Births, Australia

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Statistics about births and fertility rates for Australia, states and territories, and sub-state regions

Reference period

2019

Released

9/12/2020

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Key statistics

There were 305,832 registered births in 2019, a decrease of 3.0% from 2018
For all Australian women, the total fertility rate was 1.66 births per woman
For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, the total fertility rate was 2.32 births per woman

The reference period for the statistics precedes COVID-19.

Summary statistics
			2009	2018	2019(a)
Births
	Males	no.	154,875	162,088	157,476
	Females	no.	146,378	153,059	148,356
	Persons	no.	301,253	315,147	305,832
	Sex ratio	ratio	105.8	105.9	106.1
	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Persons(b)	no.	16,912	21,928	21,925
Fertility
	Total fertility rate(c)	rate	1.970	1.740	1.657
	Total fertility rate for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women(b)(c)(d)	rate	2.433	2.371	2.316
	Crude birth rate(e)	rate	13.9	12.6	12.1
	Net reproduction rate(f)	rate	0.940	0.838	0.797

a. Data for 2019 shows a decline of 9,315 births compared with the number of births registered in 2018. New South Wales recorded the largest decline (-8,554 births or -8.1%). In 2018, New South Wales addressed their backlog of registrations, and as a result, birth registrations for 2018 were highest on record. Registrations for 2019 returned to be more in line with recent levels. Further information can be found in 'New South Wales birth registrations' under Data quality, Methodology.
b. Care should be taken when interpreting data, due to changes over time in the completeness and coverage of responses by the parent(s) to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander question on the birth registration form.
c. Births per woman.
d. Fertility rates for 2018 and 2019 are calculated using 2016 Census-based population projections.
e. Births per 1,000 estimated resident population.
f. Net reproduction rate is the average number of daughters surviving to reproductive age per woman.

National

Births registered

There were 305,832 births in 2019, decreasing by 3.0% (or 9,315 births) from 2018
51.5% were males, resulting in a sex ratio at birth of 106.1 male births per 100 female births
64.4% were to parents in a registered marriage

Births registered, 1935 to 2019
Year	Births registered
1935	111,325
1936	116,073
1937	119,131
1938	120,415
1939	122,891
1940	126,347
1941	134,525
1942	136,708
1943	149,295
1944	153,344
1945	160,560
1946	176,379
1947	182,384
1948	177,976
1949	181,261
1950	190,591
1951	193,298
1952	201,650
1953	202,235
1954	202,256
1955	207,677
1956	212,133
1957	220,358
1958	222,504
1959	226,976
1960	230,326
1961	239,986
1962	237,081
1963	235,689
1964	229,149
1965	222,854
1966	223,731
1967	229,296
1968	240,906
1969	250,175
1970	257,516
1971	276,361
1972	264,969
1973	247,670
1974	245,177
1975	233,012
1976	227,810
1977	226,291
1978	224,181
1979	223,129
1980	225,527
1981	235,842
1982	239,903
1983	242,570
1984	234,034
1985	247,348
1986	243,408
1987	243,959
1988	246,193
1989	250,853
1990	262,648
1991	257,247
1992	264,151
1993	260,229
1994	258,051
1995	256,190
1996	253,834
1997	251,842
1998	249,616
1999	248,870
2000	249,636
2001	246,394
2002	250,988
2003	251,161
2004	254,246
2005	264,493
2006	270,849
2007	292,152
2008	302,272
2009	301,253
2010	303,318
2011	301,617
2012	309,582
2013	308,065
2014	299,697
2015	305,377
2016	311,104
2017	309,142
2018	315,147
2019(a)	305,832

Births registered, 1935 to 2019

["Year","Births registered"]

[["1935","1936","1937","1938","1939","1940","1941","1942","1943","1944","1945","1946","1947","1948","1949","1950","1951","1952","1953","1954","1955","1956","1957","1958","1959","1960","1961","1962","1963","1964","1965","1966","1967","1968","1969","1970","1971","1972","1973","1974","1975","1976","1977","1978","1979","1980","1981","1982","1983","1984","1985","1986","1987","1988","1989","1990","1991","1992","1993","1994","1995","1996","1997","1998","1999","2000","2001","2002","2003","2004","2005","2006","2007","2008","2009","2010","2011","2012","2013","2014","2015","2016","2017","2018","2019(a)"],[[111325],[116073],[119131],[120415],[122891],[126347],[134525],[136708],[149295],[153344],[160560],[176379],[182384],[177976],[181261],[190591],[193298],[201650],[202235],[202256],[207677],[212133],[220358],[222504],[226976],[230326],[239986],[237081],[235689],[229149],[222854],[223731],[229296],[240906],[250175],[257516],[276361],[264969],[247670],[245177],[233012],[227810],[226291],[224181],[223129],[225527],[235842],[239903],[242570],[234034],[247348],[243408],[243959],[246193],[250853],[262648],[257247],[264151],[260229],[258051],[256190],[253834],[251842],[249616],[248870],[249636],[246394],[250988],[251161],[254246],[264493],[270849],[292152],[302272],[301253],[303318],[301617],[309582],[308065],[299697],[305377],[311104],[309142],[315147],[305832]]]

