Rural population in Australia
Australia: Rural population was 12.3% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Rural population in Australia, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in % of total population.
Analysis
The most recent figure for rural population in Australia is 12.3%, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 66 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.9% on the previous year and down 6.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population in Australia peaked at 18.4% in 1960 and was at its lowest, 12.3%, in 2025.
Australia ranks 177th of 217 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 66 years of available data.
Rural population in Australia, year by year
| Year | % of total population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 18.4% | — |
| 1961 | 18.1% | -1.9% |
| 1962 | 17.8% | -1.6% |
| 1963 | 17.5% | -1.3% |
| 1964 | 17.3% | -1.2% |
| 1965 | 17.1% | -1.4% |
| 1966 | 16.8% | -1.7% |
| 1967 | 16.4% | -2.6% |
| 1968 | 15.8% | -3.4% |
| 1969 | 15.2% | -3.7% |
| 1970 | 14.7% | -3.2% |
| 1971 | 14.4% | -1.9% |
| 1972 | 14.3% | -1.0% |
| 1973 | 14.2% | -0.8% |
| 1974 | 14.1% | -0.7% |
| 1975 | 14.0% | -0.4% |
| 1976 | 14.0% | -0.2% |
| 1977 | 14.0% | +0.1% |
| 1978 | 14.1% | +0.4% |
| 1979 | 14.1% | +0.5% |
| 1980 | 14.2% | +0.5% |
| 1981 | 14.3% | +0.5% |
| 1982 | 14.4% | +0.5% |
| 1983 | 14.5% | +0.6% |
| 1984 | 14.6% | +0.6% |
| 1985 | 14.6% | +0.5% |
| 1986 | 14.6% | +0.2% |
| 1987 | 14.6% | -0.0% |
| 1988 | 14.6% | -0.1% |
| 1989 | 14.6% | -0.1% |
| 1990 | 14.6% | -0.1% |
| 1991 | 14.6% | -0.0% |
| 1992 | 14.6% | +0.1% |
| 1993 | 14.6% | +0.2% |
| 1994 | 14.7% | +0.2% |
| 1995 | 14.7% | +0.3% |
| 1996 | 14.8% | +0.3% |
| 1997 | 14.8% | +0.3% |
| 1998 | 14.8% | +0.3% |
| 1999 | 14.9% | +0.2% |
| 2000 | 14.9% | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 14.9% | -0.3% |
| 2002 | 14.7% | -0.9% |
| 2003 | 14.6% | -0.9% |
| 2004 | 14.5% | -0.7% |
| 2005 | 14.4% | -0.7% |
| 2006 | 14.3% | -0.9% |
| 2007 | 14.1% | -1.0% |
| 2008 | 14.0% | -0.9% |
| 2009 | 13.9% | -0.7% |
| 2010 | 13.8% | -0.7% |
| 2011 | 13.7% | -0.8% |
| 2012 | 13.6% | -0.9% |
| 2013 | 13.4% | -1.0% |
| 2014 | 13.3% | -1.1% |
| 2015 | 13.1% | -1.2% |
| 2016 | 13.0% | -1.1% |
| 2017 | 12.9% | -0.9% |
| 2018 | 12.8% | -0.8% |
| 2019 | 12.7% | -0.6% |
| 2020 | 12.7% | +0.2% |
| 2021 | 12.8% | +0.3% |
| 2022 | 12.7% | -0.8% |
| 2023 | 12.5% | -1.2% |
| 2024 | 12.4% | -0.9% |
| 2025 | 12.3% | -0.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 17.0% | 15.2% | 18.4% | 10 |
| 1970s | 14.2% | 14.0% | 14.7% | 10 |
| 1980s | 14.5% | 14.2% | 14.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 14.7% | 14.6% | 14.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 14.4% | 13.9% | 14.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 13.2% | 12.7% | 13.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 12.6% | 12.3% | 12.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More agriculture & rural data for Australia
- 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)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.1228 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 2.3% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 2.3% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.7% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.5% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population in Australia?
- Rural population in Australia was 12.3% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest rural population recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 18.4% in 1960.
- What is the lowest rural population recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 12.3% in 2025.
- How does Australia rank for rural population?
- Australia ranks 177th out of 217 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rural population rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Rural population (% of total population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Rural population refers to people living in rural areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated as the difference between total population and urban population.