The Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset (ACLD) is Australia's largest longitudinal dataset bringing together a 5% random sample of around one million records from the 2006 Census with corresponding records from the 2011 Census. It provides a unique opportunity for researchers and policy makers to examine pathways and transitions of population groups, such as unemployed individuals transition into the labour force. Over time, the ACLD will continue to grow as records from each new Census are linked which will further enhance its longitudinal view. The ACLD will also be augmented in the future to take account of migration and births that occur between Censuses.

In June 2022, it was estimated that around 7.3 percent of Australians were aged between 25 and 29, and the same applied to people aged between 30 and 34. All in all, about 55 percent of Australia’s population was aged 35 years or older as of June 2022. At the same time, the age distribution of the country also shows that the share of children under 14 years old was still higher than that of people over 65 years old. A breakdown of Australia’s population growth Australia is the sixth-largest country in the world, yet with a population of around 26 million inhabitants, it is only sparsely populated. Since the 1970s, the population growth of Australia has remained fairly constant. While there was a slight rise in the Australian death rate in 2022, the birth rate of the country decreased after a slight rise in the previous year. The fact that the birth rate is almost double the size of its death rate gives the country one of the highest natural population growth rates of any high-income country.
National distribution of the population Australia’s population is expected to surpass 28 million people by 2028. The majority of its inhabitants live in the major cities. The most populated states are New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland. Together, they account for over 75 percent of the population in Australia.

This dataset contains estimates of the resident population and estimates of the components of population change as at 30 June for the years 2001-2021. The data is aggregated to the 2021 Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) Local Government Areas (LGA).

This data is sourced from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (Catalogue Number: 3218.0).

For more information please visit the Regional population methodology.

Notes: The population estimates in this issue are final for 2001 to 2016, revised for 2017 to 2020, and preliminary for 2021. Estimated resident population (ERP) is the official estimate of the Australian population, which links people to a place of usual residence within Australia. Usual residence within Australia refers to that address at which the person has lived or intends to live for six months or more in a given reference year. For the 30 June reference date, this refers to the calendar year around it. Estimated resident population is based on Census counts by place of usual residence (excluding short-term overseas visitors in Australia), with an allowance for Census net undercount, to which are added the estimated number of Australian residents temporarily overseas at the time of the Census.

AURIN has ingested this dataset in its GeoPackage format.

The Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset (ACLD) is Australia's largest longitudinal dataset bringing together a 5% random sample of around one million records from the 2006 Census with corresponding records from the 2011 Census. It provides a unique opportunity for researchers and policy makers to examine pathways and transitions of population groups, such as unemployed individuals transition into the labour force. Over time, the ACLD will continue to grow as records from each new Census are linked which will further enhance its longitudinal view. The ACLD will also be augmented in the future to take account of migration and births that occur between Censuses.

This web maps looks at the breakdown of who is renting, who is paying off the mortgage, and who owns their place outright. Using data from ABS Census 2021 General Community Profile release. This map shows the percentage of the population that is married. Data is available for Country, Greater Capital City Statistical Area (GCCSA), Local Government Area (LGA), Statistical Area Level 1 (SA1) and 2 (SA2), and State Suburb (SSC) boundaries.This map contains layers that contain some of the more commonly used variables from the General Community Profile information from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 census. Data is available for Country, Greater Capital City Statistical Area (GCCSA), Local Government Area (LGA), Statistical Area Level 1 (SA1) and 2 (SA2), and Suburb and Localities (SAL) boundaries.The General Community Profile contains a series of tables showing the characteristics of persons, families and dwellings in a selected geographic area. The data is based on place of usual residence (that is, where people usually live, rather than where they were counted on Census night). Community Profiles are excellent tools for researching, planning and analysing geographic areas for a number of social, economic and demographic characteristics.Download the data here.Data and Geography notes:View the Readme files located in the DataPacks and GeoPackages zip files.To access the 2021 DataPacks, visit https://www.abs.gov.au/census/find-census-data/datapacksGlossary terms and definitions of classifications can be found in the 2021 Census DictionaryMore information about Census data products is available at https://www.abs.gov.au/census/guide-census-data/about-census-tools/datapacksDetailed geography information: https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/standards/australian-statistical-geography-standard-asgs-edition-3/jul2021-jun2026/main-structure-and-greater-capital-city-statistical-areas: 2021 Statistical Area Level 1 (SA1), 2021 Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2), 2021 Greater Capital City Statistical Areas (GCCSA), 2021 Australia (AUS)https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/standards/australian-statistical-geography-standard-asgs-edition-3/jul2021-jun2026/non-abs-structures: 2021 Suburbs and Localities (SAL), 2021 Local Government Areas (LGA)Please note that there are data assumptions that should be considered when analysing the ABS Census data. These are detailed within the Census documents referenced above. These include:Registered Marital StatusIn December 2017, amendments to the Marriage Act 1961 came into effect enabling marriage equality for all couples. For 2021, registered marriages include all couples.Core Activity Need for AssistanceMeasures the number of people with a profound or severe core activity limitation. People with a profound or severe core activity limitation are those needing assistance in their day to day lives in one or more of the three core activity areas of self-care, mobility and communication because of a long-term health condition (lasting six months or more), a disability (lasting six months or more), or old age. Number of Motor VehiclesExcludes motorbikes, motor scooters and heavy vehicles.Please note that there are small random adjustments made to all cell values to protect the confidentiality of data. These adjustments may cause the sum of rows or columns to differ by small amounts from table totals.Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics

