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Major Urban vs Rural Balance

Section of State comparison ≈ 681 km apart · Major Urban profile · Rural Balance profile

Major Urban Rural Balance

Major Urban and Rural Balance are very different places located far apart. Major Urban is a very walkable area where 29.9% of people were born overseas and 27.9% of adults have a bachelor degree or higher. In contrast, Rural Balance is car-dependent, with a much lower overseas-born population (10.0%) and fewer adults with a bachelor degree (10.0%). Housing differs sharply too; 90.8% of homes in Rural Balance are separate houses, while Major Urban has more flats and apartments, and a much higher rental rate of 47.7%.

The gap in education has widened since 2011, with Major Urban seeing far more people complete Year 12 compared to Rural Balance. Despite these diverging trends, the two areas are similar in other ways. Both have a similar share of children under 15, around 20%, and nearly the same proportion of people living with long-term health conditions. They also share similar rates of full-time employment, though typical weekly incomes are well higher in Major Urban at $1,121 compared to $817 in Rural Balance.

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Where they differ most

Separate houses: 32.0 pts higher in Rural Balance Year 12: 24.7 pts higher in Major Urban Renting: 23.2 pts higher in Major Urban Recent movers: 21.9 pts higher in Major Urban Born overseas: 20.0 pts higher in Major Urban

Demographics & Identity

Population in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +88,035 larger in Major Urban gap widening
122,207 60th pct 34,172 46th pct
Median age in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +3 yrs older in Rural Balance gap widening
33 yrs 6th pct 36 yrs 12th pct
First Nations in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +18.4 pts higher in Rural Balance gap narrowing
10.7% 76th pct 29.1% 93rd pct
Aged 65+ in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +1.3 pts higher in Rural Balance gap widening
9.5% 16th pct 10.8% 21st pct
Under 15 in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.6 pts higher in Major Urban gap narrowing
20.3% 89th pct 19.7% 86th pct
De facto in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +1.4 pts higher in Rural Balance gap steady
15.6% 92nd pct 17.0% 100th pct

Age structure

35.7% Young adults (25–44) ◂ +7.5 pts 28.2%
22.5% Older adults (45–64) +5.6 pts ▸ 28.1%
20.3% Children (0–14) ◂ +0.6 pts 19.7%
12.1% Youth (15–24) +1.2 pts ▸ 13.3%
9.5% Seniors (65+) +1.3 pts ▸ 10.8%

Marital status

42.0% Married +1.9 pts ▸ 43.8%
43.6% Never married ◂ +2.0 pts 41.7%
8.1% Divorced ◂ +0.4 pts 7.7%
3.4% Separated +0.2 pts ▸ 3.6%
3.0% Widowed +0.3 pts ▸ 3.2%

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 +20.0 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
29.9% 88th pct 10.0% 12th pct

Country of birth

61.9% Australia +15.6 pts ▸ 77.6%
4.2% Philippines ◂ +3.6 pts 0.6%
3.1% India ◂ +3.0 pts 0.1%
2.6% England ◂ +0.4 pts 2.2%
2.1% Nepal ◂ +2.0 pts 0.0%
1.7% New Zealand ◂ +0.2 pts 1.5%
1.1% China ◂ +1.1 pts 0.1%
0.8% Vietnam ◂ +0.3 pts 0.6%
0.5% South Africa ◂ +0.3 pts 0.2%
0.3% Italy ◂ +0.1 pts 0.1%

Ancestry

27.0% Australian +2.8 pts ▸ 29.7%
26.4% English +0.2 pts ▸ 26.6%
8.4% Irish ◂ +1.1 pts 7.3%
7.2% Scottish ◂ +0.4 pts 6.8%
5.5% Filipino ◂ +4.6 pts 0.9%
4.7% Chinese ◂ +3.8 pts 0.9%
3.9% German even 4.0%
3.2% Greek ◂ +2.7 pts 0.5%
3.2% Indian ◂ +3.0 pts 0.2%
2.4% Italian ◂ +0.7 pts 1.7%
1.3% Dutch ◂ +0.1 pts 1.2%
1.1% Vietnamese ◂ +0.4 pts 0.7%

Language

Other language in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +3.1 pts higher in Major Urban gap narrowing
26.2% 84th pct 23.1% 80th pct
Limited English in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +1.6 pts higher in Rural Balance gap widening
2.7% 74th pct 4.3% 82nd pct

