Gold Coast crane count hits a record, with Brisbane close behind

The 29th edition of the RLB Crane Index® shows South East Queensland’s construction market growing across every region, with the Gold Coast recording its highest crane count on record and outnumbering Brisbane for the second consecutive edition.

South East Queensland’s skyline continues to change at pace. The latest RLB Crane Index® recorded 82 cranes on the Gold Coast, the highest count in the city’s history and a 9 per cent increase over the past six months. Brisbane also grew strongly, rising 14 per cent to 80 cranes, while the Sunshine Coast doubled its count from 8 to 16.

For the second edition running, the Gold Coast has more cranes than the state capital. That result says a lot about how the city’s construction market has matured.

A standalone construction powerhouse

RLB Queensland Director Jim Krebs says the latest results show the Gold Coast has become a construction market in its own right, not simply an extension of Brisbane’s growth.

“The Gold Coast has achieved a record crane count despite the fact that project feasibility remains one of the biggest challenges facing the development industry nationwide,” Jim said.

“That tells us developers continue to see strong long-term fundamentals in the city and are prepared to move forward with projects that are well planned, appropriately funded and ready to capitalise on current market opportunities.”

The headline number only tells part of the story. Over the past six months the Gold Coast saw 23 cranes removed as projects reached completion, and 30 new cranes go up. That turnover matters.

“This demonstrates that the result is not simply being maintained by long-running projects, but by a continuing pipeline of new commencements,” Jim said.

Residential still dominates, but the mix is broadening

Residential construction remains the engine of the Gold Coast market, accounting for 88 per cent of local crane activity. Of the 30 new cranes, 17 were installed across 16 residential projects.

The remaining additions spanned aged care, mixed use, commercial, data centres, industrial and education, a sign that the city’s non-residential pipeline is starting to diversify.

Activity is also spread across the full coastal corridor. “The southern coastal corridor continues to attract a substantial number of residential projects, particularly around Palm Beach, Bilinga, Kirra and Coolangatta, while the central and northern parts of the city contain several of the larger multi-crane developments and a greater proportion of the emerging non-residential activity,” Jim said.

Brisbane grows up, not just out

Although Brisbane sits just behind the Gold Coast on total numbers, the capital posted strong growth of its own, adding 30 new cranes, including 11 in the residential sector. Residential now accounts for 67.5 per cent of Brisbane’s cranes.

RLB Queensland Director Jamie Smith says the defining trend in Brisbane is a shift towards higher-density housing, with more than half of the city’s cranes located in the CBD and surrounding suburbs.

“Beyond significant Olympic infrastructure projects, Brisbane’s construction boom is being driven by housing-led urban intensification and record population growth,” Jamie said.

“With a $100 billion-plus major projects pipeline and SEQ heading towards a population of six million people by 2046, we’re seeing residential, health, manufacturing, logistics and digital infrastructure all scale at once.

“This delivery pipeline is creating a deeper, more diverse market that’s reshaping the city as we prepare for the most significant event in our state’s history.”

The Sunshine Coast rebounds

After two consecutive editions of decline, from 18 cranes in Q1 2025 to just 8 in Q1 2026, the Sunshine Coast has doubled its count to 16. While still well below its larger neighbours, the rebound suggests renewed momentum at the northern end of the region.

The national picture

Nationally, construction activity remains at record levels, supported by a strong pipeline of residential, health, defence and data centre projects, particularly in Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia.

What comes next: the capacity challenge

Looking ahead, the key question for South East Queensland is less about demand and more about delivery capacity.

“The Gold Coast is benefiting from the national growth story, but the next challenge will be managing labour availability and construction capacity as major public infrastructure and Olympic-related projects begin competing for the same workforce in the years ahead,” Jim said.

Private sector activity also continues to face headwinds, with feasibility pressures, higher financing costs and cautious investor sentiment meaning many projects need further optimisation before they can proceed.

“Against that backdrop, the addition of 30 new cranes over the past six months highlights the strength of underlying demand and the confidence of well-positioned developers on the Gold Coast,” Jim said.

As Olympic-related works ramp up alongside a deep private sector pipeline, early engagement on cost planning, procurement strategy and program risk will be critical for projects looking to secure resources and stay on track.

The RLB Crane Index® is published biannually and tracks the number of cranes on construction sites across Australia’s major cities.

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