Cattle livestock count heads in Australia
Australia: Cattle livestock count heads was 30.37 million in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
30.37 million
Change on year
up 1.7%
World rank
13th
of 197 countries
All-time high
33.43 million
in 1976
All-time low
17.33 million
in 1961
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Cattle livestock count heads in Australia, 1961–2024
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2024, cattle livestock count heads in Australia stood at 30.37 million.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.7% on the previous year and up 4.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cattle livestock count heads in Australia peaked at 33.43 million in 1976 and was at its lowest, 17.33 million, in 1961.
That places Australia 13th out of 197 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Cattle livestock count heads in Australia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 17.33 million | — |
| 1962 | 18.03 million | +4.0% |
| 1963 | 18.55 million | +2.9% |
| 1964 | 19.05 million | +2.7% |
| 1965 | 18.82 million | -1.3% |
| 1966 | 17.94 million | -4.7% |
| 1967 | 18.27 million | +1.9% |
| 1968 | 19.22 million | +5.2% |
| 1969 | 20.61 million | +7.2% |
| 1970 | 22.16 million | +7.5% |
| 1971 | 24.37 million | +10.0% |
| 1972 | 27.37 million | +12.3% |
| 1973 | 29.10 million | +6.3% |
| 1974 | 30.84 million | +6.0% |
| 1975 | 32.79 million | +6.3% |
| 1976 | 33.43 million | +2.0% |
| 1977 | 31.53 million | -5.7% |
| 1978 | 29.33 million | -7.0% |
| 1979 | 27.11 million | -7.6% |
| 1980 | 26.20 million | -3.4% |
| 1981 | 25.17 million | -3.9% |
| 1982 | 24.55 million | -2.4% |
| 1983 | 22.48 million | -8.4% |
| 1984 | 22.16 million | -1.4% |
| 1985 | 22.74 million | +2.6% |
| 1986 | 23.44 million | +3.1% |
| 1987 | 21.91 million | -6.5% |
| 1988 | 21.85 million | -0.3% |
| 1989 | 22.43 million | +2.7% |
| 1990 | 23.16 million | +3.2% |
| 1991 | 23.66 million | +2.2% |
| 1992 | 23.88 million | +0.9% |
| 1993 | 24.06 million | +0.8% |
| 1994 | 25.76 million | +7.0% |
| 1995 | 25.73 million | -0.1% |
| 1996 | 26.38 million | +2.5% |
| 1997 | 26.78 million | +1.5% |
| 1998 | 26.85 million | +0.3% |
| 1999 | 26.58 million | -1.0% |
| 2000 | 27.59 million | +3.8% |
| 2001 | 27.72 million | +0.5% |
| 2002 | 27.87 million | +0.5% |
| 2003 | 26.66 million | -4.3% |
| 2004 | 27.46 million | +3.0% |
| 2005 | 27.78 million | +1.2% |
| 2006 | 28.39 million | +2.2% |
| 2007 | 28.04 million | -1.3% |
| 2008 | 27.32 million | -2.6% |
| 2009 | 27.91 million | +2.1% |
| 2010 | 26.73 million | -4.2% |
| 2011 | 28.51 million | +6.6% |
| 2012 | 28.42 million | -0.3% |
| 2013 | 29.29 million | +3.1% |
| 2014 | 29.10 million | -0.6% |
| 2015 | 27.41 million | -5.8% |
| 2016 | 24.97 million | -8.9% |
| 2017 | 26.18 million | +4.8% |
| 2018 | 26.40 million | +0.8% |
| 2019 | 24.72 million | -6.3% |
| 2020 | 23.50 million | -4.9% |
| 2021 | 24.43 million | +3.9% |
| 2022 | 24.40 million | -0.1% |
| 2023 | 29.88 million | +22.5% |
| 2024 | 30.37 million | +1.7% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 30.37 million is above the median for high income countries, which is 595,200, 51.0× the median. (63 countries reporting)
- Australia's 30.37 million is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 650,522, 46.7× the median. (28 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 18.65 million | 17.33 million | 20.61 million | 9 |
| 1970s | 28.81 million | 22.16 million | 33.43 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 23.29 million | 21.85 million | 26.20 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 25.28 million | 23.16 million | 26.85 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 27.67 million | 26.66 million | 28.39 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 27.17 million | 24.72 million | 29.29 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 26.52 million | 23.50 million | 30.37 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More agriculture & rural data for Australia
- Cropland extent over the long-term, annual growth rate 0.4449 % change on previous year (2025)
- Cropland extent over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Cropland extent over the long-term, per capita 1.16 hectares per person (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, annual growth rate 0.2372 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0.0002 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, per capita 12.7 hectares per person (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 13.97 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0227 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 1,476 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.5855 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cattle livestock count heads in Australia?
- Cattle livestock count heads in Australia was 30.37 million in 2024, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest cattle livestock count heads recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 33.43 million in 1976.
- What is the lowest cattle livestock count heads recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 17.33 million in 1961.
- How does Australia rank for cattle livestock count heads?
- Australia ranks 13th out of 197 countries with data for 2024.
- Is cattle livestock count heads rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Cattle livestock count heads. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).