What is Australia's population?

Australia's population was about 26.6 million people in 2024, having passed the 26 million mark in early 2023. The Australian Bureau of Statistics publishes a population clock that updates in real time using births, deaths, and net overseas migration figures.

Population growth in Australia has averaged about 1.4 per cent a year over the past decade, one of the highest rates among developed countries, driven mostly by immigration rather than natural increase. Net overseas migration added about 528,000 people in the year to June 2023, the highest annual figure on record, before easing back as post-pandemic visa backlogs were cleared.

About 30 per cent of Australian residents were born overseas, the highest share of any major developed country, and another 22 per cent have at least one parent born overseas. The largest groups of overseas-born residents are from England, India, China, New Zealand, the Philippines, and Vietnam. About 3.8 per cent of the population identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, an estimated 984,000 people in 2021, the highest count since European settlement.

The population is heavily concentrated on the east and south-east coasts, with New South Wales (8.4 million), Victoria (6.9 million), and Queensland (5.5 million) together holding more than 80 per cent of all Australians. Western Australia (2.9 million), South Australia (1.8 million), Tasmania (0.6 million), the Australian Capital Territory (0.5 million), and the Northern Territory (0.25 million) account for the rest. The next census is scheduled for 2026, conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics under the Census and Statistics Act 1905.