Language used at home

64.1% English only ◂ +1.4 pts 62.7%
2.5% Greek ◂ +2.3 pts 0.2%
2.1% Tagalog ◂ +1.9 pts 0.2%
1.7% Mandarin ◂ +1.4 pts 0.2%
1.0% Vietnamese ◂ +0.3 pts 0.7%
0.9% Punjabi ◂ +0.9 pts 0.0%
0.6% Hindi ◂ +0.6 pts 0.0%
0.6% Cantonese ◂ +0.5 pts 0.0%
0.4% Italian ◂ +0.3 pts 0.1%
0.2% Arabic ◂ +0.2 pts 0.0%

Religion

No religion in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +1.0 pts higher in Major Urban gap narrowing
40.9% 48th pct 39.9% 42nd pct

Religious affiliation

40.9% No religion ◂ +1.0 pts 39.9%
37.2% Christianity +2.1 pts ▸ 39.4%
10.9% Not stated +6.0 pts ▸ 16.9%
4.2% Hinduism ◂ +4.1 pts 0.1%
3.1% Buddhism ◂ +1.8 pts 1.3%
2.3% Islam ◂ +2.1 pts 0.2%
1.2% Other religions +1.0 pts ▸ 2.2%
0.1% Judaism even 0.0%

Education & Qualifications

Year 12 in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +24.7 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
60.2% 85th pct 35.5% 28th pct
Bachelor+ in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +18.0 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
27.9% 88th pct 10.0% 15th pct

Highest year of school

60.2% Year 12 ◂ +24.7 pts 35.5%
13.9% Year 10 +8.7 pts ▸ 22.6%
6.5% Year 9 or below +7.5 pts ▸ 14.0%
9.8% Year 11 +2.1 pts ▸ 11.9%

Highest qualification level

25.0% Certificate III / IV +10.0 pts ▸ 35.0%
25.7% Bachelor degree ◂ +13.8 pts 11.9%
13.1% Advanced diploma / diploma ◂ +1.5 pts 11.6%
11.3% Postgraduate degree ◂ +8.5 pts 2.8%
4.2% Graduate diploma / certificate ◂ +1.7 pts 2.6%
2.2% Certificate I / II +1.5 pts ▸ 3.7%

Field of qualification

19.4% Management & commerce ◂ +8.1 pts 11.4%
13.6% Engineering & related +4.4 pts ▸ 18.0%
12.4% Society & culture ◂ +4.6 pts 7.8%
11.2% Health ◂ +4.4 pts 6.9%
7.5% Education ◂ +1.3 pts 6.2%
3.8% Architecture & building +1.8 pts ▸ 5.6%
1.9% Agriculture & environment +3.6 pts ▸ 5.5%
4.8% Food, hospitality & personal services ◂ +0.8 pts 4.0%
3.2% Information technology ◂ +2.5 pts 0.8%
2.5% Natural & physical sciences ◂ +1.0 pts 1.5%
2.3% Creative arts ◂ +1.0 pts 1.3%

Income

Personal income in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +$304 higher in Major Urban gap steady
$1,121 81st pct $817 67th pct
Household income in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +$227 higher in Major Urban gap narrowing
$2,187 86th pct $1,960 76th pct
Family income in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +$338 higher in Major Urban gap narrowing
$2,459 86th pct $2,121 71st pct
High earners in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +4.3 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
15.8% 86th pct 11.5% 69th pct
High-income homes in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +2.4 pts higher in Major Urban gap narrowing
27.9% 85th pct 25.5% 78th pct

Household income distribution

33.6% $1,500–$2,999 ◂ +8.0 pts 25.6%
18.6% $650–$1,499 +2.9 pts ▸ 21.5%
14.7% $4,000 or more ◂ +1.2 pts 13.5%
13.2% $3,000–$3,999 ◂ +1.2 pts 12.0%
9.7% Under $650 +3.0 pts ▸ 12.6%

Personal income distribution

26.7% Under $650 +9.2 pts ▸ 35.9%
32.4% $650–$1,499 ◂ +8.6 pts 23.8%
25.6% $1,500–$2,999 ◂ +6.8 pts 18.8%
4.9% $3,000 or more ◂ +1.5 pts 3.4%

Health & Disability

Health condition in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.3 pts higher in Major Urban
19.9% 19th pct 19.6% 18th pct
Mental health in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +1.6 pts higher in Major Urban
5.9% 23rd pct 4.3% 16th pct
Needs assistance in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.5 pts higher in Major Urban gap steady
3.7% 27th pct 3.2% 17th pct