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Median age of parents

Median age of parents, 1935 to 2019
Year	Median age of mother	Median age of father (a)
1935	27.73	-
1936	27.67	-
1937	27.55	-
1938	27.57	-
1939	27.55	-
1940	27.62	-
1941	27.53	-
1942	27.65	-
1943	27.72	-
1944	28.18	-
1945	28.18	-
1946	27.9	-
1947	27.5	-
1948	27.46	-
1949	27.38	-
1950	27.38	-
1951	27.33	-
1952	27.33	-
1953	27.37	-
1954	27.38	-
1955	27.32	-
1956	27.29	-
1957	27.24	-
1958	27.19	-
1959	26.98	-
1960	26.81	-
1961	26.62	-
1962	26.53	-
1963	26.4	-
1964	26.32	-
1965	26.08	-
1966	25.89	-
1967	25.74	-
1968	25.62	-
1969	25.57	-
1970	25.55	-
1971	25.44	-
1972	25.49	-
1973	25.56	-
1974	25.66	-
1975	25.76	28.55
1976	25.91	28.72
1977	26.13	28.98
1978	26.28	29.16
1979	26.46	29.34
1980	26.56	29.45
1981	26.66	29.55
1982	26.8	29.67
1983	26.87	29.74
1984	27.12	29.92
1985	27.33	30.08
1986	27.49	30.24
1987	27.73	30.43
1988	27.94	30.59
1989	28.16	30.76
1990	28.33	30.86
1991	28.47	30.98
1992	28.68	31.19
1993	28.86	31.37
1994	28.98	31.56
1995	29.13	31.74
1996	29.23	31.86
1997	29.37	31.98
1998	29.49	32.02
1999	29.66	32.1
2000	29.84	32.23
2001	30	32.3
2002	30.24	32.45
2003	30.45	32.64
2004	30.6	32.81
2005	30.66	32.91
2006	30.75	33.03
2007	30.69	33.04
2008	30.67	33.07
2009	30.58	33.02
2010	30.64	33.06
2011	30.64	32.98
2012	30.66	32.97
2013	30.77	32.98
2014	30.87	33.03
2015	31	33.1
2016	31.2	33.3
2017	31.3	33.3
2018	31.4	33.5
2019	31.5	33.5

Multiple births

Total fertility rate

The total fertility rate required for replacement is currently considered to be around 2.1 babies per woman to replace herself and her partner.

Australia's total fertility rate:

was 1.66 babies per woman in 2019, decreasing from 1.97 babies per woman since 2009
has been below replacement since 1976

Total fertility rate, 1935 to 2019
Year	Total fertility rate
1935	2.12
1936	2.18
1937	2.21
1938	2.21
1939	2.22
1940	2.26
1941	2.36
1942	2.38
1943	2.57
1944	2.63
1945	2.74
1946	2.99
1947	3.08
1948	2.99
1949	2.99
1950	3.07
1951	3.06
1952	3.18
1953	3.19
1954	3.19
1955	3.28
1956	3.33
1957	3.42
1958	3.42
1959	3.44
1960	3.45
1961	3.55
1962	3.43
1963	3.34
1964	3.15
1965	2.97
1966	2.89
1967	2.85
1968	2.89
1969	2.89
1970	2.86
1971	2.95
1972	2.74
1973	2.49
1974	2.32
1975	2.15
1976	2.06
1977	2.01
1978	1.95
1979	1.91
1980	1.89
1981	1.94
1982	1.93
1983	1.92
1984	1.84
1985	1.92
1986	1.87
1987	1.85
1988	1.83
1989	1.84
1990	1.90
1991	1.85
1992	1.89
1993	1.86
1994	1.85
1995	1.83
1996	1.81
1997	1.79
1998	1.77
1999	1.77
2000	1.77
2001	1.74
2002	1.77
2003	1.77
2004	1.78
2005	1.85
2006	1.88
2007	1.99
2008	2.02
2009	1.97
2010	1.95
2011	1.92
2012	1.93
2013	1.88
2014	1.80
2015	1.80
2016	1.79
2017	1.74
2018	1.74
2019(a)	1.66

Total fertility rate, 1935 to 2019

["Year","Total fertility rate"]

