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Major Urban vs Rural Balance

Section of State comparison ≈ 437 km apart · Major Urban profile · Rural Balance profile

Major Urban Rural Balance

Major Urban and Rural Balance are far apart and offer very different ways of living. Major Urban is a diverse, very walkable hub where 36.6% of people were born overseas and 35% use a language other than English at home. In contrast, Rural Balance is far more car-dependent, with a population that is much older—the typical resident is 46 compared to 37 in Major Urban. Housing differs sharply too; 97.1% of homes in Rural Balance are separate houses, while Major Urban has many more apartments and a much higher rental rate of 35.7%.

Many of these gaps have widened since 2011, particularly the differences in education and housing tenure. While they vary in almost every way, they share some basic social patterns: both have about the same proportion of children under 15 and similar rates of adults working or looking for work, sitting around 60%. They also have the same typical household size of 2.7 people.

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Where they differ most

Born overseas: 26.5 pts higher in Major Urban Other language: 30.4 pts higher in Major Urban Separate houses: 40.4 pts higher in Rural Balance Renting: 22.8 pts higher in Major Urban Population: 5,179,558 larger in Major Urban

Demographics & Identity

Population in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +5,179,558 larger in Major Urban gap widening
5,753,827 100th pct 574,269 80th pct
Median age in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +9 yrs older in Rural Balance gap widening
37 yrs 14th pct 46 yrs 79th pct
First Nations in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +2.6 pts higher in Rural Balance gap widening
2.0% 20th pct 4.7% 44th pct
Aged 65+ in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +5.2 pts higher in Rural Balance gap widening
15.6% 44th pct 20.8% 73rd pct
Under 15 in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.6 pts higher in Major Urban gap steady
18.3% 71st pct 17.6% 60th pct
De facto in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +1.5 pts higher in Rural Balance gap steady
9.9% 0th pct 11.4% 15th pct

Age structure

23.8% Older adults (45–64) +7.3 pts ▸ 31.1%
30.1% Young adults (25–44) ◂ +10.5 pts 19.6%
15.6% Seniors (65+) +5.2 pts ▸ 20.8%
18.3% Children (0–14) ◂ +0.6 pts 17.6%
12.2% Youth (15–24) ◂ +1.4 pts 10.9%

Marital status

47.7% Married +6.0 pts ▸ 53.7%
36.6% Never married ◂ +6.3 pts 30.3%
8.0% Divorced +0.7 pts ▸ 8.7%
4.7% Widowed ◂ +0.5 pts 4.2%
3.0% Separated +0.1 pts ▸ 3.0%

Age & sex structure

Major Urban Rural Balance

Bars show the share of each area's own population, so differently sized areas stay comparable.

Ancestry & Birthplace

Born overseas in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +26.5 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
36.6% 99th pct 10.1% 13th pct

Country of birth

58.8% Australia +22.6 pts ▸ 81.4%
4.2% China ◂ +3.9 pts 0.3%
3.4% India ◂ +3.1 pts 0.2%
2.9% England ◂ +0.2 pts 2.7%
1.7% Vietnam ◂ +1.6 pts 0.1%
1.7% Philippines ◂ +1.4 pts 0.2%
1.6% New Zealand ◂ +0.5 pts 1.1%
1.1% Nepal ◂ +1.0 pts 0.0%
0.7% South Africa ◂ +0.4 pts 0.4%
0.7% Italy ◂ +0.4 pts 0.4%

Ancestry

23.7% Australian +17.3 pts ▸ 41.0%
25.3% English +14.9 pts ▸ 40.2%
8.0% Irish +4.0 pts ▸ 11.9%
6.5% Scottish +4.4 pts ▸ 10.9%
9.7% Chinese ◂ +8.9 pts 0.8%
2.5% German +1.8 pts ▸ 4.3%
4.2% Indian ◂ +3.9 pts 0.4%
4.2% Italian ◂ +0.9 pts 3.3%
2.4% Filipino ◂ +2.0 pts 0.4%
2.3% Greek ◂ +1.7 pts 0.5%
2.1% Vietnamese ◂ +2.0 pts 0.1%
1.0% Dutch +0.4 pts ▸ 1.4%

Language

Other language in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +30.4 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
35.0% 90th pct 4.7% 16th pct
Limited English in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +5.4 pts higher in Major Urban gap steady
6.0% 92nd pct 0.6% 23rd pct

Language used at home

59.7% English only +27.3 pts ▸ 87.0%
4.6% Mandarin ◂ +4.3 pts 0.3%
3.8% Arabic ◂ +3.4 pts 0.5%
2.5% Cantonese ◂ +2.3 pts 0.2%
2.0% Vietnamese ◂ +1.9 pts 0.1%
1.3% Hindi ◂ +1.3 pts 0.1%
1.3% Greek ◂ +1.2 pts 0.2%
1.0% Italian ◂ +0.5 pts 0.5%
0.8% Tagalog ◂ +0.8 pts 0.1%
0.8% Punjabi ◂ +0.6 pts 0.2%