Migrants from the United Kingdom have long been Australia’s primary immigrant group and in 2023 there were roughly 960 thousand English-born people living in Australia. India and China held second and third place respectively with regard to Australia’s foreign-born population. The relative dominance of Asian countries in the list of top ten foreign-born residents of Australia represents a significant shift in Australia’s immigration patterns over the past few decades. Where European-born migrants had previously overshadowed other migrant groups, Australian migration figures are now showing greater migration numbers from neighboring countries in Asia and the Pacific. A history of migration Australia is often referred to as an ‘immigrant nation’, alongside the United States, Canada, and New Zealand. Before the Second World War, migrants to Australia were almost exclusively from the UK, however after 1945, Australia’s immigration policy was broadened to attract economic migrants and temporary skilled migrants. These policy changes saw and increase in immigrants particularly from Greece and Italy. Today, Australia maintains its status as an ‘’Immigrant nation’’, with almost 30 percent of the population born overseas and around 50 percent of the population having both that were born overseas. Australian visas The Australian immigration program has two main categories of visa, permanent and temporary. The permanent visa category offers three primary pathways: skilled, family and humanitarian. The skilled visa category is by far the most common, with more than a million permanent migrants living in Australia on this visa category at the last Australian census in 2021. Of the temporary visa categories, the higher education visa is the most popular, exceeding 180 thousand arrivals in 2023.

Humans have been living on the continent of Australia (name derived from "Terra Australis"; Latin for "the southern land") for approximately 65,000 years, however population growth was relatively slow until the nineteenth century. Europeans had made some contact with Australia as early as 1606, however there was no significant attempt at settlement until the late eighteenth century. By 1800, the population of Australia was approximately 350,000 people, and the majority of these were Indigenous Australians. As colonization progressed the number of ethnic Europeans increased while the Australian Aboriginal population was decimated through conflict, smallpox and other diseases, with some communities being exterminated completely, such as Aboriginal Tasmanians. Mass migration from Britain and China After the loss of its American colonies in the 1780s, the British Empire looked to other parts of the globe to expand its sphere of influence. In Australia, the first colonies were established in Sydney, Tasmania and Western Australia. Many of these were penal colonies which became home to approximately 164,000 British and Irish convicts who were transported to Australia between 1788 and 1868. As the decades progressed, expansion into the interior intensified, and the entire country was claimed by Britain in 1826. Inland colonization led to further conflict between European settlers and indigenous Australians, which cost the lives of thousands of natives. Inward expansion also saw the discovery of many natural resources, and most notably led to the gold rushes of the 1850s, which attracted substantial numbers of Chinese migrants to Australia. This mass migration from non-European countries eventually led to some restrictive policies being introduced, culminating with the White Australia Policy of 1901, which cemented ethnic-European dominance in Australian politics and society. These policies were not retracted until the second half of the 1900s. Independent Australia Australia changed its status to a British dominion in 1901, and eventually became independent in 1931. Despite this, Australia has remained a part of the British Commonwealth, and Australian forces (ANZAC) fought with the British and their Allies in both World Wars, and were instrumental in campaigns such as Gallipoli in WWI, and the South West Pacific Theater in WWII. The aftermath of both wars had a significant impact on the Australian population, with approximately 90 thousand deaths in both world wars combined, as well as 15 thousand deaths as a result of the Spanish flu pandemic following WWI, although Australia experienced a significant baby boom following the Second World War. In the past fifty years, Australia has promoted immigration from all over the world, and now has one of the strongest economies and highest living standards in the world, with a population that has grown to over 25 million people in 2020.

The Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset (ACLD) is Australia's largest longitudinal dataset bringing together a 5% random sample of around one million records from the 2006 Census with corresponding records from the 2011 Census. It provides a unique opportunity for researchers and policy makers to examine pathways and transitions of population groups, such as unemployed individuals transition into the labour force. Over time, the ACLD will continue to grow as records from each new Census are linked which will further enhance its longitudinal view. The ACLD will also be augmented in the future to take account of migration and births that occur between Censuses.

As of 2021, Millennials and Baby Boomers made up an equal share of the Australian population at around 21.5 percent each, making them the largest generational groups at the time. Those aged 75 years and over made up the smallest portion of the population, followed by Gen Alpha, or those aged 0 to 9 years at the time.

The Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset (ACLD) brings together a 5% sample from the 2006 Census with records from the 2011 Census to create a research tool for exploring how Australian society is changing over time. In taking a longitudinal view of Australians, the ACLD may uncover new insights into the dynamics and transitions that drive social and economic change over time, conveying how these vary for diverse population groups and geographies. It is envisaged that the 2016 and successive Censuses will be added in the future, as well as administrative data sets. The ACLD is released in ABS TableBuilder and as a microdata product in the ABS Data Laboratory.

The Census of Population and Housing is conducted every five years and aims to measure accurately the number of people and dwellings in Australia on Census Night.

Microdata products are the most detailed information available from a Census or survey and are generally the responses to individual questions on the questionnaire. They also include derived data from answers to two or more questions and are released with the approval of the Australian Statistician. The following microdata products are available for this longitudinal dataset: •ACLD in TableBuilder - an online tool for creating tables and graphs. •ACLD in ABS Data Laboratory (ABSDL) - for in-depth analysis using a range of statistical software packages.

This dataset presents the preliminary estimates of the resident population by age and sex as at 30 June 2019. The data is aggregated to Statistical Areas Level 2 (SA2), according to the 2016 edition of the Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS).

Estimated resident population (ERP) is the official estimate of the Australian population, which links people to a place of usual residence within Australia. Usual residence within Australia refers to that address at which the person has lived or intends to live for six months or more in a given reference year. For the 30 June reference date, this refers to the calendar year around it. Estimates of the resident population are based on Census counts by place of usual residence (excluding short-term overseas visitors in Australia), with an allowance for Census net undercount, to which are added the estimated number of Australian residents temporarily overseas at the time of the Census. A person is regarded as a usual resident if they have been (or expected to be) residing in Australia for a period of 12 months or more over a 16-month period.

This data is ABS data (catalogue number: 3235.0) available from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

For more information please visit the Explanatory Notes.

• AURIN has spatially enabled the data.

• Regions which contain unpublished data have been left blank in the dataset.

This dataset contains estimates of the resident population and estimates of the components of population change as at 30 June for the years 2001-2019. The data is aggregated to 2016 Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2).

Estimated resident population (ERP) is the official estimate of the Australian population, which links people to a place of usual residence within Australia. Usual residence within Australia refers to that address at which the person has lived or intends to live for six months or more in a given reference year. For the 30 June reference date, this refers to the calendar year around it. Estimated resident population is based on Census counts by place of usual residence (excluding short-term overseas visitors in Australia), with an allowance for Census net undercount, to which are added the estimated number of Australian residents temporarily overseas at the time of the Census.

This data is sourced from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (Catalogue Number: 3218.0).

For more information please visit the Explanatory Notes.

Notes:

• The estimates in this issue are final for 2001 to 2016, revised for 2017 and 2018, and preliminary for 2019.