[["1935","1936","1937","1938","1939","1940","1941","1942","1943","1944","1945","1946","1947","1948","1949","1950","1951","1952","1953","1954","1955","1956","1957","1958","1959","1960","1961","1962","1963","1964","1965","1966","1967","1968","1969","1970","1971","1972","1973","1974","1975","1976","1977","1978","1979","1980","1981","1982","1983","1984","1985","1986","1987","1988","1989","1990","1991","1992","1993","1994","1995","1996","1997","1998","1999","2000","2001","2002","2003","2004","2005","2006","2007","2008","2009","2010","2011","2012","2013","2014","2015","2016","2017","2018","2019(a)"],[[2.1150000000000002],[2.1779999999999999],[2.2080000000000002],[2.2050000000000001],[2.222],[2.2559999999999998],[2.3639999999999999],[2.375],[2.569],[2.6299999999999999],[2.7360000000000002],[2.9860000000000002],[3.0760000000000001],[2.9849999999999999],[2.9860000000000002],[3.0670000000000002],[3.0590000000000002],[3.181],[3.1930000000000001],[3.1909999999999998],[3.2749999999999999],[3.3300000000000001],[3.4209999999999998],[3.4209999999999998],[3.4399999999999999],[3.4510000000000001],[3.548],[3.431],[3.343],[3.1539999999999999],[2.9729999999999999],[2.8849999999999998],[2.847],[2.8860000000000001],[2.887],[2.859],[2.9449999999999998],[2.7429999999999999],[2.4910000000000001],[2.3210000000000002],[2.1480000000000001],[2.0600000000000001],[2.0070000000000001],[1.9490000000000001],[1.907],[1.891],[1.9350000000000001],[1.929],[1.9239999999999999],[1.8400000000000001],[1.923],[1.8680000000000001],[1.845],[1.831],[1.8380000000000001],[1.9019999999999999],[1.849],[1.8899999999999999],[1.863],[1.847],[1.829],[1.8049999999999999],[1.788],[1.7729999999999999],[1.7669999999999999],[1.7689999999999999],[1.7430000000000001],[1.7709999999999999],[1.7649999999999999],[1.782],[1.8460000000000001],[1.875],[1.994],[2.0230000000000001],[1.97],[1.954],[1.917],[1.929],[1.881],[1.7949999999999999],[1.796],[1.792],[1.7410000000000001],[1.74],[1.657]]]

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Age-specific fertility rate

In recent decades, the average age of mothers has been increasing.

All age groups except for 45-49 years showed a decline in fertility rate from 2018
Women aged 30-34 years had the highest fertility rate at 114.9 babies per 1,000 women, increasing from 108.6 babies in 1999
Women aged 15-19 years had the lowest fertility rate at 8.7 babies per 1,000 women, declining from 18.6 babies in 1999

