Australia

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2021 Census Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people QuickStats

Geography type Australia

Area code AUS

Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people	812,728
Male	49.7%
Female	50.3%
Median age	24

Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander families	283,481

Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander households	352,041
Average number of people per household	3.1
Median weekly household income	$1,507
Median monthly mortgage repayments	$1,721
Median weekly rent (a)	$300

(a) For 2021, median weekly rent calculations exclude dwellings being occupied rent-free.

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Other 2021 Census products available for this area:

To view more QuickStats or Community Profiles for a different area, see Search Census data.

All tables refer to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander persons in Australia, unless otherwise stated.
Small random changes have been made to all cell values for privacy reasons. These changes may cause the sum of rows or columns to differ by small amounts from the table totals.

People and population

Indigenous status All people	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander total	812,728	3.2	649,168	2.8
Aboriginal	742,882	2.9	590,056	2.5
Torres Strait Islander	33,765	0.1	32,348	0.1
Both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander	36,083	0.1	26,765	0.1
Non-Indigenous	23,375,949	91.9	21,341,229	91.2
Not stated	1,234,112	4.9	1,411,492	6.0

More information on Place of Usual Residence (PURP), Indigenous status (INGP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Age Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Median age	24	N/A	23	N/A
0-4 years	85,941	10.6	73,265	11.3
5-14 years	179,604	22.1	147,133	22.7
15-24 years	150,057	18.5	123,718	19.1
25-34 years	117,969	14.5	88,860	13.7
35-44 years	87,910	10.8	72,397	11.2
45-54 years	81,802	10.1	67,418	10.4
55-64 years	61,759	7.6	45,432	7.0
65 years and over	47,677	5.9	30,954	4.8

More information on Age (AGEP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Registered marital status Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Married	127,525	23.3	105,084	24.5
Separated	23,982	4.4	19,115	4.5
Divorced	37,473	6.8	28,799	6.7
Widowed	16,329	3.0	13,794	3.2
Never married	341,871	62.5	261,978	61.1

Note: In December 2017, amendments to the Marriage Act 1961 came into effect enabling marriage equality for all couples. For 2021, registered marriages include all couples.

More information on Registered marital status (MSTP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Social marital status Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over, usually resident and present in the household on Census night	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Registered marriage (a)	112,643	23.0	86,718	23.1
De facto marriage (b)	81,295	16.6	60,055	16.0
Not married	296,032	60.4	228,277	60.9

(a) In December 2017, amendments to the Marriage Act 1961 came into effect enabling marriage equality for all couples. For 2021, registered marriages include all couples.
(b) De facto marriage is when two people live together as partners who are not in a registered marriage. It includes people who report de facto, partner, common law husband/wife/spouse, lover, girlfriend or boyfriend.

More information on Social marital status (MDCP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Education

Type of educational institution attending Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people attending an educational institution	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Preschool	25,485	8.0	16,697	6.4
Primary	120,864	37.9	97,859	37.5
Secondary	83,631	26.2	65,209	25.0
Tertiary - Vocational education (including TAFE and private training providers)	21,273	6.7	14,229	5.5
Tertiary - University or higher education	21,149	6.6	15,488	5.9
Other	7,310	2.3	5,046	1.9
Not stated	38,814	12.2	46,430	17.8

More information Type of educational institution attending (TYPP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Level of highest educational attainment Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Bachelor Degree level and above	40,554	7.4	24,912	5.8
Advanced Diploma and Diploma level	34,681	6.3	23,790	5.5
Certificate level IV	23,374	4.3	14,314	3.3
Certificate level III	84,821	15.5	56,629	13.2
Year 12	82,998	15.2	59,946	14.0
Year 11	43,335	7.9	34,672	8.1
Year 10	102,707	18.8	77,268	18.0
Certificate level II	1,262	0.2	1,211	0.3
Certificate level I	241	0.0	238	0.1
Year 9 or below	75,326	13.8	64,603	15.1
Inadequately described	11,038	2.0	10,219	2.4
No educational attainment	5,242	1.0	4,261	1.0
Not stated	41,467	7.6	56,697	13.2

More information on Level of highest educational attainment (HEAP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Cultural diversity

Australian Indigenous language, top responses Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Yumplatok (Torres Strait Creole)	7,596	0.9	6,000	0.9
Kriol	7,403	0.9	7,105	1.1
Australian Indigenous Languages, nfd	4,197	0.5	8,627	1.3
Djambarrpuyngu	3,839	0.5	4,267	0.7
Pitjantjatjara	3,399	0.4	3,049	0.5
null	null	null	null	null
Australian Indigenous languages used at home	76,978	9.5	63,753	9.8
English only used at home	683,122	84.1	544,487	83.9

More information on Language used at home (LANP), Whether reported using an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander language at home (LNGP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Ancestry, top responses Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Australian Aboriginal	695,359	85.6	140,482	21.6
Australian	277,467	34.1	399,842	61.6
English	131,618	16.2	152,758	23.5
Torres Strait Islander	57,353	7.1	14,946	2.3
Irish	31,853	3.9	45,884	7.1

Note 1: Respondents had the option of reporting up to two ancestries on their Census form, and this is captured by the Ancestry multi response (ANCP) variable used in this table. Therefore, the sum of all ancestry responses for Australia will not equal the total number of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in Australia.
Note 2: Calculated percentages represent a proportion of the number of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in Australia (including those who did not state an ancestry).