  AURIN has ingested this dataset in its GeoPackage format.

The 1986 Census Collection District Master File (CDMF) stores basic counts and associated geographic codes for every collection district (CD) in Australia, for tabulation, field control, processing control and general research purposes, and to facilitate linkage to previous Census data. The data is by CD 1986 boundaries. Periodicity: 5-Yearly.

This data is ABS data (original geographic boundary cat. no. 1261.0.30.001 & census dictionary cat. no. 2102.0) used with permission from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The tabular data was processed and supplied to AURIN by the Australian Data Archives. The cleaned, high resolution 1986 geographic boundaries are available from data.gov.au.

For more information please refer to the 1986 Census Dictionary.

As of October 2023, around 30.32 thousand Japanese residents lived in Sydney. Sydney was therefore one of the cities with the highest number of Japanese residents outside of Japan. Similarly, Australia was one of the countries with the highest number of Japanese residents. In the observed time frame, the size of the Japanese population in the city has been growing gradually until it peaked in 2019 at close to 34.7 thousand individuals, but has been decreasing significantly ever since.The statistic, which is based on the information gathered by Japanese diplomatic missions abroad, does not include descendants of Japanese emigrants (nikkeijin) who do not hold Japanese citizenship. People with multiple citizenship are counted.

This web map contains layers that contain some of the more commonly used variables from the General Community Profile information from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 census. Data is available for Country, Greater Capital City Statistical Area (GCCSA), Local Government Area (LGA), Statistical Area Level 1 (SA1) and 2 (SA2), and Suburb and Localities (SAL) boundaries.The General Community Profile contains a series of tables showing the characteristics of persons, families and dwellings in a selected geographic area. The data is based on place of usual residence (that is, where people usually live, rather than where they were counted on Census night). Community Profiles are excellent tools for researching, planning and analysing geographic areas for a number of social, economic and demographic characteristics.Download the data here.Data and Geography notes:View the Readme files located in the DataPacks and GeoPackages zip files.To access the 2021 DataPacks, visit https://www.abs.gov.au/census/find-census-data/datapacksGlossary terms and definitions of classifications can be found in the 2021 Census DictionaryMore information about Census data products is available at https://www.abs.gov.au/census/guide-census-data/about-census-tools/datapacksDetailed geography information: https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/standards/australian-statistical-geography-standard-asgs-edition-3/jul2021-jun2026/main-structure-and-greater-capital-city-statistical-areas: 2021 Statistical Area Level 1 (SA1), 2021 Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2), 2021 Greater Capital City Statistical Areas (GCCSA), 2021 Australia (AUS)https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/standards/australian-statistical-geography-standard-asgs-edition-3/jul2021-jun2026/non-abs-structures: 2021 Suburbs and Localities (SAL), 2021 Local Government Areas (LGA)Please note that there are data assumptions that should be considered when analysing the ABS Census data. These are detailed within the Census documents referenced above. These include:Registered Marital StatusIn December 2017, amendments to the Marriage Act 1961 came into effect enabling marriage equality for all couples. For 2021, registered marriages include all couples.Core Activity Need for AssistanceMeasures the number of people with a profound or severe core activity limitation. People with a profound or severe core activity limitation are those needing assistance in their day to day lives in one or more of the three core activity areas of self-care, mobility and communication because of a long-term health condition (lasting six months or more), a disability (lasting six months or more), or old age. Number of Motor VehiclesExcludes motorbikes, motor scooters and heavy vehicles.Please note that there are small random adjustments made to all cell values to protect the confidentiality of data. These adjustments may cause the sum of rows or columns to differ by small amounts from table totals.Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics

Quarterly estimates of total resident population for states, territories and Australia. Includes estimates of the population by sex in five-year age groups; numbers (and some rates) of births, deaths, infant deaths, interstate and overseas movements; quarterly and/or annual time series spreadsheets; projected resident population for states, territories and Australia; and projected number of households for capital cities, states territories and Australia.