Religion

No religion in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +2.0 pts higher in Rural Balance gap widening
31.9% 17th pct 33.8% 22nd pct

Religious affiliation

45.8% Christianity +8.4 pts ▸ 54.3%
31.9% No religion +2.0 pts ▸ 33.8%
6.5% Not stated +3.5 pts ▸ 10.0%
5.9% Islam ◂ +5.4 pts 0.5%
4.5% Hinduism ◂ +4.3 pts 0.2%
3.6% Buddhism ◂ +2.9 pts 0.6%
1.2% Other religions ◂ +0.7 pts 0.5%
0.7% Judaism ◂ +0.6 pts 0.1%

Education & Qualifications

Year 12 in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +21.3 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
65.5% 92nd pct 44.2% 57th pct
Bachelor+ in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +14.9 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
32.4% 97th pct 17.5% 72nd pct

Highest year of school

65.5% Year 12 ◂ +21.3 pts 44.2%
15.7% Year 10 +13.7 pts ▸ 29.4%
8.5% Year 9 or below +1.9 pts ▸ 10.4%
4.1% Year 11 +2.1 pts ▸ 6.2%

Highest qualification level

19.1% Certificate III / IV +14.5 pts ▸ 33.6%
32.5% Bachelor degree ◂ +13.0 pts 19.5%
14.7% Advanced diploma / diploma ◂ +0.5 pts 14.2%
13.8% Postgraduate degree ◂ +8.5 pts 5.2%
3.3% Graduate diploma / certificate ◂ +0.3 pts 2.9%
1.5% Certificate I / II +0.8 pts ▸ 2.3%

Field of qualification

24.1% Management & commerce ◂ +9.5 pts 14.6%
12.3% Engineering & related +3.2 pts ▸ 15.5%
12.2% Society & culture ◂ +2.8 pts 9.4%
9.1% Health +0.7 pts ▸ 9.8%
6.9% Education +1.5 pts ▸ 8.4%
4.9% Architecture & building +1.9 pts ▸ 6.8%
1.1% Agriculture & environment +5.3 pts ▸ 6.3%
5.0% Information technology ◂ +3.8 pts 1.2%
4.7% Creative arts ◂ +1.8 pts 2.8%
4.1% Food, hospitality & personal services +0.2 pts ▸ 4.3%
3.3% Natural & physical sciences ◂ +1.1 pts 2.3%

Income

Personal income in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +$116 higher in Major Urban gap widening
$869 72nd pct $753 55th pct
Household income in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +$323 higher in Major Urban gap widening
$2,027 79th pct $1,704 58th pct
Family income in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +$347 higher in Major Urban gap steady
$2,343 81st pct $1,996 59th pct
High earners in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +4.8 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
15.5% 85th pct 10.7% 64th pct
High-income homes in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +6.9 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
29.1% 87th pct 22.2% 67th pct

Household income distribution

29.1% $1,500–$2,999 ◂ +1.6 pts 27.5%
22.3% $650–$1,499 +4.1 pts ▸ 26.4%
17.5% $4,000 or more ◂ +5.0 pts 12.5%
13.8% Under $650 +1.3 pts ▸ 15.1%
11.5% $3,000–$3,999 ◂ +1.9 pts 9.7%

Personal income distribution

37.7% Under $650 +2.1 pts ▸ 39.8%
29.6% $650–$1,499 +0.5 pts ▸ 30.1%
19.5% $1,500–$2,999 ◂ +4.0 pts 15.5%
6.7% $3,000 or more ◂ +2.4 pts 4.4%

Health & Disability

Health condition in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +4.0 pts higher in Rural Balance
24.5% 33rd pct 28.6% 56th pct
Mental health in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.6 pts higher in Rural Balance
7.1% 29th pct 7.7% 38th pct
Needs assistance in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.8 pts higher in Major Urban gap steady
5.4% 57th pct 4.6% 43rd pct

Long-term health conditions reported

7.1% Arthritis +3.0 pts ▸ 10.1%
7.0% Asthma +1.0 pts ▸ 8.1%
7.1% Mental health +0.6 pts ▸ 7.7%
7.6% Other condition ◂ +0.5 pts 7.1%
4.6% Diabetes ◂ +0.4 pts 4.2%
3.5% Heart disease +0.8 pts ▸ 4.3%
2.5% Cancer +0.9 pts ▸ 3.4%
1.3% Lung condition +0.7 pts ▸ 2.0%
0.8% Stroke +0.1 pts ▸ 0.9%
0.7% Dementia ◂ +0.2 pts 0.5%