Age-specific fertility rates, 1935 to 2019
Year	15-19	20-24	25-29	30-34	35-39	40-44	45-49
1935	24.6	99.6	123.2	94	57.3	21.9	2.3
1936	24.9	103.5	127.5	95.5	60.3	21.6	2.2
1937	24.6	107.1	130.7	97.9	58.6	20.7	2
1938	23.8	108.4	130.9	99.2	56.3	20.2	2.1
1939	24.3	110.5	133.9	98.3	56.4	19	1.9
1940	23.6	112.5	136.8	100.5	56.6	19.4	1.7
1941	24.3	121	143.5	104.9	57.8	19.6	1.7
1942	24	121.8	143.6	104.2	60	19.6	1.7
1943	24.3	132.5	155.4	114.8	64.5	20.6	1.6
1944	22.9	126.7	157.3	122.5	72.9	22.1	1.6
1945	23.8	132.4	164.2	125.2	76.1	23.7	1.8
1946	26.1	151.1	183.2	131.7	78.3	24.6	2.1
1947	32.1	166.2	186.6	130	75	23.5	1.8
1948	34.2	163	179.8	124.6	71.2	22.5	1.7
1949	35.8	167.4	180.9	121.9	68.4	21.2	1.6
1950	37	173.5	186	124.6	68.8	21.8	1.6
1951	38.6	177.2	185.3	123.1	65	21	1.6
1952	39.3	189.7	192.7	126.1	66.1	20.5	1.7
1953	38.8	194.7	193.2	124.6	65.3	20.5	1.4
1954	39.2	197.1	194	121.8	64.4	20.2	1.5
1955	41.8	205.4	199.6	122	64.4	20.4	1.4
1956	43	210.9	203	123.5	64.2	19.7	1.6
1957	44	216.2	210.7	127.2	65.1	19.5	1.4
1958	44.6	215.9	212.9	126.4	64.3	18.5	1.5
1959	45.2	219	214.4	125.7	63.6	18.6	1.5
1960	44.3	220.1	216.3	127.5	62.3	18.4	1.3
1961	47.4	225.8	221.2	131.1	63.4	19.2	1.4
1962	44.7	216	216.7	127.7	61.4	18.4	1.2
1963	45.9	208.2	211.2	123.9	59.7	18.6	1.1
1964	47	190.5	198.1	119.1	58.4	16.5	1.2
1965	47.5	179.3	188.5	110.1	53	15	1.1
1966	48.9	173.1	183.9	105.1	50.6	14.2	1.1
1967	48.4	170.8	185	102.8	47.8	13.5	1.1
1968	48.9	173.6	190.8	103.3	46.7	12.9	1
1969	49	174.2	191.8	103.5	45.6	12.2	1
1970	50.9	172	189.6	101.8	44.9	11.7	0.8
1971	55.5	181.9	193.5	101.8	44.2	11.3	0.8
1972	54.5	168.7	181.7	94	38.9	10	0.8
1973	49.1	155.4	166.9	84.2	33.6	8.4	0.6
1974	44.2	145.4	159.3	78.5	29.1	7.2	0.4
1975	40.1	133.9	149.6	74.1	26	6.1	0.4
1976	35.2	128.2	146.2	72.5	24.1	5.5	0.4
1977	32.1	122	145.7	74.1	23.9	5	0.3
1978	29.9	115.8	144	73.4	23.5	4.5	0.2
1979	28.5	109.1	142.5	73.9	23.6	4.6	0.3
1980	27.6	107	141	75.1	23.7	4.4	0.3
1981	28.2	107.5	145.2	77.6	24.5	4.5	0.3
1982	27.4	103.9	144.9	80.6	25.6	4.5	0.3
1983	26.6	102.7	145.9	81.5	25	4.3	0.2
1984	23.2	94.3	140.4	81.2	25	4.3	0.3
1985	22.8	95.8	146	89	26.9	4.5	0.2
1986	21.8	90	141.9	88.7	27.2	4.3	0.2
1987	20.6	85	139.6	90.6	28.9	4.8	0.3
1988	20.3	81.5	136.9	93.3	30.5	4.6	0.2
1989	20.6	78.4	135.4	96.1	32.6	5	0.2
1990	22.1	79.4	137.9	101.7	34.7	5.5	0.2
1991	22.1	75	132	100.2	36	5.5	0.2
1992	22	75	132.5	104.6	38.4	6.2	0.3
1993	21	71.4	130	105.6	38.9	6.3	0.2
1994	20.7	69.9	126.2	105.3	41.2	6.7	0.3
1995	20.5	67.4	122.2	106.4	42.4	7.2	0.3
1996	20.2	65.6	117.8	106.1	43.9	7.5	0.3
1997	19.9	63.2	114.4	107	45	7.5	0.3
1998	19	61.8	112.1	107.5	45.7	8.1	0.3
1999	18.6	61.3	109.4	108.6	47.1	8.5	0.3
2000	17.8	59.7	108.8	110.2	48.9	8.8	0.4
2001	17.9	58.6	105.4	108.6	49.3	9.2	0.4
2002	17.4	57	105.6	112	52.5	9.8	0.4
2003	16.2	54.8	103.6	113.3	54.7	10.1	0.5
2004	16.2	53.4	103.1	115.1	57.7	10.6	0.5
2005	16.6	54.4	105.5	119.5	61.5	11.1	0.5
2006	16.3	54.1	104.7	123.1	64.7	11.6	0.6
2007	17.1	58.8	110	129.7	69.6	13	0.7
2008	18.4	59.4	108.9	130.7	72	14.5	0.7
2009	17.9	56.8	106.3	127.7	70.1	14.5	0.7
2010	16.7	55.3	104	127.2	71.1	15.1	0.8
2011	16.1	53	103.1	124.9	70.3	15.2	0.9
2012	16.1	53.2	102.6	126.9	71.5	15.2	1
2013	14.6	51.3	99.1	124.8	70.9	15.4	0.9
2014	12.9	47.4	94.8	120.4	69.2	14.4	1
2015	12	47.3	93.4	121.7	69.8	14.6	1.1
2016	10.5	44.7	92.2	123.6	72	15.3	1.3
2017	10.2	42.9	89.5	119	71.5	15.4	1.2
2018	9.5	42.6	89	119.7	71.9	16	1.3
2019	8.7	39.7	83.8	114.9	69.5	15.6	1.3

Age-specific fertility rates, 1935 to 2019

["Year","15-19","20-24","25-29","30-34","35-39","40-44","45-49"]

