179,000 ▲ +14.9%
Higher than 90% of sub-region (sa3) areas.
- 2011: 155,737
- 2016: 163,884
- 2021: 179,000
The number of people who usually live in the area, counted on Census night.
Newcastle · Sub-region (SA3)
Demographics & Identity in Newcastle
Who lives here — how many people, how old they are, and how communities identify.
Growth has been a major story for Newcastle, where the population jumped by 15% to reach 179,000 people since 2011. While the total number of residents has risen, the typical age has stayed steady at 37 years. This makes the area a little younger than both the state and national figures.
179,000
▲ +14.9%
- 1–2: 3 areas
- 2–2: 0 areas
- 2–4: 0 areas
- 4–6: 0 areas
- 6–9: 2 areas
- 9–15: 2 areas
- 15–23: 1 area
- 23–37: 0 areas
- 37–57: 1 area
- 57–90: 0 areas
- 90–141: 1 area
- 141–221: 1 area
- 221–347: 1 area
- 347–545: 2 areas
- 545–854: 3 areas
- 854–1,340: 0 areas
- 1,340–2,101: 3 areas
- 2,101–3,296: 1 area
- 3,296–5,169: 2 areas
- 5,169–8,107: 3 areas
- 8,107–12,714: 7 areas
- 12,714–19,940: 16 areas
- 19,940–31,273: 30 areas
- 31,273–49,048: 61 areas
- 49,048–76,924: 90 areas
- 76,924–120,643: 70 areas
- 120,643–189,211: 46 areas
- 189,211–296,748: 12 areas
All sub-region (sa3) areas, 2021. The marker is Newcastle — higher than 90% of areas.
| Newcastle | 179,000 |
|---|---|
| Rest of NSW | 2,829,637 |
| New South Wales | 8,072,163 |
| Australia | 25,422,788 |
Population
How many people, and the typical age.
The population grew by about 23,263 people between 2011 and 2021, making Newcastle one of the largest areas at this level. The typical resident is 37, which is lower than most similar areas.
37 yrs → 0.0%
Younger than 71% of sub-region (sa3) areas.
- 2011: 37 yrs
- 2016: 37 yrs
- 2021: 37 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 16.4% of the population, which is a little below the national figure of 18.2%. Meanwhile, the proportion of people aged 65 and over rose to 17.4% since 2011, landing around the middle for its level.
17.4% ▲ +11.7%
Lower than 51% of sub-region (sa3) areas.
- 2011: 15.6%
- 2016: 16.4%
- 2021: 17.4%
Share of the population aged 65 years and over.
16.4% ▼ -4.3%
Lower than 70% of sub-region (sa3) areas.
- 2011: 17.2%
- 2016: 16.9%
- 2021: 16.4%
Share of the population aged under 15 years.
Age structure
View on map →In Newcastle, the largest group is Young adults (25–44) at 29%, followed by Older adults (45–64) (24%) and Seniors (65+) (17%).
Identity & relationships
First Nations identity and marital status.
A little more than 4.6% of residents identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, which is higher than most areas. There is also a high rate of de facto relationships at 13.8%, well above the New South Wales figure of 10.6%.
4.6% ▲ +67.7%
Higher than 70% of sub-region (sa3) areas.
- 2011: 2.7%
- 2016: 3.6%
- 2021: 4.6%
Share of people who identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander.
13.8% ▲ +31.4%
Higher than 73% of sub-region (sa3) areas.
- 2011: 10.5%
- 2016: 11.5%
- 2021: 13.8%
Share of people aged 15+ who are in a de facto marriage (registered marriages excluded).
Marital status
View on map →Newcastle splits fairly evenly between Never married (43%) and Married (39%), with Divorced at 10%.
Age & sex structure
Sources
- Census of Population and Housing — Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2021 (CC BY 4.0).
More for Newcastle
Cite this page
Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2021). Demographics & Identity in Newcastle [Census of Population and Housing]. CensusAtlas, used under CC BY 4.0. https://censusatlas.au/region/sa3/11103/newcastle/topic/demographics-identity