Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers, 2022: key findings in plain language

This factsheet includes key information from the 2022 Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers (SDAC). The Australian Bureau of Statistics carried out the survey. We collected information about:

• people with disability
• older people
• carers of people with disability or older people. 

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We found that:

• there were 5.5 million Australians with disability in 2022. This is 21.4% of the population – up from 17.7% in 2018
• the rate of disability among males (21.0%) and females (21.8%) was similar
• the rate of disability increased with age
• about 1 in 7 (15.0%) people who are under 65 years old had disability
• about 1 in 2 (52.3%) people aged 65 years or older had disability
• 7.9% of all Australians had a profound or severe disability in 2022
• 96.8% of people with disability were living in households in 2022
• 3.3% of people with disability were living in cared accommodation in 2022 – such as hospitals, nursing homes and aged care hostels
• 45.3% of people with disability who were 15 years or older and living in households had completed year 12 or an equal level of education. This is up from 33.4% in 2018.

We asked people with disability if they were satisfied with how often they took part in social activities in the last 3 months. Of those who were 15 years or older living in households, 63.9% said they were satisfied all or most of the time.

In the survey, a disability is any condition that:

• limits, restricts or affects everyday activities

             and

• lasts, or is likely to last, for at least 6 months.

People with profound disability are people who have the greatest need for help. This means they can’t do at least one core activity, or always need help with at least one core activity. Core activities include moving around, self-care and communication. 

People with severe disability sometimes need help with at least one core activity.

In the survey, households are private homes and self-care units in retirement villages. 

We defined older people as people who are 65 years or older.

We found that:

• more than 1 in 6 Australians were 65 years or older. This is equal to 17.1% or 4.4 million people – up from 15.9% in 2018
• more than half (52.3%) of older Australians had disability – up from 49.6% in 2018
• 86.6% of older Australians had at least one long-term health condition
• most older Australians (95.9%) were living in households
• 4.1% of older Australians were living in cared accommodation
• 39.8% of older Australians living at home needed some support with everyday activities. This is equal to 1.7 million people.

We asked older Australians if they felt satisfied with how often they took part in social activities in the last 3 months. More than three-quarters (77.7%) of older Australians living in households said they were satisfied all or most of the time.

We asked questions about carers living in households. We found that:

• 3 million people, or 11.9% of Australians who were living in households, were carers in 2022 – up from 10.8% in 2018
• females (12.8%) were more likely to be carers than males (11.1%)
• 391,300 carers were under the age of 25, up from 235,300 carers in 2018
• 1.2 million people in Australia were primary carers in 2022
• 43.8% of primary carers had disability themselves
• the most common reason people gave for becoming primary carers was that they felt responsible for their family. This was 64.7% of all primary carers.

We also asked primary carers how often they took part in social activities. We found that 72.3% of primary carers saw family and friends who were not living in the same household at least once a week in 2022.

In the survey, a carer is someone who gives informal assistance to people with disability or older people. Informal assistance is unpaid help from family, friends and neighbours.

Primary carers are people who:

• give the most informal assistance with everyday activities

             and

• are 15 years or older.