Migration drives Australia’s population growth to 28 million
Australia’s population has just reached 28 million, according to estimates from the ABS, but it’s not babies being born driving most to our explosive population growth – so what’s behind it?
READING LEVEL: GREEN
Australia’s population has reached 28 million, according to estimates from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
The milestone was recorded on the official Australian Population Clock on Tuesday at 5:52am AEST.
While not an official headcount, the Population Clock is based on ABS projections* that draw on census data, birth and death rates, and migration* figures, including arrivals and departures.
Australia’s population reaching 28 million suggests it has grown by almost 500,000 people over the past 12 months and by more than one million people since 2023.
Remarkably, the ABS estimates a person arrives in Australia every 59 seconds, contributing to population growth at more than twice the pace of people being born, with one birth thought to happen every two minutes and 16 seconds.
Taking into account births, deaths, arrivals and departures, the ABS projects that the population grows by one person every 75 seconds.
Australia’s population growth has increased quite a bit over the past 25 years.
Since the Sydney Olympics in 2000, the nation’s population has grown by around nine million people, an increase of almost 50 per cent.
We’ll learn more about the state of the nation with our next Census, which is scheduled to take place on the night of Tuesday, August 11, 2026.
The Census is a compulsory, five-yearly questionnaire that aims to paint a detailed picture of Australia’s population and housing. It must be filled out by everyone in the country on Census night, whether or not they are Australian citizens.
“The Census collects information on demographic* characteristics such as age and sex, types of housing, and on other topics such as education, participation in the labour* force, occupations and industries, marital status, and family size,” the ABS website states.
This year’s Census will include new questions about a person’s gender identity while allowing Australians to report up to four cultural ancestries* when they are describing the ethnic make-up of their household.
Liver disease has been added as an option for people selecting whether they have any long-term health conditions, and e-bikes have been added into a bicycles category to identify a person’s mode of travel to work.
POLL
GLOSSARY
- projections: calculations of future possibilities based on current data and trends
- migration: the movement of people from one country to another
- demographic: a statistically defined segment of a human population, often categorised based on age, ethnicity, education and income
- labour: work
- cultural ancestries: the countries where your ancestors came from
EXTRA READING
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QUICK QUIZ
1. How is the Population Clock calculated?
2. At what time did the Population Clock tick over to 28 million people?
3. By how much has Australia’s population grown since the year 2000?
4. When is Census night?
5. What type of information does the Census collect?
LISTEN TO THIS STORY
CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Population maths
The Kids News article states that one person is added to our population every 75 seconds. Use your mathematical knowledge to calculate the following:
How many people born in one hour?
How many people born in one day?
How many people born in one week?
How do you think Australia will cope if the population keeps rising at this rate?
Time: allow 15 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: Mathematics, Personal and Social, Critical and Creative Thinking
2. Extension
Design a new city for 30 million-plus Australians. Your city should have allocations for housing, transport, schools, renewable energy and parks and green spaces.
Sketch your city design and share with some other groups.
Time: allow 25 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Design and Technologies, Civics and Citizenship, Personal and Social, Critical and Creative Thinking
VCOP ACTIVITY
BAB it!
Show you have read and understood the article by writing three sentences using the connectives “because’’, “and”, and “but” (BAB). Your sentences can share different facts or opinions, or the same ones but written about in different ways.