[["1935","1936","1937","1938","1939","1940","1941","1942","1943","1944","1945","1946","1947","1948","1949","1950","1951","1952","1953","1954","1955","1956","1957","1958","1959","1960","1961","1962","1963","1964","1965","1966","1967","1968","1969","1970","1971","1972","1973","1974","1975","1976","1977","1978","1979","1980","1981","1982","1983","1984","1985","1986","1987","1988","1989","1990","1991","1992","1993","1994","1995","1996","1997","1998","1999","2000","2001","2002","2003","2004","2005","2006","2007","2008","2009","2010","2011","2012","2013","2014","2015","2016","2017","2018","2019"],[[24.600000000000001],[24.899999999999999],[24.600000000000001],[23.800000000000001],[24.300000000000001],[23.600000000000001],[24.300000000000001],[24],[24.300000000000001],[22.899999999999999],[23.800000000000001],[26.100000000000001],[32.100000000000001],[34.200000000000003],[35.799999999999997],[37],[38.600000000000001],[39.299999999999997],[38.799999999999997],[39.200000000000003],[41.799999999999997],[43],[44],[44.600000000000001],[45.200000000000003],[44.299999999999997],[47.399999999999999],[44.700000000000003],[45.899999999999999],[47],[47.5],[48.899999999999999],[48.399999999999999],[48.899999999999999],[49],[50.899999999999999],[55.5],[54.5],[49.100000000000001],[44.200000000000003],[40.100000000000001],[35.200000000000003],[32.100000000000001],[29.899999999999999],[28.5],[27.600000000000001],[28.199999999999999],[27.399999999999999],[26.600000000000001],[23.199999999999999],[22.800000000000001],[21.800000000000001],[20.600000000000001],[20.300000000000001],[20.600000000000001],[22.100000000000001],[22.100000000000001],[22],[21],[20.699999999999999],[20.5],[20.199999999999999],[19.899999999999999],[19],[18.600000000000001],[17.800000000000001],[17.899999999999999],[17.399999999999999],[16.199999999999999],[16.199999999999999],[16.600000000000001],[16.300000000000001],[17.100000000000001],[18.399999999999999],[17.899999999999999],[16.699999999999999],[16.100000000000001],[16.100000000000001],[14.6],[12.9],[12],[10.5],[10.199999999999999],[9.5],[8.6999999999999993]],[[99.599999999999994],[103.5],[107.09999999999999],[108.40000000000001],[110.5],[112.5],[121],[121.8],[132.5],[126.7],[132.40000000000001],[151.09999999999999],[166.19999999999999],[163],[167.40000000000001],[173.5],[177.19999999999999],[189.69999999999999],[194.69999999999999],[197.09999999999999],[205.40000000000001],[210.90000000000001],[216.19999999999999],[215.90000000000001],[219],[220.09999999999999],[225.80000000000001],[216],[208.19999999999999],[190.5],[179.30000000000001],[173.09999999999999],[170.80000000000001],[173.59999999999999],[174.19999999999999],[172],[181.90000000000001],[168.69999999999999],[155.40000000000001],[145.40000000000001],[133.90000000000001],[128.19999999999999],[122],[115.8],[109.09999999999999],[107],[107.5],[103.90000000000001],[102.7],[94.299999999999997],[95.799999999999997],[90],[85],[81.5],[78.400000000000006],[79.400000000000006],[75],[75],[71.400000000000006],[69.900000000000006],[67.400000000000006],[65.599999999999994],[63.200000000000003],[61.799999999999997],[61.299999999999997],[59.700000000000003],[58.600000000000001],[57],[54.799999999999997],[53.399999999999999],[54.399999999999999],[54.100000000000001],[58.799999999999997],[59.399999999999999],[56.799999999999997],[55.299999999999997],[53],[53.200000000000003],[51.299999999999997],[47.399999999999999],[47.299999999999997],[44.700000000000003],[42.899999999999999],[42.600000000000001],[39.700000000000003]],[[123.2],[127.5],[130.69999999999999],[130.90000000000001],[133.90000000000001],[136.80000000000001],[143.5],[143.59999999999999],[155.40000000000001],[157.30000000000001],[164.19999999999999],[183.19999999999999],[186.59999999999999],[179.80000000000001],[180.90000000000001],[186],[185.30000000000001],[192.69999999999999],[193.19999999999999],[194],[199.59999999999999],[203],[210.69999999999999],[212.90000000000001],[214.40000000000001],[216.30000000000001],[221.19999999999999],[216.69999999999999],[211.19999999999999],[198.09999999999999],[188.5],[183.90000000000001],[185],[190.80000000000001],[191.80000000000001],[189.59999999999999],[193.5],[181.69999999999999],[166.90000000000001],[159.30000000000001],[149.59999999999999],[146.19999999999999],[145.69999999999999],[144],[142.5],[141],[145.19999999999999],[144.90000000000001],[145.90000000000001],[140.40000000000001],[146],[141.90000000000001],[139.59999999999999],[136.90000000000001],[135.40000000000001],[137.90000000000001],[132],[132.5],[130],[126.2],[122.2],[117.8],[114.40000000000001],[112.09999999999999],[109.40000000000001],[108.8],[105.40000000000001],[105.59999999999999],[103.59999999999999],[103.09999999999999],[105.5],[104.7],[110],[108.90000000000001],[106.3],[104],[103.09999999999999],[102.59999999999999],[99.099999999999994],[94.799999999999997],[93.400000000000006],[92.200000000000003],[89.5],[89],[83.799999999999997]],[[94],[95.5],[97.900000000000006],[99.200000000000003],[98.299999999999997],[100.5],[104.90000000000001],[104.2],[114.8],[122.5],[125.2],[131.69999999999999],[130],[124.59999999999999],[121.90000000000001],[124.59999999999999