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Other Urban vs Rural Balance

Section of State comparison ≈ 474 km apart · Other Urban profile · Rural Balance profile

Other Urban Rural Balance

Other Urban and Rural Balance are very different in how people live and get around. Other Urban is far more walkable, with a score of 5.4 (somewhat walkable), while Rural Balance is 0.7 (car-dependent). Other Urban has a much higher share of people living alone (30.0%) and a far higher rental rate (29.6%). In contrast, Rural Balance has far more homes owned outright (47.0%) and a much higher share of separate houses (97.1%).

Both areas are similar in the share of children under 15 and the amount of unpaid care provided by residents. While they share these traits, other gaps are growing; the difference in typical weekly income has widened, with Rural Balance now $357 higher than Other Urban. This is consistent with a trend where residents in Rural Balance are also becoming noticeably older, with a typical age of 46 compared to 42 in Other Urban.

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Where they differ most

One-parent: 8.3 pts higher in Other Urban Renting: 16.6 pts higher in Other Urban Living alone: 10.1 pts higher in Other Urban Population: 1,009,610 larger in Other Urban Separate houses: 14.4 pts higher in Rural Balance

Demographics & Identity

Population in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +1,009,610 larger in Other Urban gap widening
1,583,879 88th pct 574,269 80th pct
Median age in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +4 yrs older in Rural Balance gap widening
42 yrs 57th pct 46 yrs 79th pct
First Nations in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +3.1 pts higher in Other Urban gap steady
7.7% 68th pct 4.7% 44th pct
Aged 65+ in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +2.5 pts higher in Other Urban gap narrowing
23.3% 90th pct 20.8% 73rd pct
Under 15 in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +0.6 pts higher in Other Urban gap steady
18.3% 71st pct 17.6% 60th pct
De facto in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +1.2 pts higher in Other Urban gap steady
12.6% 44th pct 11.4% 15th pct

Age structure

24.3% Older adults (45–64) +6.8 pts ▸ 31.1%
23.3% Seniors (65+) ◂ +2.5 pts 20.8%
23.2% Young adults (25–44) ◂ +3.6 pts 19.6%
18.3% Children (0–14) ◂ +0.6 pts 17.6%
10.9% Youth (15–24) even 10.9%

Marital status

43.8% Married +9.8 pts ▸ 53.7%
34.7% Never married ◂ +4.4 pts 30.3%
10.5% Divorced ◂ +1.8 pts 8.7%
7.1% Widowed ◂ +2.8 pts 4.2%
3.8% Separated ◂ +0.8 pts 3.0%

Age & sex structure

Other Urban Rural Balance

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

Ancestry & Birthplace

Born overseas in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +1.5 pts higher in Other Urban gap steady
11.7% 29th pct 10.1% 13th pct

Country of birth

81.8% Australia ◂ +0.4 pts 81.4%
2.7% England even 2.7%
1.1% New Zealand even 1.1%
0.9% India ◂ +0.6 pts 0.2%
0.6% Philippines ◂ +0.4 pts 0.2%
0.2% Italy +0.1 pts ▸ 0.4%
0.4% South Africa even 0.4%
0.3% China even 0.3%
0.3% Nepal ◂ +0.3 pts 0.0%
0.1% Vietnam ◂ +0.1 pts 0.1%

Ancestry

41.3% English ◂ +1.1 pts 40.2%
40.5% Australian +0.5 pts ▸ 41.0%
11.9% Irish even 11.9%
10.5% Scottish +0.5 pts ▸ 10.9%
4.2% German +0.1 pts ▸ 4.3%
2.5% Italian +0.8 pts ▸ 3.3%
1.3% Dutch +0.1 pts ▸ 1.4%
0.9% Chinese ◂ +0.1 pts 0.8%
0.9% Indian ◂ +0.5 pts 0.4%
0.9% Filipino ◂ +0.5 pts 0.4%
0.5% Greek +0.1 pts ▸ 0.5%
0.2% Vietnamese ◂ +0.1 pts 0.1%

Language

Other language in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +1.4 pts higher in Other Urban gap steady
6.1% 28th pct 4.7% 16th pct
Limited English in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +0.3 pts higher in Other Urban gap steady
0.8% 43rd pct 0.6% 23rd pct

Language used at home

87.3% English only ◂ +0.3 pts 87.0%
0.3% Italian +0.2 pts ▸ 0.5%
0.2% Arabic +0.3 pts ▸ 0.5%
0.4% Punjabi ◂ +0.3 pts 0.2%
0.3% Mandarin ◂ +0.1 pts 0.3%
0.2% Tagalog ◂ +0.2 pts 0.1%
0.2% Cantonese even 0.2%
0.1% Greek even 0.2%
0.1% Vietnamese ◂ +0.1 pts 0.1%
0.1% Hindi ◂ +0.1 pts 0.1%

