Remoteness Area · Area profile
Outer Regional Australia
37,283 km²
A far older population than the national average defines Outer Regional Australia, where the typical resident is 47. This is a sprawling community of nearly 200,000 people that has grown by 26% since 2011. It is a place of stark contrasts, featuring very high rates of home ownership and a strong presence of First Nations people, though typical incomes remain well below the national figure. Most of the area is characterized by detached housing and a high reliance on cars for daily travel.
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The community is aging, with the typical resident now 47 and seniors making up 23.9% of the population. While children under 15 have fallen to 16.3%, the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people rose to 7.3%, which is well above the national figure.
Australia is the birthplace for 81.9% of residents, and only 11.1% were born overseas, which is far below the national average. English and Australian are the most common ancestries, accounting for 45.2% and 43.6% respectively.
English is the primary language for 90.5% of the population. Only 3.5% of people use another language at home, a figure far below the national average, and very few people speak little or no English.
More than half of the population (50.6%) now report having no religion, which is far above the national figure. This represents a significant shift, as the number of people with no religion rose by 22 percentage points since 2011.
Education levels are lower than the national average, with only 13.9% of adults holding a bachelor degree or higher. However, more people have completed Year 12 than in 2011, rising to 36.3%.
Typical incomes are well below the national figure, with the usual household earning $1,169 a week. Only 9.9% of households earn $3,000 or more weekly, though this has risen since 2011.
Health challenges are common here, as 35.6% of people have a long-term health condition. This is well above the national average, and 11.2% of residents live with a mental health condition.
Residents are more likely to volunteer than those in other areas, with 17.8% participating. Unpaid care is also more common, as 13.6% of people provide unpaid care and 24.8% do significant housework.
First Nations people make up a significant part of the community, totaling 14,490 people. The unemployment rate for this group is 9.1%, which is well below the national figure for First Nations people.
Living alone is more common here than in most other areas, with 29.7% of people in single-person households. The typical home is smaller than average, with 2.3 people per dwelling.
The area is dominated by separate houses (92.9%) and high levels of stability, with 42.2% of homes owned outright. Renting is much less common than across Australia, and typical weekly rents are well below the national figure at $250.
Car dependence is very high, with 67.5% of people driving to work and only 0.7% using public transport. Only 4.6% of homes have no motor vehicle, which is lower than the national average.
The population is relatively stable, with 34.6% of people moving in the last five years, which is well below the national figure. Recent arrivals from overseas are also much less common than in other areas.
Fewer adults are working or looking for work compared to the national average, at 53.6%. The most common industries are health care, agriculture, and retail trade, while the unemployment rate sits at 5.5%.
The area is mostly car-dependent, with a low walkability score of 3.3. While 60.8% of homes are near a park, only 26.7% of residents can walk to health services within 15 minutes.