner West Ashfield $792 Enmore $540
Hornsby Brooklyn $690 Mount Colah/Hornsby $600
Hawkesbury Kurrajong/Hobartville $560 North Richmond $500
Georges River Riverwood/Carlton $750 Mortdale/Penshurst $580
Fairfield Cabramatta $580 Carramar $370
Cumberland Granville $650 South Granville $360
Central Coast Canton Beach $450 Toukley $427
Canterbury Birrong $680 Wiley Park $490
Canada Bay Liberty Grove $895 Concord West $555
Campbelltown Campbelltown $560 Bradbury $375
Camden Camden $600 Narellan $560
Burwood Croydon Park $827 Croydon Park $550
Blue Mountains Katoomba $580 Katoomba $420
Blacktown Willmot $450 Mount Druitt $430
Bayside Rockdale $800 Bexley $600

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