],[123.09999999999999],[126.09999999999999],[124.59999999999999],[121.8],[122],[123.5],[127.2],[126.40000000000001],[125.7],[127.5],[131.09999999999999],[127.7],[123.90000000000001],[119.09999999999999],[110.09999999999999],[105.09999999999999],[102.8],[103.3],[103.5],[101.8],[101.8],[94],[84.200000000000003],[78.5],[74.099999999999994],[72.5],[74.099999999999994],[73.400000000000006],[73.900000000000006],[75.099999999999994],[77.599999999999994],[80.599999999999994],[81.5],[81.200000000000003],[89],[88.700000000000003],[90.599999999999994],[93.299999999999997],[96.099999999999994],[101.7],[100.2],[104.59999999999999],[105.59999999999999],[105.3],[106.40000000000001],[106.09999999999999],[107],[107.5],[108.59999999999999],[110.2],[108.59999999999999],[112],[113.3],[115.09999999999999],[119.5],[123.09999999999999],[129.69999999999999],[130.69999999999999],[127.7],[127.2],[124.90000000000001],[126.90000000000001],[124.8],[120.40000000000001],[121.7],[123.59999999999999],[119],[119.7],[114.90000000000001]],[[57.299999999999997],[60.299999999999997],[58.600000000000001],[56.299999999999997],[56.399999999999999],[56.600000000000001],[57.799999999999997],[60],[64.5],[72.900000000000006],[76.099999999999994],[78.299999999999997],[75],[71.200000000000003],[68.400000000000006],[68.799999999999997],[65],[66.099999999999994],[65.299999999999997],[64.400000000000006],[64.400000000000006],[64.200000000000003],[65.099999999999994],[64.299999999999997],[63.600000000000001],[62.299999999999997],[63.399999999999999],[61.399999999999999],[59.700000000000003],[58.399999999999999],[53],[50.600000000000001],[47.799999999999997],[46.700000000000003],[45.600000000000001],[44.899999999999999],[44.200000000000003],[38.899999999999999],[33.600000000000001],[29.100000000000001],[26],[24.100000000000001],[23.899999999999999],[23.5],[23.600000000000001],[23.699999999999999],[24.5],[25.600000000000001],[25],[25],[26.899999999999999],[27.199999999999999],[28.899999999999999],[30.5],[32.600000000000001],[34.700000000000003],[36],[38.399999999999999],[38.899999999999999],[41.200000000000003],[42.399999999999999],[43.899999999999999],[45],[45.700000000000003],[47.100000000000001],[48.899999999999999],[49.299999999999997],[52.5],[54.700000000000003],[57.700000000000003],[61.5],[64.700000000000003],[69.599999999999994],[72],[70.099999999999994],[71.099999999999994],[70.299999999999997],[71.5],[70.900000000000006],[69.200000000000003],[69.799999999999997],[72],[71.5],[71.900000000000006],[69.5]],[[21.899999999999999],[21.600000000000001],[20.699999999999999],[20.199999999999999],[19],[19.399999999999999],[19.600000000000001],[19.600000000000001],[20.600000000000001],[22.100000000000001],[23.699999999999999],[24.600000000000001],[23.5],[22.5],[21.199999999999999],[21.800000000000001],[21],[20.5],[20.5],[20.199999999999999],[20.399999999999999],[19.699999999999999],[19.5],[18.5],[18.600000000000001],[18.399999999999999],[19.199999999999999],[18.399999999999999],[18.600000000000001],[16.5],[15],[14.199999999999999],[13.5],[12.9],[12.199999999999999],[11.699999999999999],[11.300000000000001],[10],[8.4000000000000004],[7.2000000000000002],[6.0999999999999996],[5.5],[5],[4.5],[4.5999999999999996],[4.4000000000000004],[4.5],[4.5],[4.2999999999999998],[4.2999999999999998],[4.5],[4.2999999999999998],[4.7999999999999998],[4.5999999999999996],[5],[5.5],[5.5],[6.2000000000000002],[6.2999999999999998],[6.7000000000000002],[7.2000000000000002],[7.5],[7.5],[8.0999999999999996],[8.5],[8.8000000000000007],[9.1999999999999993],[9.8000000000000007],[10.1],[10.6],[11.1],[11.6],[13],[14.5],[14.5],[15.1],[15.199999999999999],[15.199999999999999],[15.4],[14.4],[14.6],[15.300000000000001],[15.4],[16],[15.6]],[[2.2999999999999998],[2.2000000000000002],[2],[2.1000000000000001],[1.8999999999999999],[1.7],[1.7],[1.7],[1.6000000000000001],[1.6000000000000001],[1.8],[2.1000000000000001],[1.8],[1.7],[1.6000000000000001],[1.6000000000000001],[1.6000000000000001],[1.7],[1.3999999999999999],[1.5],[1.3999999999999999],[1.6000000000000001],[1.3999999999999999],[1.5],[1.5],[1.3],[1.3999999999999999],[1.2],[1.1000000000000001],[1.2],[1.1000000000000001],[1.1000000000000001],[1.1000000000000001],[1],[1],[0.80000000000000004],[0.80000000000000004],[0.80000000000000004],[0.59999999999999998],[0.40000000000000002],[0.40000000000000002],[0.40000000000000002],[0.29999999999999999],[0.20000000000000001],[0.29999999999999999],[0.29999999999999999],[0.29999999999999999],[0.29999999999999999],[0.20000000000000001],[0.29999999999999999],[0.20000000000000001],[0.20000000000000001],[0.29999999999999999],[0.20000000000000001],[0.20000000000000001],[0.20000000000000001],[0.20000000000000001],[0.29999999999999999],[0.20000000000000001],[0.29999999999999999],[0.29999999999999999],[0.29999999999999999],[0.29999999999999999],[0.29999999999999999],[0.29999999999999999],[0.40000000000000002],[0.40000000000000002],[0.40000000000000002],[0.5],[0.5],[0.5],[0.59999999999999998],[0.69999999999999996],[0.69999999999999996],[0.69999999999999996],[0.80000000000000004],[0.90000000000000002],[1],[0.90000000000000002],[1],[1.1000000000000001],[1.3],[1.2],[1.3],[1.3]]]