More information on Ancestry multi response (ANCP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Income and work

Participation in the labour force Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
In the labour force	296,172	54.1	222,636	51.9
Not in the labour force	234,314	42.8	190,137	44.3
Not stated	16,695	3.1	16,002	3.7

Note 1: Calculated percentages represent a proportion of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 and over in Australia.
Note 2: The ABS Labour Force Survey provides the official estimates of Australia's labour force. More information is provided in Comparing 2021 Census and Labour Force Survey.
Note 3: For information on Community Development Program participation (CDPP), please refer to the Census Dictionary. CDPP data is available in TableBuilder.

More information on Labour force status (LFSP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Employment status Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people who reported being in the labour force, aged 15 years and over	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Employed	null	null	null	null
Worked full-time	144,659	48.8	106,959	48.0
Worked part-time	87,019	29.4	61,049	27.4
Away from work (a)	28,075	9.5	14,140	6.4
Total employed	259,754	87.7	182,147	81.8
Unemployed	36,419	12.3	40,487	18.2

Note 1: Calculated percentages represent a proportion of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 and over, who reported being in the labour force in Australia.
Note 2: The ABS Labour Force Survey provides the official estimates of Australia's labour force. More information is provided in Comparing 2021 Census and Labour Force Survey.
Note 3: For information on Community Development Program participation (CDPP), please refer to the Census Dictionary. CDPP data is available in TableBuilder.

(a) Counts employed people who reported 0 hours of work the week before the Census or did not state their hours of work.

More information on Labour force status (LFSP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Occupation, top responses Employed Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Community and Personal Service Workers	45,221	17.4	30,990	17.0
Labourers	37,003	14.2	27,812	15.3
Professionals	36,013	13.9	24,338	13.4
Technicians and Trades Workers	35,333	13.6	24,402	13.4
Clerical and Administrative Workers	30,731	11.8	23,177	12.7
Machinery Operators and Drivers	23,291	9.0	16,776	9.2
Sales Workers	22,365	8.6	15,785	8.7
Managers	21,218	8.2	12,847	7.1

More information on Occupation (OCCP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Industry of employment, top responses Employed Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Other Social Assistance Services	10,154	3.9	5,300	2.9
Hospitals (except Psychiatric Hospitals)	9,313	3.6	5,540	3.0
Supermarket and Grocery Stores	8,816	3.4	5,558	3.1
Takeaway Food Services	7,371	2.8	4,471	2.5
Local Government Administration	6,639	2.6	5,513	3.0

More information on Industry of employment (INDP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Median weekly incomes (a) Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Personal (b)	540	N/A	441	N/A
Family (c)	1,527	N/A	1,195	N/A
Household (d)	1,507	N/A	1,203	N/A

(a) Incomes are collected in ranges. The medians are then calculated using information from the Survey of Income and Housing.
(b) Excludes people aged 15 years and over who did not state their income.
(c) Excludes families where at least one family member aged 15 years and over did not state their income.
(d) Excludes households where at least one household member aged 15 years and over did not state their income.

More information on Total personal income (weekly) (INCP), Total family income (weekly) (FINF), Total household income (weekly) (HIND), Indigenous household indicator (INGDWTD), Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander family indicator (INGF)
Personal income data is based on place of usual residence
Family and household income data is based on place of enumeration

Unpaid work and care

Unpaid work and care Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Did unpaid domestic work (week before Census Night)	328,022	59.9	263,333	61.4
Provided unpaid care for child/children (during two weeks before Census Night)	166,628	30.5	136,079	31.7
Provided unpaid assistance to a person with a disability, health condition or due to old age (during two weeks before Census Night)	76,568	14.0	58,542	13.7
Did voluntary work through an organisation or group (last 12 months)	58,029	10.6	63,302	14.8

More information on Unpaid domestic work: number of hours (DOMP), Unpaid child care (CHCAREP), Unpaid assistance to a person with a disability, health condition, or due to old age (UNCAREP), Voluntary work for an organisation or group (VOLWP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Health

Type of long-term health condition Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Arthritis	50,807	6.3	N/A	N/A
Asthma	107,162	13.2	N/A	N/A
Cancer (including remission)	12,927	1.6	N/A	N/A
Dementia (including Alzheimer's)	3,610	0.4	N/A	N/A
Diabetes (excluding gestational diabetes)	47,688	5.9	N/A	N/A
Heart disease (including heart attack or angina)	30,160	3.7	N/A	N/A
Kidney disease	10,053	1.2	N/A	N/A
Lung condition (including COPD or emphysema)	17,552	2.2	N/A	N/A
Mental health condition (including depression or anxiety)	107,776	13.3	N/A	N/A
Stroke	7,059	0.9	N/A	N/A
Any other long-term health condition(s)	70,592	8.7	N/A	N/A
No long-term health condition(s)	462,348	56.9	N/A	N/A
Not stated	65,539	8.1	N/A	N/A

Note 1: Measures the number of people who reported that they have been told by a doctor or nurse that they have any of these long-term health conditions.
Note 2: Respondents had the option of reporting multiple long-term health conditions. Therefore, the sum of all long-term health condition responses for Australia will not equal the total number of people in Australia.
Note 3: Calculated percentages represent a proportion of the number of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in Australia (including those who did not answer the long-term health conditions question).
Note 4: 2016 comparison data is not available for this table. Long-term health conditions is a new question for the 2021 Census.