Long-term health conditions reported

6.5% Other condition ◂ +0.9 pts 5.6%
5.9% Asthma ◂ +0.6 pts 5.3%
5.9% Mental health ◂ +1.6 pts 4.3%
5.1% Arthritis even 5.1%
3.7% Diabetes +0.6 pts ▸ 4.3%
2.4% Heart disease +0.9 pts ▸ 3.3%
1.8% Cancer even 1.8%
1.1% Lung condition +0.3 pts ▸ 1.5%
0.5% Stroke even 0.6%
0.4% Dementia ◂ +0.1 pts 0.2%

Number of long-term health conditions

68.7% None ◂ +5.8 pts 62.9%
14.6% One condition ◂ +0.3 pts 14.3%
3.7% Two conditions ◂ +0.1 pts 3.6%
1.6% Three or more even 1.6%

Community Participation

Volunteering in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +2.8 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
15.9% 49th pct 13.1% 35th pct
Unpaid carers in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.3 pts higher in Rural Balance gap narrowing
8.9% 24th pct 9.2% 25th pct
Unpaid child care in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +2.1 pts higher in Rural Balance gap narrowing
27.0% 79th pct 29.1% 89th pct
Defence service in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +1.8 pts higher in Major Urban
6.9% 97th pct 5.1% 89th pct
Housework 15h+ in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +4.0 pts higher in Rural Balance gap widening
16.2% 29th pct 20.2% 50th pct

Family & Households

Household size in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.4 larger in Rural Balance gap widening
2.6 71st pct 3.0 95th pct
One-parent in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.4 pts higher in Major Urban gap steady
15.2% 58th pct 14.9% 55th pct
Living alone in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +3.6 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
24.1% 34th pct 20.6% 14th pct

Family composition

58.8% Couples with children +0.2 pts ▸ 58.9%
24.7% Couples without children +0.3 pts ▸ 25.0%
15.2% One-parent families ◂ +0.4 pts 14.9%
1.3% Other families even 1.3%

Household size

31.8% 2 people +0.1 pts ▸ 31.9%
24.1% 1 person ◂ +3.6 pts 20.6%
18.3% 3 people ◂ +3.9 pts 14.4%
15.6% 4 people ◂ +0.2 pts 15.4%
3.7% 6 or more +5.5 pts ▸ 9.2%
6.5% 5 people +2.0 pts ▸ 8.5%

Housing & Dwellings

Rent in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +$145 higher in Major Urban gap narrowing
$380 86th pct $235 25th pct
Mortgage in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +$161 higher in Rural Balance gap widening
$2,006 86th pct $2,167 92nd pct
People / bedroom in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.20 higher in Rural Balance gap steady
0.90 79th pct 1.10 94th pct
Renting in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +23.2 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
47.7% 92nd pct 24.5% 39th pct
Owned outright in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +10.3 pts higher in Rural Balance gap widening
16.0% 5th pct 26.3% 15th pct
Separate houses in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +32.0 pts higher in Rural Balance gap widening
58.8% 5th pct 90.8% 54th pct
3+ bedrooms in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +1.9 pts higher in Major Urban gap narrowing
67.8% 19th pct 66.0% 14th pct

How homes are owned or rented

47.7% Rented ◂ +23.2 pts 24.5%
33.4% Owned with a mortgage +3.3 pts ▸ 36.7%
16.0% Owned outright +10.3 pts ▸ 26.3%
1.3% Other tenure +8.2 pts ▸ 9.5%
1.7% Not stated +1.4 pts ▸ 3.1%

Types of homes

58.8% Separate house +32.0 pts ▸ 90.8%
28.3% Flat or apartment ◂ +27.9 pts 0.4%
11.7% Townhouse / semi-detached ◂ +10.9 pts 0.9%
0.9% Other dwelling +4.6 pts ▸ 5.5%

Bedrooms per home

41.6% 3 bedrooms ◂ +5.9 pts 35.7%
23.7% 2 bedrooms ◂ +5.6 pts 18.1%
21.3% 4 bedrooms ◂ +0.2 pts 21.1%
6.0% 1 bedroom +3.8 pts ▸ 9.8%
5.0% 5 or more +4.1 pts ▸ 9.1%
0.7% Studio / none +2.0 pts ▸ 2.8%

Weekly rent distribution

40.7% $350–$549 ◂ +23.5 pts 17.2%
10.4% Under $200 +29.2 pts ▸ 39.6%
27.3% $200–$349 ◂ +6.1 pts 21.2%
13.8% $550–$749 ◂ +6.6 pts 7.2%
3.2% $750 or more ◂ +1.8 pts 1.4%

Monthly mortgage distribution

39.9% $1,800–$2,999 ◂ +2.4 pts 37.5%
26.9% $1,000–$1,799 ◂ +5.4 pts 21.6%
17.4% $3,000 or more +6.1 pts ▸ 23.5%
10.7% Under $1,000 even 10.8%