Number of long-term health conditions

68.1% None ◂ +7.8 pts 60.4%
17.2% One condition +2.3 pts ▸ 19.4%
4.9% Two conditions +1.2 pts ▸ 6.1%
2.4% Three or more +0.6 pts ▸ 3.0%

Community Participation

Volunteering in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +7.7 pts higher in Rural Balance gap narrowing
11.7% 29th pct 19.4% 74th pct
Unpaid carers in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +2.5 pts higher in Rural Balance gap steady
10.9% 42nd pct 13.4% 84th pct
Unpaid child care in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.1 pts higher in Rural Balance gap narrowing
25.3% 57th pct 25.4% 59th pct
Defence service in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +1.5 pts higher in Rural Balance
1.8% 13th pct 3.2% 43rd pct
Housework 15h+ in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +6.9 pts higher in Rural Balance gap narrowing
20.3% 51st pct 27.2% 100th pct

Family & Households

Household size in Major Urbanin Rural Balance even gap narrowing
2.7 86th pct 2.7 86th pct
One-parent in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +3.9 pts higher in Major Urban gap steady
13.4% 43rd pct 9.6% 16th pct
Living alone in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +3.8 pts higher in Major Urban gap steady
23.8% 32nd pct 20.0% 12th pct

Family composition

61.6% Couples with children ◂ +4.0 pts 57.7%
23.7% Couples without children +8.4 pts ▸ 32.1%
13.4% One-parent families ◂ +3.9 pts 9.6%
1.2% Other families ◂ +0.6 pts 0.6%

Household size

31.1% 2 people +7.6 pts ▸ 38.7%
23.8% 1 person ◂ +3.8 pts 20.0%
17.1% 3 people ◂ +3.1 pts 14.0%
17.0% 4 people ◂ +2.8 pts 14.2%
7.1% 5 people +1.0 pts ▸ 8.0%
3.9% 6 or more +1.1 pts ▸ 5.0%

Housing & Dwellings

Rent in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +$155 higher in Major Urban gap narrowing
$455 100th pct $300 58th pct
Mortgage in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +$483 higher in Major Urban gap narrowing
$2,383 99th pct $1,900 76th pct
People / bedroom in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.10 higher in Major Urban gap steady
0.90 79th pct 0.80 29th pct
Renting in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +22.8 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
35.7% 80th pct 12.9% 12th pct
Owned outright in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +18.8 pts higher in Rural Balance gap widening
28.2% 28th pct 47.0% 98th pct
Separate houses in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +40.4 pts higher in Rural Balance gap widening
56.7% 3rd pct 97.1% 92nd pct
3+ bedrooms in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +17.9 pts higher in Rural Balance gap widening
64.5% 9th pct 82.4% 86th pct

How homes are owned or rented

28.2% Owned outright +18.8 pts ▸ 47.0%
35.7% Rented ◂ +22.8 pts 12.9%
33.0% Owned with a mortgage +0.8 pts ▸ 33.8%
1.7% Other tenure +2.8 pts ▸ 4.4%
1.3% Not stated +0.5 pts ▸ 1.8%

Types of homes

56.7% Separate house +40.4 pts ▸ 97.1%
29.2% Flat or apartment ◂ +28.9 pts 0.4%
13.4% Townhouse / semi-detached ◂ +12.8 pts 0.6%
0.5% Other dwelling +0.7 pts ▸ 1.2%

Bedrooms per home

23.8% 4 bedrooms +10.8 pts ▸ 34.6%
32.3% 3 bedrooms +0.7 pts ▸ 33.0%
25.6% 2 bedrooms ◂ +14.6 pts 10.9%
8.4% 5 or more +6.4 pts ▸ 14.8%
7.9% 1 bedroom ◂ +3.9 pts 4.0%
0.8% Studio / none +0.1 pts ▸ 0.9%

Weekly rent distribution

43.3% $350–$549 ◂ +16.3 pts 27.0%
13.5% $200–$349 +18.5 pts ▸ 32.0%
21.1% $550–$749 ◂ +13.1 pts 8.0%
8.9% Under $200 +9.6 pts ▸ 18.5%
10.0% $750 or more ◂ +5.9 pts 4.1%

Monthly mortgage distribution

33.3% $1,800–$2,999 ◂ +6.0 pts 27.3%
31.6% $3,000 or more ◂ +10.5 pts 21.1%
17.6% $1,000–$1,799 +7.3 pts ▸ 24.9%
11.2% Under $1,000 +8.3 pts ▸ 19.5%

Transport & Vehicles

No car in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +9.6 pts higher in Major Urban gap steady
11.0% 88th pct 1.4% 13th pct
Work from home in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +14.8 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
37.0% 100th pct 22.1% 91st pct
PT commute in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +3.3 pts higher in Major Urban gap narrowing
3.5% 69th pct 0.3% 9th pct