More information on Type of long-term health condition (LTHP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Count of selected long-term health conditions Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
None of the selected conditions	493,110	60.7	N/A	N/A
One condition	167,204	20.6	N/A	N/A
Two conditions	54,174	6.7	N/A	N/A
Three or more conditions	32,701	4.0	N/A	N/A
Not stated	65,539	8.1	N/A	N/A

Note 1: Selected long-term health conditions include arthritis, asthma, cancer (including remission), dementia (including Alzheimer's), diabetes (excluding gestational diabetes), heart disease (including heart attack or angina), kidney disease, lung condition (including COPD or emphysema), mental health condition (including depression or anxiety) and stroke. Other long-term health conditions are not included in this count.
Note 2: 2016 comparison data is not available for this table. Long-term health conditions is a new question for the 2021 Census.

More information on Count of selected long-term health conditions (CLTHP)
Table based on place of usual residence

Housing

Dwelling characteristics Occupied private dwellings (excl. visitor only households and other non-classifiable households) where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Number of dwellings requiring one or more extra bedroom(s) (a)	31,268	8.9	26,377	10.0
Average number of people per household	3.1	N/A	3.2	N/A
Average number of persons per bedroom	1	N/A	1	N/A
Average number of registered motor vehicles per dwelling	1.9	N/A	1.7	N/A

(a) The Canadian National Occupancy Standard for Housing Appropriateness is used to determine whether there are enough bedrooms in the dwelling for the usual residents. See Housing suitability information below for more details.

More information on Number of bedrooms in private dwelling (BEDD), Household composition (HHCD), Indigenous household indicator (INGDWTD), Housing suitability (HOSD)
Table based on place of enumeration

Mortgage and Rent Occupied private dwellings (excl. visitor only households and other non-classifiable households) where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Median weekly rent (a)	$300	N/A	$255	N/A
Median monthly mortgage repayments	$1,721	N/A	$1,660	N/A

(a) Median rent calculations exclude dwellings being occupied rent-free. The 2016 figure presented above is conceptually comparable with the 2021 data, however this is not comparable with historical QuickStats as dwellings being occupied rent-free were included in the rented categories.

More information on Rent (weekly) dollar values (RNTD), Mortgage repayments (monthly) dollar values (MRED), Indigenous household indicator (INGDWTD)
Table based on place of enumeration

Family household composition Occupied private dwellings (excl. visitor only households and other non-classifiable households) where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
One family household: Couple family with no children	62,751	17.8	42,537	16.2
One family household: Couple family with children	104,435	29.7	80,799	30.7
One family household: One parent family	86,135	24.5	67,531	25.7
One family household: Other family	7,040	2.0	5,548	2.1
Multiple family household: Couple family with no children	2,130	0.6	2,226	0.8
Multiple family household: Couple family with children	6,813	1.9	4,958	1.9
Multiple family household: One parent family	8,606	2.4	5,767	2.2
Multiple family household: Other family	412	0.1	477	0.2
Other household	73,717	20.9	53,192	20.2

Note: This table counts the types of families within family households at the dwelling level. In multiple family households, only the family composition of the primary family is recorded. Other household includes lone person households and group households.

More information on Family household composition (dwelling) (HCFMD)
Table based on place of enumeration

Dwelling structure Occupied private dwellings where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Separate house	281,729	80.0	211,205	80.3
Semi-detached, row or terrace house, townhouse etc.	38,396	10.9	27,017	10.3
Flat or apartment	27,919	7.9	20,585	7.8
Other dwelling	2,861	0.8	2,899	1.1

More information on Dwelling structure (STRD)
Table based on place of enumeration

Tenure type Occupied private dwellings (excl. visitor only households and other non-classifiable households) where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander	Australia, 2021	% Australia, 2021	Australia, 2016	% Australia, 2016
Owned outright	48,452	13.8	32,052	12.2
Owned with a mortgage (a)	96,647	27.5	68,086	25.9
Rented (b)	192,703	54.7	147,988	56.3
Other (c)	5,582	1.6	4,729	1.8
Not stated	8,652	2.5	10,180	3.9

(a) Includes dwellings purchased under a shared equity scheme.
(b) Excludes dwellings being occupied rent-free. The 2016 figure presented above is conceptually comparable with the 2021 data, however this is not comparable with historical QuickStats as dwellings being occupied rent-free were included in the rented categories.
(c) Comprises dwellings occupied rent-free, occupied under a life tenure scheme and other tenure type

More information on Tenure type (TEND)
Table based on place of enumeration

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.