52,481 ▼ -6.2%
Higher than 57% of remoteness area areas.
- 2011: 55,944
- 2016: 52,723
- 2021: 52,481
The number of people who usually live in the area, counted on Census night.
Very Remote Australia · Remoteness Area
Demographics & Identity in Very Remote Australia
Who lives here — how many people, how old they are, and how communities identify.
A much younger population than most other areas defines Very Remote Australia, where the typical resident is just 35. This region stands out for its high proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and a population structure skewed toward children and young adults.
52,481
▼ -6.2%
- 1–2: 3 areas
- 2–3: 0 areas
- 3–5: 0 areas
- 5–9: 0 areas
- 9–16: 2 areas
- 16–28: 1 area
- 28–50: 1 area
- 50–87: 0 areas
- 87–152: 1 area
- 152–265: 1 area
- 265–463: 1 area
- 463–808: 3 areas
- 808–1,412: 1 area
- 1,412–2,466: 0 areas
- 2,466–4,308: 4 areas
- 4,308–7,525: 2 areas
- 7,525–13,147: 4 areas
- 13,147–22,967: 2 areas
- 22,967–40,122: 1 area
- 40,122–70,092: 5 areas
- 70,092–122,448: 2 areas
- 122,448–213,911: 5 areas
- 213,911–373,695: 3 areas
- 373,695–652,831: 2 areas
- 652,831–1,140,471: 2 areas
- 1,140,471–1,992,358: 3 areas
- 1,992,358–3,480,573: 2 areas
- 3,480,573–6,080,428: 2 areas
All remoteness area areas, 2021. The marker is Very Remote Australia — higher than 57% of areas.
| Very Remote Australia | 52,481 |
|---|---|
| Australia | 25,422,788 |
Population
How many people, and the typical age.
The total population is 52,481, which is larger than about 58% of similar areas. However, the number of people shrank by 6.2% since 2011, with about 3,463 people leaving the region.
35 yrs ▲ +6.1%
Younger than 93% of remoteness area areas.
- 2011: 33 yrs
- 2016: 33 yrs
- 2021: 35 yrs
Half the population is older than this age, and half younger.
Age profile
How the population splits across age groups.
Children under 15 make up 22.2% of the population, which is well above the national figure of 18.2%. This helps explain why the area is noticeably younger than Australia, while the share of seniors is well below the national average at 12.6%.
12.6% ▲ +32.9%
Lower than 69% of remoteness area areas.
- 2011: 9.5%
- 2016: 11.2%
- 2021: 12.6%
Share of the population aged 65 years and over.
22.2% ▼ -9.9%
Higher than 96% of remoteness area areas.
- 2011: 24.6%
- 2016: 24.1%
- 2021: 22.2%
Share of the population aged under 15 years.
Age structure
View on map →Very Remote Australia splits fairly evenly between Young adults (25–44) (27%) and Older adults (45–64) (25%), with Children (0–14) at 22%.
Identity & relationships
First Nations identity and marital status.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people make up 37.4% of the population, a figure far above the national average of 3.2%. Additionally, 20.9% of residents are in a de facto relationship, which is well above the Australian figure.
37.4% ▲ +7.0%
Higher than 89% of remoteness area areas.
- 2011: 35.0%
- 2016: 39.4%
- 2021: 37.4%
Share of people who identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander.
20.9% ▲ +9.1%
Higher than 99% of remoteness area areas.
- 2011: 19.1%
- 2016: 19.2%
- 2021: 20.9%
Share of people aged 15+ who are in a de facto marriage (registered marriages excluded).
Marital status
View on map →In Very Remote Australia, Never married is the majority at 50%; Married is next at 36%.
Age & sex structure
Sources
- Census of Population and Housing — Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2021 (CC BY 4.0).
More for Very Remote Australia
Cite this page
Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2021). Demographics & Identity in Very Remote Australia [Census of Population and Housing]. CensusAtlas, used under CC BY 4.0. https://censusatlas.au/region/ra/RA34/very-remote-australia/topic/demographics-identity