How people get to work

36.3% Car (driver) +18.9 pts ▸ 55.3%
37.0% Worked at home ◂ +14.8 pts 22.1%
2.3% Walked +1.2 pts ▸ 3.4%
2.7% Car (passenger) +0.4 pts ▸ 3.2%
2.3% Train ◂ +2.2 pts 0.1%
1.2% Bus ◂ +1.0 pts 0.2%
0.4% Bicycle ◂ +0.3 pts 0.1%

Motor vehicles per home

40.0% 1 vehicle ◂ +19.5 pts 20.5%
33.3% 2 vehicles +5.8 pts ▸ 39.1%
10.1% 3 vehicles +10.7 pts ▸ 20.9%
5.5% 4 or more +12.6 pts ▸ 18.1%
11.0% No vehicle ◂ +9.6 pts 1.4%

Migration & Movement

Recent movers in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +11.9 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
41.0% 68th pct 29.1% 20th pct
Recent arrivals in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +9.7 pts higher in Major Urban gap narrowing
15.2% 59th pct 5.6% 12th pct

Jobs & Industry

Unemployment in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +1.8 pts higher in Major Urban gap steady
5.1% 43rd pct 3.2% 14th pct
Participation in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.4 pts higher in Major Urban gap steady
59.9% 65th pct 59.6% 63rd pct
Full-time in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.6 pts higher in Major Urban gap narrowing
58.3% 57th pct 57.8% 51st pct

Industries people work in

0.3% Agriculture, forestry & fishing +16.8 pts ▸ 17.1%
14.1% Health care & social assistance ◂ +3.0 pts 11.1%
8.1% Construction +2.7 pts ▸ 10.8%
10.5% Professional & technical ◂ +5.6 pts 4.9%
8.9% Retail trade ◂ +1.7 pts 7.1%
8.6% Education & training ◂ +0.2 pts 8.5%
6.6% Finance & insurance ◂ +5.2 pts 1.4%
5.7% Public administration & safety +0.3 pts ▸ 6.0%
5.7% Accommodation & food ◂ +1.0 pts 4.8%
5.4% Manufacturing ◂ +0.4 pts 5.0%
4.9% Transport & warehousing ◂ +1.2 pts 3.7%
3.2% Other services +0.5 pts ▸ 3.7%

Occupations people work in

29.0% Professionals ◂ +12.8 pts 16.1%
14.7% Managers +8.4 pts ▸ 23.1%
10.7% Technicians & trades +3.3 pts ▸ 14.0%
13.6% Clerical & administrative ◂ +2.2 pts 11.4%
6.9% Labourers +3.5 pts ▸ 10.5%
9.8% Community & personal service ◂ +0.4 pts 9.3%
7.9% Sales workers ◂ +1.3 pts 6.5%
5.6% Machinery operators & drivers +1.4 pts ▸ 7.0%

Walkability

Walk score in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +6.6 higher in Major Urban
7.3 100th pct 0.7 14th pct
Types ≤15 min in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +6.0 more in Major Urban
6.7 100th pct 0.7 14th pct
15-min city in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +80.4 pts higher in Major Urban
84.7% 99th pct 4.3% 24th pct
Walk to shops in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +76.1 pts higher in Major Urban
80.2% 89th pct 4.2% 18th pct
Walk to transit in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +86.0 pts higher in Major Urban
97.3% 99th pct 11.4% 31st pct
Walk to school in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +81.3 pts higher in Major Urban
89.0% 100th pct 7.7% 22nd pct
Walk to a park in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +81.2 pts higher in Major Urban
98.1% 89th pct 16.8% 14th pct
Walk to health in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +67.2 pts higher in Major Urban
68.4% 97th pct 1.2% 17th pct
Amenities/1k in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +4.3 more in Rural Balance
13.1 9th pct 17.4 42nd pct
Intersections/km² in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +139 higher in Major Urban
139 88th pct 0 7th pct
Mean slope in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +1.0 pts higher in Rural Balance
7.0% 76th pct 8.0% 86th pct

Compare Major Urban with nearby areas

Other Urban Bounded Locality Bounded Locality Major Urban Rural Balance Rural Balance Bounded Locality Other Urban Major Urban Major Urban Rural Balance Other Urban

Compare Rural Balance with nearby areas

Bounded Locality Major Urban Rural Balance Other Urban Bounded Locality Major Urban Other Urban Rural Balance Bounded Locality Major Urban Major Urban Other Urban

Cite this page

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2021). Major Urban vs Rural Balance [Census of Population and Housing]. CensusAtlas, used under CC BY 4.0. https://censusatlas.au/compare/sos/SOS10/major-urban/vs/SOS13/rural-balance