Estimated resident population
The ABS estimate of Australia’s usual residents, rather than a live headcount or a count of citizens. These are end-of-quarter estimates, which can be revised.
Australia · Population
Understanding
the population numbers.
What these estimates count, how the comparisons work, and where the figures come from.
March quarter 2026 · Original data · Published 17 September 2026
Not seasonally adjusted (original) means regular seasonal patterns remain in the figures. It does not mean the first or unrevised edition. Seasonally adjusted figures allow for regular seasonal patterns; the label does not mean more up-to-date.
The measures in plain English
Natural increase
Births less deaths. It can be positive or negative.
Net overseas migration
Migrant arrivals less migrant departures under the ABS usual-residence rules. It includes eligible temporary residents and Australians moving overseas or returning; it is not simply permanent migration or visa grants.
Original data
Published estimates without seasonal adjustment. Quarterly flows can have seasonal patterns. The annual view sums four consecutive quarters to make the longer-run comparison easier; it is not a seasonally adjusted estimate.
Annual change
The published change over the year ending at that quarter. Annual flow components are four-quarter sums; a population stock is never summed across quarters.
Cumulative change
100 × (population at the end / population at the selected start − 1). The starting quarter is the baseline, not an extra quarter of growth.
Why these pages use original data
The accepted population release contains original series only. We retain the published basis rather than estimating a seasonally adjusted series. Year-ending comparisons reduce seasonal noise while keeping the measure explicit. The wider site’s seasonally adjusted default continues wherever suitable published data exists.
What this section includes
National quarterly population and components from June 1981 to March 2026. Each series retains its actual availability. This is one publication vintage, including revisions to earlier estimates; it is not what was known at every past date. No population-clock extrapolation or forecasts are included. The population history page also includes separately labelled annual estimates from 1901 to2021, with modern resident estimates from 1971. Indigenous coverage changes in 1961; annual historical and current quarterly vintages are never spliced.
States, territories, regions and age profiles would add useful detail, but they are not in this adopted national release. They are left for a separate data extension rather than filled with mismatched Census or labour-force figures.
Sources and calculations
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics: National, state and territory population, March 2026, published 17 September 2026. Table 1, national population and components. Aggregate numerical data under CC BY 4.0. Extracted and processed by Common Sense Money Pty Ltd. Independent presentation; no ABS endorsement.
Accepted release: OD-MACRO-POP01-2026-03-0.1.0. Source thousands are multiplied by 1,000 for people, or divided by 1,000 for population in millions. Calculations use the accepted values before display rounding. Four-quarter sums require four consecutive numeric observations; missing values remain Unavailable. Annual rates are published ABS figures, not quarterly rates multiplied by four.
Earlier annual source: ABS Historical population, 2021, Table 2, published 16 July 2024 and updated 20 August 2024. National Persons annual stock only, original data. Accepted OD-HIST01-POPULATION-2021-0.1.0; source archive and full native locators retained. See the ABS historical methodology for coverage and concept changes.
The detailed current quarterly source record retains all 13 series and 2,340 cells, including discontinued migration measures and explicit blanks. The reader-facing charts use the relevant series without extending discontinued histories. The selected edition does not update automatically.
Population sources and methods · March quarter 2026