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States and territories

Births registered

New South Wales recorded the largest decrease in registered births (-8,554 births or -8.1%) after a catch-up in registration processing lags in 2018
Victoria recorded a decrease of 1,212 births (or -1.5%) from 2018
South Australia had the largest increase in the number of births since 2018 (372 births or 1.9%)

Births registered by state and territory
			Change from	Change from
	2018	2019(a)	2018 to 2019 (no.)	2018 to 2019 (%)
New South Wales(a)	105,463	96,909	-8,554	-8.1
Victoria	79,675	78,463	-1,212	-1.5
Queensland	61,956	61,795	-161	-0.3
South Australia	19,154	19,526	372	1.9
Western Australia	33,211	33,510	299	0.9
Tasmania	5,525	5,716	191	3.5
Northern Territory	4,051	3,613	-438	-10.8
Australian Capital Territory	6,112	6,300	188	3.1
Australia	315,147	305,832	-9,315	-3

a. Data for 2019 shows a decline of 9,315 births compared with the number of births registered in 2018. New South Wales recorded the largest decline (-8,554 births or -8.1%). New South Wales addressed their backlog of registrations, and as a result, birth registrations for 2018 were highest on record. Registrations for 2019 returned to be more in line with recent levels. Further information can be found in 'New South Wales birth registrations' under Data quality, Methodology.

Median age of parents

Multiple births

Multiple births by state and territory(a)
			Triplets and	Total	Total
New South Wales	96,003	1,450	21	1,471	97,474
Victoria	74,962	1,137	12	1,149	76,111
Queensland	60,007	866	10	876	60,883
South Australia	18,917	286	4	289	19,206
Western Australia	32,578	482	5	487	33,065
Tasmania	5,571	84	3	87	5,658
Northern Territory	3,545	57	0	57	3,602
Australian Capital Territory	5,357	84	4	85	5,442
Australia(b)	296,963	4,446	55	4,501	301,464

Total fertility rate

The Northern Territory recorded the highest total fertility rate (1.84 babies per woman), followed by Tasmania (1.79 babies per woman)
Victoria recorded the lowest total fertility rate (1.53 babies per woman)

Total fertility rate by state and territory
	2009	2018	2019
NSW(a)	1.98	1.86	1.69
Vic.	1.83	1.60	1.53
Qld	2.17	1.76	1.72
SA	1.89	1.67	1.69
WA	1.95	1.76	1.77
Tas.	2.17	1.77	1.79
NT	2.11	2.03	1.84
ACT	1.72	1.55	1.57
Australia(b)	1.97	1.74	1.66

Total fertility rate by state and territory

["","2009","2018","2019"]

[["NSW(a)","Vic.","Qld","SA","WA","Tas.","NT","ACT","Australia(b)"],[[1.98],[1.8300000000000001],[2.1699999999999999],[1.8899999999999999],[1.95],[2.1699999999999999],[2.1099999999999999],[1.72],[1.97]],[[1.8600000000000001],[1.6000000000000001],[1.76],[1.6699999999999999],[1.76],[1.77],[2.0299999999999998],[1.55],[1.74]],[[1.6899999999999999],[1.53],[1.72],[1.6899999999999999],[1.77],[1.79],[1.8400000000000001],[1.5700000000000001],[1.6599999999999999]]]

[]

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Data for 2019 shows a decline of 9,315 births compared with the number of births registered in 2018. New South Wales recorded the largest decline (-8,554 births or -8.1%). In 2018, New South Wales addressed their backlog of registrations, and as a result, birth registrations for 2018 were highest on record. Registrations for 2019 returned to be more in line with recent levels. Further information can be found in 'New South Wales birth registrations' under Data quality, Methodology.
Includes Other Territories.

