Melbourne Population 2024

Melbourne's 2024 population is now estimated at 5,315,600In 1950, the population of Melbourne was 1,331,966Melbourne has grown by 80,193 in the last year, which represents a 1.53% annual change.These population estimates and projections come from the latest revision of the UN World Urbanization Prospects. These estimates represent the Urban agglomeration of Melbourne, which typically includes Melbourne's population in addition to adjacent suburban areas.

The results of the latest Australian census reported that the population of Melbourne in 2011 was 3,999,982; only just short of 4 million. This makes Melbourne the second largest city in Australia, behind Sydney. Melbourne is the capital city of the state of Victoria, and is by far the largest city in the state; in fact, around 75% of the population of Victoria lives in Melbourne.

The estimated total population of the Greater Melbourne Area in 2017 was standing at 4,850,740, as of the end of the month of June that year.

City Size and Population Density

The total area the Melbourne occupies covers a total of 9,992.5 km² (3,858.1 sq mi). The population density in the city comes to about 500 residents living per square kilometer.

Demographics of Melbourne

Melbourne is one of Australia's most diverse cities - 33.2% of its residents in 2006 were born outside of Australia. The city has attracted waves of immigrants over the years (more about this in our population history section below) and, as well as a large (around 150,000) British community, there are more than 50,000 people in Melbourne who were born in each of the following countries: China, Greece, India, Italy, New Zealand and Vietnam.

Looking further back to ancestry, 43.3% of Melbourne's population reported that they had British or Irish ancestry, 28.2% reported Australian ancestry, and 18.2% reported that they had Asian ancestry (including 6.5% who reported Chinese ancestry).

When it comes to religion Christianity is, like in most Australian cities, the most widely followed religion; 55.8% of respondents in the  2011 census reported that they were Christians (broken down as 27.2% Catholic, 22.7% Protestant and 5.8% Orthodox). Other major religious groups are Buddhist 4.0%, Muslim 3.2%, Hindu 2.0% and Jewish 1.1%. Another 23.5% of Melbourne residents reported that they had no religion.

History of Melbourne and Population Growth

Founded in 1835 by two separate groups of settlers, Melbourne formally became a town in August 1842 and was declared a city by Queen Victoria in 1847. And not a moment too soon, because in the 20 years between its founding in 1835 and 1854, midway through Victoria's gold rush, Melbourne's population had grown from zero to 123,000.

The wealth that came from the gold rush led to the construction of many more brick buildings, from banks to universities, many of which still exist today and give the town its distinctive Victorian architecture. The obvious prosperity of Melbourne attracted even more immigrants and fuelled Melbourne's development, turning it into a boom town. By 1880 the city had increased in size to 280,000 and ten years later in 1890 its population had almost doubled again to 490,000.

The inevitable crash that followed led the city's population to alternately stagnate and grow slowly, and it wasn't until the eve of the second World War (WWII) that the population edged over 1 million. Since then, growth has been steady, and Melbourne has cemented its position as one of Australia's two largest cities.

As well as being populous, Melbourne is a rapidly growing city. In between the 2006 and 2011 census, its recorded population growth was an impressive 9.7%, taking the city from 3,647,021 in 2006 to 3,999,982 in 2011. If Melbourne continues to grow at this kind of rate, it is likely that it will surpass Sydney to become Australia's largest city within 25 years or so.

Country
Australia
Growth Rate
1.53%

Melbourne Population 2024

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Year
Population
Growth Rate
Growth
19501,331,9660%0
19511,376,5343.35%44,568
19521,424,1773.46%47,643
19531,473,3313.45%49,154
19541,524,2463.46%50,915
19551,574,4143.29%50,168
19561,626,3063.3%51,892
19571,679,7593.29%53,453
19581,735,0453.29%55,286
19591,792,1523.29%57,107
19601,851,2203.3%59,068
19611,911,9983.28%60,778
19621,949,7961.98%37,798
19631,988,3421.98%38,546
19642,027,7041.98%39,362
19652,067,7351.97%40,031
19662,108,7441.98%41,009
19672,200,2104.34%91,466
19682,295,7784.34%95,568
19692,395,2174.33%99,439
19702,499,1094.34%103,892
19712,607,0674.32%107,958
19722,637,8111.18%30,744
19732,668,8311.18%31,020
19742,700,2601.18%31,429
19752,732,0591.18%31,799
19762,764,2011.18%32,142
19772,782,6930.67%18,492
19782,801,3340.67%18,641
19792,820,1010.67%18,767
19802,839,0190.67%18,918
19812,858,0560.67%19,037
19822,885,2980.95%27,242
19832,912,8000.95%27,502
19842,940,6020.95%27,802
19852,968,5930.95%27,991
19862,996,9430.95%28,350
19873,035,5341.29%38,591
19883,074,6761.29%39,142
19893,114,2131.29%39,537
19903,154,3141.29%40,101
19913,194,8261.28%40,512
19923,216,5820.68%21,756
19933,238,4250.68%21,843
19943,260,4470.68%22,022
19953,282,6190.68%22,172
19963,304,9500.68%22,331
19973,318,8070.42%13,857
19983,332,7410.42%13,934
19993,346,7330.42%13,992
20003,360,8040.42%14,071
20013,374,9870.42%14,183
20023,423,3181.43%48,331
20033,472,3411.43%49,023
20043,522,1361.43%49,795
20053,572,5041.43%50,368
20063,623,7251.43%51,221
20073,698,5112.06%74,786
20083,774,9462.07%76,435
20093,852,7452.06%77,799
20103,932,2572.06%79,512
20114,013,4572.06%81,200
20124,113,8932.5%100,436
20134,216,5552.5%102,662
20144,321,9262.5%105,371
20154,429,9312.5%108,005
20164,540,7882.5%110,857
20174,654,4192.5%113,631
20184,770,8942.5%116,475
20194,870,3882.09%99,494
20204,967,7332%97,345
20215,061,4391.89%93,706
20225,150,7661.76%89,327
20235,235,4071.64%84,641
20245,315,6001.53%80,193
20255,391,8861.44%76,286
20265,464,9161.35%73,030
20275,535,3221.29%70,406
20285,603,7121.24%68,390
20295,670,5511.19%66,839
20305,736,1971.16%65,646
20315,800,9591.13%64,762
20325,865,1091.11%64,150
20335,928,8401.09%63,731
20345,992,2951.07%63,455
20356,055,5881.06%63,293
showing: 86 rows

Melbourne Population Data (Urban Area)

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Other Cities in Australia

  1. Australian Bureau of Statistics - Data and statistics for the Greater Melbourne Area
  2. City of Melbourne - City of Melbourne's demographics, population, and other research

Sources