New South Wales: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population summary

In New South Wales 278,000 people identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander in the 2021 Census of Population and Housing. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people represented 3.4% of the New South Wales population. This is up from 2.9% in 2016, and 2.5% in 2011.

Of the 278,000 people who identified as being of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin:

• 96.1% identified as Aboriginal
• 1.8% identified as Torres Strait Islander
• 2.1% identified as both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander.

The median age for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in New South Wales increased over the last ten years. In 2021 the median age was 23 years, up from 22 years in 2016, and 21 years in 2011.

In 2021, 51.8% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in New South Wales were aged under 25 years, down from 55.6% in 2011.

The proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 75 years and over in 2021 was larger than in 2011 (2.0% compared to 1.3%).

In 2021, the New South Wales Local Government Area (LGA) with the most Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people was the Central Coast (NSW), followed by Blacktown and Lake Macquarie.

In the Central Coast (NSW) LGA Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people represented:

• 4.9% of the LGA population
• 6.1% of the overall New South Wales Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population.

The top five areas with the greatest proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were:

• Brewarrina (51.4% of the total LGA population)
• Central Darling (36.5%)
• Coonamble (33.9%)
• Bourke (30.3%)
• Walgett (21.2%).

In the Census, an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander household is a dwelling where at least one person identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander. On Census Night, the person needs to have been present and a usual resident at the dwelling.

The average size of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander households in New South Wales was 3.1 people in both 2021 and 2011.

Most Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander households (79.4%) were family households, including 4.4% with more than one family living together. One in seven households (15.4%) were made up of people who lived alone while a small proportion were group households (5.1%).

Securing appropriate housing is an outcome area in the National Agreement on Closing the Gap, measured by a housing suitability target. Housing suitability is based on the Canadian National Occupancy Standard (CNOS) which may not adequately reflect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives of appropriate housing and overcrowding (1).

In 2021, most (87.5%) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in New South Wales lived in appropriately sized (not overcrowded) dwellings, where no extra bedrooms were needed to adequately house the usual residents. For more information, see Housing suitability (HOSD).

The most common Tenure types (TEND) for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander households in New South Wales were:

• owned with a mortgage (28.5%)
• rented through a real estate agent (28.0%)
• owned outright (15.9%)
• rented through a state or territory housing authority (11.8%).

In 2021, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander households had the following medians:

• weekly rent (RNTD) of $340
• monthly mortgage (MRED) of $1,755.

Of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in New South Wales:

• most (93.2%) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people used only English at home (LANP)
• 1.9% used an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander language at home (LNGP).

Of the 5,196 people who used Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander languages, the most common language was Wiradjuri (22.2%).

In 2021, 38.5% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander households in New South Wales reported an equivalised total household weekly income (HIED) of $1,000 or more in 2021, compared with 36.7% nationally.

The median equivalised total household weekly income for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander households in New South Wales was $860. This was higher than the national average ($830).

The proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 20 to 24 years in New South Wales who had completed Year 12 or equivalent as their highest year of school was 54.1%, up from 36.7% in 2011.

One in nine (11.5%) people aged 18-24 years were attending university or other higher education institutions at the time of the 2021 Census, up from 8.3% in 2011.

In 2021, 2.6% of people aged 25 years and over were attending university or other higher education institutions, up from 2.3% in 2011.

The 2021 Census included a new topic to collect data on certain long-term health conditions (LTHP). This information will not have the same level of detail as the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey (NATSIHS). Long-term health conditions data from the Census is not intended to provide prevalence estimates at national and state/territory levels. Prevalence estimates of long-term health conditions should be sourced from the NATSIHS.

More detailed information on this Census topic can be found in Comparing ABS long-term health conditions data sources.

In 2021, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander females in New South Wales were more likely than males to report having:

• arthritis (9.1% compared with 5.7%)
• asthma (17.2% compared with 13.0%)
• mental health conditions (18.0% compared with 12.6%).

Males were more likely to report having heart disease (3.9% compared with 3.2% of females) and having no long-term health conditions (55.9% compared with 53.0% of females). Males also had a higher non-response rate to the Census question (9.0% compared with 6.1% of females).

More data related to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people can be found in the data downloads on the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people: Census topic page.

1. Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute 2017. Understanding ‘demand sharing’ of Indigenous households. Available at Understanding 'demand sharing' of Indigenous households | AHURI