MEDIA RELEASE
27 March 2019	Embargoed: 11.30 am (Canberra time)

Population growth in Australia's combined capital cities in 2017-18 remained steady, according to data released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

"The number of people living in our capital cities increased by 307,800 people (1.9 per cent) in 2017-18", said ABS Demography Director Beidar Cho.

"This in on par with the average growth over the previous three years".

Once again, Melbourne was the capital city with the largest population increase (119,400 people), followed by Sydney (93,400) and Brisbane (50,100).

Together, these three capitals accounted for over 65 per cent of Australia’s population growth in 2017-18.

Melbourne also had the highest growth rate of any Australian capital (2.5 per cent), ahead of Canberra (2.2 per cent) and Brisbane (2.1 per cent).

Darwin was the only capital city to experience a population decline in 2017-18, losing 360 people (-0.2 per cent).

Capital City	CHANGE (no.)				CHANGE (%)
	2014-15	2015-16	2016-17	2017-18	2014-15	2015-16	2016-17	2017-18
Sydney	88 800	94 700	112 000	93 400	1.8	1.9	2.2	1.8
Melbourne	110 000	128 400	129 500	119 400	2.5	2.8	2.7	2.5
Brisbane	36 900	44 000	49 800	50 100	1.6	1.9	2.1	2.1
Adelaide	11 300	10 600	10 400	11 300	0.9	0.8	0.8	0.8
Perth	25 000	20 300	18 600	21 600	1.3	1.0	0.9	1.1
Hobart	2 100	2 400	3 300	3 300	1.0	1.1	1.5	1.5
Darwin	3 700	2 200	1 800	-360	2.7	1.5	1.2	-0.2
Canberra	7 000	7 300	8 900	8 900	1.8	1.8	2.2	2.2
All capital cities	285 000	310 000	334 500	307 800	1.8	1.9	2.1	1.9

Today's data also reveals the largest and fastest growing areas in each state and territory.

Cranbourne East had the largest growth in Australia in terms of numbers (up by 7,300 people), while Rockbank - Mount Cottrell was the fastest growing in terms of growth rate (59 per cent). These areas are located in Melbourne's outer suburbs.

State/Territory	LARGEST GROWTH			FASTEST GROWTH(a)
	Area	Number		Area	Per cent change (%)
New South Wales	Riverstone - Marsden Park	5 000		Riverstone - Marsden Park	23.2
Victoria	Cranbourne East	7 300		Rockbank - Mount Cottrell	59.4
Queensland	Pimpama	3 700		Pimpama	29.5
South Australia	Munno Para West - Angle Vale	730		Munno Para West - Angle Vale	5.5
Western Australia	Baldivis	2 200		Alkimos - Eglinton	14.8
Tasmania	Newnham - Mayfield	230		Mount Nelson - Dynnyrne	3.9
Northern Territory	Palmerston - South	880		Palmerston - South	21.6
Australian Capital Territory	Moncrieff	1 800		Greenway	18.9
(a) Excludes areas with less than 1,000 people at June 2017.

Media notes:

• Unless otherwise stated, capital cities mentioned in this release are Greater Capital City Statistical Areas and areas are Statistical Areas Level 2 as defined in the 2016 Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS).
• When reporting ABS data, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (or ABS) must be attributed as the source.
• For media requests and interviews, contact ABS Media on 1300 175 070 (8.30am - 5pm Canberra time Mon-Fri).
• Subscribe to our email notification service and get media releases or products sent to you on release.