Net reproduction rate

Net reproduction rate by state and territory
	2018	2019
NSW	0.90	0.81
Vic.	0.77	0.74
Qld	0.85	0.83
SA	0.80	0.81
WA	0.85	0.85
Tas.	0.85	0.85
NT	0.97	0.87
ACT	0.75	0.75
Australia	0.84	0.80

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples

Births registered

There were 21,925 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander births registered, with little change (3 babies less) from 2018. This represents 7.2% of all births registered in 2019.

New South Wales and Queensland recorded the highest number of births (7,128 and 6,882)
The Australian Capital Territory recorded the lowest number of births (306)

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander births, year of registration
	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019
New South Wales(a)	5,353	5,801	4,931	5,911	5,577	5,905	7,339	7,128
Victoria	1,438	1,502	1,462	1,370	1,640	1,837	1,864	1,866
Queensland(b)	5,648	5,205	5,394	5,248	5,456	6,615	6,405	6,882
South Australia	868	940	925	949	952	1,016	1,068	1,060
Western Australia	2,652	2,734	2,795	2,985	2,750	2,773	2,704	2,681
Tasmania	536	526	545	515	585	612	578	619
Northern Territory(c)	1,588	1,445	1,486	1,365	1,373	1,402	1,711	1,383
Australian Capital Territory	212	215	241	194	227	240	259	306
Australia	18,295	18,368	17,779	18,537	18,560	20,400	21,928	21,925

a. Some of the increases in 2018 and 2019 were due to a catch-up in registration processing lags.
b. Some of the increases from 2017 were due to catch-up in registration processing lags while some of the increases in 2018 and 2019 were due to active engagement programs by the Queensland registry to improve under registration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander births.
c. Some of the increases in 2018 were due to a catch-up in processing lags.

Median age of parents

Total fertility rate

The total fertility rate for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women was:

2.32 babies per woman
higher than for all Australian women (1.66)

Age-specific fertility rate

Age-specific fertility rate
Age group	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women	All women
15-19	45.1	8.7
20-24	126.9	39.7
25-29	125	83.8
30-34	98.1	114.9
35-39	55.9	69.5
40-44	11.6	15.6
45-49	0.4	1.3

Previous catalogue number

This release previously used catalogue number 3301.0

Data downloads

Table 1: Births, summary, Statistical Areas level 4 - 2012 to 2019

Data files

Download xlsx [129.07 KB]

Table 2: Births, summary, Statistical Areas level 2 - 2012 to 2019

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Table 3: Births, summary, Local Government Areas - 2012 to 2019

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Table 4: Births, summary, Remoteness Areas - 2012 to 2019

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Table 5: Births, summary, Remoteness Areas, Indigenous status - 2011 to 2019

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Table 6: Births, country of birth of parent, Australia - 2019

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Download xlsx [91.31 KB]

All data cubes

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ABS.Stat datasets

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Births, summary, by state

Fertility, by age, by state

Confinements, by nuptiality, by state

Births, by year and month of occurrence, by state

Paternity, by age, by state

Confinements, by plurality, by state

Births, by nuptiality, by age of mother

Births, by nuptiality, by age of father

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander births and confinements, summary, by state

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander fertility, by age, by state

Methodology

Births, Australia methodology, 2019

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Births, Australia

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Key statistics

National

Births registered

Median age of parents

Multiple births

Total fertility rate

Age-specific fertility rate

States and territories

Births registered

Median age of parents

Multiple births

Total fertility rate

Net reproduction rate

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples

Births registered

Median age of parents

Total fertility rate

Age-specific fertility rate

Previous catalogue number

Data downloads

Table 1: Births, summary, Statistical Areas level 4 - 2012 to 2019

Table 2: Births, summary, Statistical Areas level 2 - 2012 to 2019

Table 3: Births, summary, Local Government Areas - 2012 to 2019

Table 4: Births, summary, Remoteness Areas - 2012 to 2019

Table 5: Births, summary, Remoteness Areas, Indigenous status - 2011 to 2019

Table 6: Births, country of birth of parent, Australia - 2019

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Methodology

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			Triplets and	Total	Total
	Single	Twins	higher order	multiple births	confinements
New South Wales	96,003	1,450	21	1,471	97,474
Victoria	74,962	1,137	12	1,149	76,111
Queensland	60,007	866	10	876	60,883
South Australia	18,917	286	4	289	19,206
Western Australia	32,578	482	5	487	33,065
Tasmania	5,571	84	3	87	5,658
Northern Territory	3,545	57	0	57	3,602
Australian Capital Territory	5,357	84	4	85	5,442
Australia(b)	296,963	4,446	55	4,501	301,464