Cook Shire Council

Cook Shire Council ranks 14th of 21 Queensland councils under 10,000 residents on Sustainability and 12th of 20 on Core Operations.

"Cape York gateway — Cooktown's history and Australia's last frontier"

See where Cook Shire Council ranks: Best Councils in Queensland 2026

Queensland · very-small council · Pop. 4,876

Data last updated: 2024-25 · Data confidence: high

Overall Score

No overall score — Queensland publishes data for two of the four dimensions. How these scores are calculated.

Sustainability: 14th of 21 very small councils scored on this dimension in QLD.

Core Operations: 12th of 20 very small councils scored on this dimension in QLD.

Peer group: 22 councils.

Score Breakdown

CategoryScore
Sustainability39/100
Core Operations42/100
Community ServicesNot published by Queensland
Lifestyle & AmenityNot published by Queensland

What This Means For You

Among Queensland councils under 10,000 residents, Cook ranks 14th of 21 on Sustainability and 12th of 20 on Core Operations. Queensland publishes no Community Services data and only one amenity measure, so those two dimensions are not scored here and no overall score is calculated.

What Makes This Place Unique

Cape York gateway — Cooktown's history and Australia's last frontier

Cooktown and the southern gateway to Cape York Peninsula.

Known For

  • Cooktown — Cook beached the Endeavour here
  • Cape York gateway
  • Black Mountain
  • Tropical wilderness

Living Here

Genuinely remote frontier. Remarkable history.

Hidden Gem

Cooktown Botanic Gardens — among the earliest documented European gardens in Australia.