Religion

No religion in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +3.5 pts higher in Other Urban gap widening
37.3% 33rd pct 33.8% 22nd pct

Religious affiliation

51.6% Christianity +2.6 pts ▸ 54.3%
37.3% No religion ◂ +3.5 pts 33.8%
8.0% Not stated +2.1 pts ▸ 10.0%
0.9% Other religions ◂ +0.4 pts 0.5%
0.8% Hinduism ◂ +0.6 pts 0.2%
0.8% Buddhism ◂ +0.2 pts 0.6%
0.5% Islam even 0.5%
0.1% Judaism even 0.1%

Education & Qualifications

Year 12 in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +1.8 pts higher in Rural Balance gap narrowing
42.4% 50th pct 44.2% 57th pct
Bachelor+ in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +1.4 pts higher in Rural Balance gap narrowing
16.2% 59th pct 17.5% 72nd pct

Highest year of school

42.4% Year 12 +1.8 pts ▸ 44.2%
29.4% Year 10 even 29.4%
12.8% Year 9 or below ◂ +2.4 pts 10.4%
7.2% Year 11 ◂ +0.9 pts 6.2%

Highest qualification level

35.2% Certificate III / IV ◂ +1.6 pts 33.6%
18.7% Bachelor degree +0.8 pts ▸ 19.5%
14.3% Advanced diploma / diploma ◂ +0.1 pts 14.2%
5.4% Postgraduate degree ◂ +0.2 pts 5.2%
3.1% Graduate diploma / certificate ◂ +0.2 pts 2.9%
2.5% Certificate I / II ◂ +0.2 pts 2.3%

Field of qualification

16.1% Management & commerce ◂ +1.6 pts 14.6%
14.4% Engineering & related +1.1 pts ▸ 15.5%
11.5% Society & culture ◂ +2.1 pts 9.4%
11.1% Health ◂ +1.3 pts 9.8%
9.1% Education ◂ +0.7 pts 8.4%
6.0% Architecture & building +0.8 pts ▸ 6.8%
2.7% Agriculture & environment +3.7 pts ▸ 6.3%
5.8% Food, hospitality & personal services ◂ +1.5 pts 4.3%
2.8% Creative arts even 2.8%
1.8% Natural & physical sciences +0.4 pts ▸ 2.3%
1.5% Information technology ◂ +0.4 pts 1.2%

Income

Personal income in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +$51 higher in Rural Balance gap widening
$702 41st pct $753 55th pct
Household income in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +$357 higher in Rural Balance gap widening
$1,347 26th pct $1,704 58th pct
Family income in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +$247 higher in Rural Balance gap widening
$1,749 36th pct $1,996 59th pct
High earners in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +2.7 pts higher in Rural Balance gap widening
8.0% 44th pct 10.7% 64th pct
High-income homes in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +8.0 pts higher in Rural Balance gap widening
14.2% 35th pct 22.2% 67th pct

Household income distribution

31.2% $650–$1,499 ◂ +4.8 pts 26.4%
27.5% $1,500–$2,999 +0.1 pts ▸ 27.5%
20.0% Under $650 ◂ +5.0 pts 15.1%
6.5% $4,000 or more +6.0 pts ▸ 12.5%
7.7% $3,000–$3,999 +2.0 pts ▸ 9.7%

Personal income distribution

43.0% Under $650 ◂ +3.2 pts 39.8%
32.1% $650–$1,499 ◂ +2.0 pts 30.1%
14.0% $1,500–$2,999 +1.5 pts ▸ 15.5%
2.5% $3,000 or more +1.8 pts ▸ 4.4%

Health & Disability

Health condition in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +6.2 pts higher in Other Urban
34.7% 93rd pct 28.6% 56th pct
Mental health in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +3.5 pts higher in Other Urban
11.2% 79th pct 7.7% 38th pct
Needs assistance in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +2.8 pts higher in Other Urban gap steady
7.5% 97th pct 4.6% 43rd pct

Long-term health conditions reported

12.2% Arthritis ◂ +2.0 pts 10.1%
11.2% Mental health ◂ +3.5 pts 7.7%
10.1% Asthma ◂ +2.0 pts 8.1%
8.7% Other condition ◂ +1.6 pts 7.1%
5.7% Diabetes ◂ +1.4 pts 4.2%
5.3% Heart disease ◂ +1.0 pts 4.3%
3.7% Cancer ◂ +0.3 pts 3.4%
2.8% Lung condition ◂ +0.8 pts 2.0%
1.3% Stroke ◂ +0.4 pts 0.9%
1.1% Dementia ◂ +0.6 pts 0.5%