Transport & Vehicles

No car in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +3.4 pts higher in Rural Balance gap steady
6.1% 61st pct 9.5% 86th pct
Work from home in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +3.9 pts higher in Rural Balance gap steady
4.0% 12th pct 7.9% 39th pct
PT commute in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +1.2 pts higher in Major Urban gap steady
2.5% 55th pct 1.3% 43rd pct

How people get to work

67.4% Car (driver) ◂ +7.6 pts 59.9%
4.0% Walked +5.6 pts ▸ 9.6%
4.0% Worked at home +3.9 pts ▸ 7.9%
6.1% Car (passenger) ◂ +1.1 pts 5.0%
2.5% Bus ◂ +1.2 pts 1.3%
1.9% Bicycle ◂ +1.2 pts 0.7%
0.0% Train even 0.0%

Motor vehicles per home

39.7% 2 vehicles ◂ +7.2 pts 32.6%
35.9% 1 vehicle ◂ +9.7 pts 26.2%
12.5% 3 vehicles +4.4 pts ▸ 16.9%
5.8% 4 or more +9.0 pts ▸ 14.8%
6.1% No vehicle +3.4 pts ▸ 9.5%

Migration & Movement

Recent movers in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +21.9 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
50.2% 88th pct 28.4% 16th pct
Recent arrivals in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +8.0 pts higher in Major Urban gap narrowing
20.6% 76th pct 12.6% 49th pct

Jobs & Industry

Unemployment in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +1.6 pts higher in Rural Balance gap steady
4.1% 27th pct 5.7% 61st pct
Participation in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +14.8 pts higher in Major Urban gap widening
69.9% 100th pct 55.1% 44th pct
Full-time in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.7 pts higher in Rural Balance gap narrowing
68.5% 85th pct 69.3% 86th pct

Industries people work in

19.2% Public administration & safety ◂ +4.4 pts 14.8%
14.5% Health care & social assistance ◂ +7.0 pts 7.5%
7.8% Construction +4.4 pts ▸ 12.2%
0.7% Agriculture, forestry & fishing +10.4 pts ▸ 11.1%
8.4% Education & training ◂ +0.1 pts 8.4%
8.2% Accommodation & food ◂ +3.2 pts 5.0%
7.4% Retail trade ◂ +1.7 pts 5.7%
5.7% Professional & technical ◂ +2.3 pts 3.4%
1.9% Mining +2.6 pts ▸ 4.5%
4.4% Transport & warehousing ◂ +0.4 pts 4.0%
3.7% Other services +0.5 pts ▸ 4.2%
3.1% Administrative & support even 3.1%

Occupations people work in

22.7% Professionals ◂ +8.0 pts 14.7%
13.6% Technicians & trades +4.2 pts ▸ 17.8%
12.7% Managers +3.3 pts ▸ 16.0%
15.3% Community & personal service ◂ +4.1 pts 11.2%
14.0% Clerical & administrative ◂ +1.1 pts 12.8%
7.6% Labourers +4.7 pts ▸ 12.4%
5.0% Machinery operators & drivers +2.6 pts ▸ 7.7%
7.1% Sales workers ◂ +2.0 pts 5.1%

Walkability

Walk score in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +6.3 higher in Major Urban
6.6 90th pct 0.3 7th pct
Types ≤15 min in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +5.8 more in Major Urban
6.2 90th pct 0.3 7th pct
15-min city in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +79.4 pts higher in Major Urban
80.1% 93rd pct 0.6% 3rd pct
Walk to shops in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +75.5 pts higher in Major Urban
78.6% 86th pct 3.0% 12th pct
Walk to transit in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +91.4 pts higher in Major Urban
95.3% 89th pct 3.9% 19th pct
Walk to school in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +75.5 pts higher in Major Urban
81.3% 86th pct 5.8% 16th pct
Walk to a park in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +89.8 pts higher in Major Urban
96.1% 81st pct 6.4% 5th pct
Walk to health in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +57.5 pts higher in Major Urban
60.8% 88th pct 3.3% 29th pct
Amenities/1k in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +7.0 more in Major Urban
24.1 60th pct 17.1 40th pct
Intersections/km² in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +89 higher in Major Urban
89 78th pct 0 0th pct
Mean slope in Major Urbanin Rural Balance +0.5 pts higher in Major Urban
3.9% 14th pct 3.5% 10th pct

Compare Major Urban with nearby areas

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

Compare Rural Balance with nearby areas

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

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/SOS70/major-urban/vs/SOS73/rural-balance