This web map contains layers that contain some of the more commonly used variables from the General Community Profile information from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 census. Data is available for Country, Greater Capital City Statistical Area (GCCSA), Local Government Area (LGA), Statistical Area Level 1 (SA1) and 2 (SA2), and Suburb and Localities (SAL) boundaries.The General Community Profile contains a series of tables showing the characteristics of persons, families and dwellings in a selected geographic area. The data is based on place of usual residence (that is, where people usually live, rather than where they were counted on Census night). Community Profiles are excellent tools for researching, planning and analysing geographic areas for a number of social, economic and demographic characteristics.Download the data here.Data and Geography notes:View the Readme files located in the DataPacks and GeoPackages zip files.To access the 2021 DataPacks, visit https://www.abs.gov.au/census/find-census-data/datapacksGlossary terms and definitions of classifications can be found in the 2021 Census DictionaryMore information about Census data products is available at https://www.abs.gov.au/census/guide-census-data/about-census-tools/datapacksDetailed geography information: https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/standards/australian-statistical-geography-standard-asgs-edition-3/jul2021-jun2026/main-structure-and-greater-capital-city-statistical-areas: 2021 Statistical Area Level 1 (SA1), 2021 Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2), 2021 Greater Capital City Statistical Areas (GCCSA), 2021 Australia (AUS)https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/standards/australian-statistical-geography-standard-asgs-edition-3/jul2021-jun2026/non-abs-structures: 2021 Suburbs and Localities (SAL), 2021 Local Government Areas (LGA)Please note that there are data assumptions that should be considered when analysing the ABS Census data. These are detailed within the Census documents referenced above. These include:Registered Marital StatusIn December 2017, amendments to the Marriage Act 1961 came into effect enabling marriage equality for all couples. For 2021, registered marriages include all couples.Core Activity Need for AssistanceMeasures the number of people with a profound or severe core activity limitation. People with a profound or severe core activity limitation are those needing assistance in their day to day lives in one or more of the three core activity areas of self-care, mobility and communication because of a long-term health condition (lasting six months or more), a disability (lasting six months or more), or old age. Number of Motor VehiclesExcludes motorbikes, motor scooters and heavy vehicles.Please note that there are small random adjustments made to all cell values to protect the confidentiality of data. These adjustments may cause the sum of rows or columns to differ by small amounts from table totals.Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics

The 1981 Census Local Government Area Summary File (LGASF) presents summary characteristics of persons and their dwellings for every Local Government Area (LGA) in Australia for 1981. The census information is made up of 34 tables giving data for both persons and dwellings.

This table contains data for birthplace of parents of Australian born persons. Census counts were based on place of enumeration on census night which; includes overseas visitors; excludes Australians overseas; and excludes adjustment for under-enumeration. The data is by Local Government Area 1981 boundaries. Periodicity: 5-Yearly.

This data is ABS data (cat. no. 2103.0 & original geographic boundary cat. no. 1261.0.30.001) used with permission from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The tabular data was processed and supplied to AURIN by the Australian Data Archives. The cleaned, high resolution 1981 geographic boundaries are available from data.gov.au.

For more information please refer to "Making Sense of Census 1981".

Please note: Some LGAs were broken down into parts in the original LGA Summary File (e.g. CABONNE (S) (PART A), CABONNE (S) (PART B), CABONNE (S) (PART C)). AURIN has aggregated the data values for the LGA parts where this has occurred.

The Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset (ACLD) is Australia's largest longitudinal dataset bringing together a 5% random sample of around one million records from the 2006 Census with corresponding records from the 2011 Census. It provides a unique opportunity for researchers and policy makers to examine pathways and transitions of population groups, such as unemployed individuals transition into the labour force. Over time, the ACLD will continue to grow as records from each new Census are linked which will further enhance its longitudinal view. The ACLD will also be augmented in the future to take account of migration and births that occur between Censuses.

Local Government Area (LGA) based data for Industry by Hours Worked, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 1986 Census of Population and Housing. Census counts were based on place of usual residence which excludes overseas visitors, Australians overseas, and adjustments for under-enumeration. The data is by LGA 1986 boundaries. Periodicity: 5-Yearly.

This data is used with permission from the ABS. The tabular data was supplied to AURIN by the Australian Data Archives. The cleaned, high resolution 1986 geographic boundaries (cat. no. 1261.0.30.001) are available from Data.gov.au.

For more information please refer to the 1986 Census Dictionary (cat. no. 2102.0).