Number of long-term health conditions

55.9% None +4.5 pts ▸ 60.4%
22.0% One condition ◂ +2.5 pts 19.4%
8.0% Two conditions ◂ +1.9 pts 6.1%
4.7% Three or more ◂ +1.7 pts 3.0%

Community Participation

Volunteering in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +4.4 pts higher in Rural Balance gap narrowing
15.0% 43rd pct 19.4% 74th pct
Unpaid carers in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +0.6 pts higher in Rural Balance gap steady
12.9% 71st pct 13.4% 84th pct
Unpaid child care in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +0.2 pts higher in Rural Balance gap steady
25.3% 56th pct 25.4% 59th pct
Defence service in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +0.6 pts higher in Other Urban
3.8% 68th pct 3.2% 43rd pct
Housework 15h+ in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +5.1 pts higher in Rural Balance gap steady
22.1% 68th pct 27.2% 100th pct

Family & Households

Household size in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +0.3 larger in Rural Balance gap steady
2.4 29th pct 2.7 86th pct
One-parent in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +8.3 pts higher in Other Urban gap steady
17.9% 85th pct 9.6% 16th pct
Living alone in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +10.1 pts higher in Other Urban gap widening
30.0% 77th pct 20.0% 12th pct

Family composition

50.0% Couples with children +7.6 pts ▸ 57.7%
31.0% Couples without children +1.1 pts ▸ 32.1%
17.9% One-parent families ◂ +8.3 pts 9.6%
1.1% Other families ◂ +0.5 pts 0.6%

Household size

36.0% 2 people +2.8 pts ▸ 38.7%
30.0% 1 person ◂ +10.1 pts 20.0%
12.1% 4 people +2.1 pts ▸ 14.2%
13.7% 3 people +0.3 pts ▸ 14.0%
5.5% 5 people +2.5 pts ▸ 8.0%
2.7% 6 or more +2.4 pts ▸ 5.0%

Housing & Dwellings

Rent in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +$20 higher in Other Urban gap narrowing
$320 69th pct $300 58th pct
Mortgage in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +$300 higher in Rural Balance gap widening
$1,600 57th pct $1,900 76th pct
People / bedroom in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +0.10 higher in Rural Balance gap widening
0.70 0th pct 0.80 29th pct
Renting in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +16.6 pts higher in Other Urban gap widening
29.6% 53rd pct 12.9% 12th pct
Owned outright in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +10.5 pts higher in Rural Balance gap widening
36.5% 60th pct 47.0% 98th pct
Separate houses in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +14.4 pts higher in Rural Balance gap steady
82.7% 35th pct 97.1% 92nd pct
3+ bedrooms in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +5.4 pts higher in Rural Balance gap steady
77.0% 55th pct 82.4% 86th pct

How homes are owned or rented

36.5% Owned outright +10.5 pts ▸ 47.0%
30.1% Owned with a mortgage +3.7 pts ▸ 33.8%
29.6% Rented ◂ +16.6 pts 12.9%
2.1% Other tenure +2.4 pts ▸ 4.4%
1.8% Not stated even 1.8%

Types of homes

82.7% Separate house +14.4 pts ▸ 97.1%
10.6% Townhouse / semi-detached ◂ +10.0 pts 0.6%
5.3% Flat or apartment ◂ +4.9 pts 0.4%
1.0% Other dwelling +0.2 pts ▸ 1.2%

Bedrooms per home

42.6% 3 bedrooms ◂ +9.6 pts 33.0%
28.7% 4 bedrooms +5.9 pts ▸ 34.6%
17.5% 2 bedrooms ◂ +6.5 pts 10.9%
5.7% 5 or more +9.1 pts ▸ 14.8%
3.5% 1 bedroom +0.5 pts ▸ 4.0%
0.3% Studio / none +0.6 pts ▸ 0.9%

Weekly rent distribution

40.2% $200–$349 ◂ +8.3 pts 32.0%
35.5% $350–$549 ◂ +8.5 pts 27.0%
15.1% Under $200 +3.4 pts ▸ 18.5%
4.6% $550–$749 +3.4 pts ▸ 8.0%
1.1% $750 or more +3.0 pts ▸ 4.1%

Monthly mortgage distribution

37.1% $1,000–$1,799 ◂ +12.2 pts 24.9%
28.4% $1,800–$2,999 ◂ +1.1 pts 27.3%
9.3% $3,000 or more +11.8 pts ▸ 21.1%
19.8% Under $1,000 ◂ +0.3 pts 19.5%

Transport & Vehicles

No car in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +4.8 pts higher in Other Urban gap narrowing
6.2% 61st pct 1.4% 13th pct
Work from home in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +9.9 pts higher in Rural Balance gap steady
12.3% 63rd pct 22.1% 91st pct
PT commute in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +0.2 pts higher in Other Urban gap steady
0.5% 17th pct 0.3% 9th pct

How people get to work

63.4% Car (driver) ◂ +8.1 pts 55.3%
12.3% Worked at home +9.9 pts ▸ 22.1%
4.9% Car (passenger) ◂ +1.8 pts 3.2%
3.0% Walked +0.5 pts ▸ 3.4%
0.5% Bicycle ◂ +0.3 pts 0.1%
0.4% Bus ◂ +0.2 pts 0.2%
0.1% Train ◂ +0.1 pts 0.1%

Motor vehicles per home

37.1% 2 vehicles +2.0 pts ▸ 39.1%
39.0% 1 vehicle ◂ +18.5 pts 20.5%
11.7% 3 vehicles +9.2 pts ▸ 20.9%
6.1% 4 or more +12.1 pts ▸ 18.1%
6.2% No vehicle ◂ +4.8 pts 1.4%

Migration & Movement

Recent movers in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +11.3 pts higher in Other Urban gap steady
40.4% 63rd pct 29.1% 20th pct
Recent arrivals in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +8.5 pts higher in Other Urban gap widening
14.1% 54th pct 5.6% 12th pct

Jobs & Industry

Unemployment in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +1.6 pts higher in Other Urban gap steady
4.8% 39th pct 3.2% 14th pct
Participation in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +5.0 pts higher in Rural Balance gap narrowing
54.5% 42nd pct 59.6% 63rd pct
Full-time in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +0.7 pts higher in Rural Balance gap steady
57.0% 45th pct 57.8% 51st pct

Industries people work in

2.5% Agriculture, forestry & fishing +14.6 pts ▸ 17.1%
16.8% Health care & social assistance ◂ +5.7 pts 11.1%
9.3% Construction +1.5 pts ▸ 10.8%
10.3% Retail trade ◂ +3.2 pts 7.1%
9.3% Education & training ◂ +0.8 pts 8.5%
8.3% Accommodation & food ◂ +3.5 pts 4.8%
7.2% Public administration & safety ◂ +1.2 pts 6.0%
6.1% Manufacturing ◂ +1.1 pts 5.0%
4.3% Professional & technical +0.6 pts ▸ 4.9%
4.0% Other services ◂ +0.3 pts 3.7%
3.7% Transport & warehousing even 3.7%
3.5% Administrative & support ◂ +0.9 pts 2.5%

Occupations people work in

11.0% Managers +12.1 pts ▸ 23.1%
18.2% Professionals ◂ +2.0 pts 16.1%
15.1% Technicians & trades ◂ +1.1 pts 14.0%
14.3% Community & personal service ◂ +4.9 pts 9.3%
11.8% Labourers ◂ +1.3 pts 10.5%
11.5% Clerical & administrative ◂ +0.1 pts 11.4%
9.2% Sales workers ◂ +2.6 pts 6.5%
7.2% Machinery operators & drivers ◂ +0.2 pts 7.0%

Walkability

Walk score in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +4.7 higher in Other Urban
5.4 72nd pct 0.7 14th pct
Types ≤15 min in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +4.6 more in Other Urban
5.3 73rd pct 0.7 14th pct
15-min city in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +57.2 pts higher in Other Urban
61.5% 72nd pct 4.3% 24th pct
Walk to shops in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +53.0 pts higher in Other Urban
57.1% 57th pct 4.2% 18th pct
Walk to transit in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +71.6 pts higher in Other Urban
83.0% 76th pct 11.4% 31st pct
Walk to school in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +58.1 pts higher in Other Urban
65.9% 66th pct 7.7% 22nd pct
Walk to a park in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +74.6 pts higher in Other Urban
91.4% 67th pct 16.8% 14th pct
Walk to health in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +47.2 pts higher in Other Urban
48.4% 72nd pct 1.2% 17th pct
Amenities/1k in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +1.0 more in Other Urban
18.4 45th pct 17.4 42nd pct
Intersections/km² in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +60 higher in Other Urban
60 69th pct 0 7th pct
Mean slope in Other Urbanin Rural Balance +2.4 pts higher in Rural Balance
5.6% 53rd pct 8.0% 86th pct

Compare Other Urban with nearby areas

Bounded Locality Major Urban Bounded Locality Major Urban Rural Balance Rural Balance Major Urban Bounded Locality Other Urban Major Urban Bounded Locality 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). Other Urban vs Rural Balance [Census of Population and Housing]. CensusAtlas, used under CC BY 4.0. https://censusatlas.au/compare/sos/SOS11/other-urban/vs/SOS13/rural-balance