Society & PopulationAustralia edition
Australians aged 65 and over: the share has risen every year since 2018
In 2025, 18.09% of Australia's population was aged 65 or older, up from 15.64% in 2018, with an increase in each year in between.
- 201815.64%
- 201915.95%
- 202016.34%
- 202116.75%
- 202217.08%
- 202317.38%
- 202417.73%
- 202518.09%
Australia Share of population aged 65+ →
What the latest figure shows
The official figures give a clear answer on how fast Australia is getting older. In 2025, people aged 65 and over made up 18.09% of the total population.
Sources for this paragraph (1)
- F8 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 18.09% · 2025 · World Bank
That figure is the share of all Australians in that age group. It is measured once a year, so each figure covers a full calendar year.
Sources for this paragraph (1)
- F8 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 18.09% · 2025 · World Bank
Year by year, 2018 to 2025
In 2018, 15.64% of Australians were aged 65 or older. The share was 15.95% in 2019 and 16.34% in 2020.
Sources for this paragraph (3)
- F1 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 15.64% · 2018 · World Bank
- F2 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 15.95% · 2019 · World Bank
- F3 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 16.34% · 2020 · World Bank
It reached 16.75% in 2021 and 17.08% in 2022. It then rose to 17.38% in 2023 and 17.73% in 2024.
Sources for this paragraph (4)
- F4 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 16.75% · 2021 · World Bank
- F5 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 17.08% · 2022 · World Bank
- F6 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 17.38% · 2023 · World Bank
- F7 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 17.73% · 2024 · World Bank
The most recent figure, for 2025, is 18.09%.
Sources for this paragraph (1)
- F8 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 18.09% · 2025 · World Bank
How 2025 compares with earlier years
The share went up in every one of the 7 annual steps from 2018 to 2025. It never stayed flat and never fell in that period.
Sources for this paragraph (8)
- F1 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 15.64% · 2018 · World Bank
- F2 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 15.95% · 2019 · World Bank
- F3 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 16.34% · 2020 · World Bank
- F4 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 16.75% · 2021 · World Bank
- F5 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 17.08% · 2022 · World Bank
- F6 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 17.38% · 2023 · World Bank
- F7 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 17.73% · 2024 · World Bank
- F8 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 18.09% · 2025 · World Bank
Compared with 2024, the 2025 share was higher: 18.09% against 17.73%. Compared with 2018, it was higher again: 18.09% against 15.64%.
Sources for this paragraph (3)
- F1 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 15.64% · 2018 · World Bank
- F7 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 17.73% · 2024 · World Bank
- F8 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 18.09% · 2025 · World Bank
What it means for people in Australia
For people living in Australia, the figures confirm one thing plainly: a larger part of the population was aged 65 or older in 2025 than in any earlier year in this series.
Sources for this paragraph (2)
- F1 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 15.64% · 2018 · World Bank
- F8 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 18.09% · 2025 · World Bank
The figures describe the age make-up of the country as a whole. They do not show how older Australians are faring, where they live, or what services they use.
Sources for this paragraph (1)
- F8 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 18.09% · 2025 · World Bank
What the data does not tell us
This is a percentage, not a head count. It does not show how many people are aged 65 or over, only their share of the total.
Sources for this paragraph (1)
- F8 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 18.09% · 2025 · World Bank
The facts here do not explain why the share has risen. They also do not break the figure down by state, by sex or by narrower age bands.
Sources for this paragraph (2)
- F1 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 15.64% · 2018 · World Bank
- F8 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 18.09% · 2025 · World Bank
The series ends in 2025. The data does not say what the share will be in later years.
Sources for this paragraph (1)
- F8 Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) · 18.09% · 2025 · World Bank
Scenarios to watch
- Scenario, not a forecast If the pattern of yearly increases seen from 2018 to 2025 continues, the next annual figure would come in above 18.09%.
- Scenario, not a forecast If the next figure matches or falls below 18.09%, it would be the first year in this series without an increase.
What to check next
- The next annual figure for the share of the population aged 65 and over, covering 2026
- Whether the year-on-year rise continues or levels off
- Any official breakdown of the 65-and-over share by state or age band
Verified data used in this report
| Indicator | Value | Period | Sources | Accessed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F1 | Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) | 15.64% | 2018 | World Bank | |
| F2 | Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) | 15.95% | 2019 | World Bank | |
| F3 | Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) | 16.34% | 2020 | World Bank | |
| F4 | Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) | 16.75% | 2021 | World Bank | |
| F5 | Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) | 17.08% | 2022 | World Bank | |
| F6 | Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) | 17.38% | 2023 | World Bank | |
| F7 | Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) | 17.73% | 2024 | World Bank | |
| F8 | Australia Population aged 65 and above (% of total population) | 18.09% | 2025 | World Bank | |
| C1 | Australia consumer price inflation (12-month change) | 4.3% | 2026-09 | Australian Bureau of Statistics | |
| C2 | Australia electricity price inflation (12-month change) | 12.8% | 2026-09 | Australian Bureau of Statistics | |
| C3 | Australia food price inflation (12-month change) | 3.2% | 2026-09 | Australian Bureau of Statistics | |
| C4 | Australia rent prices (CPI, 12-month change) | 3.6% | 2026-09 | Australian Bureau of Statistics | |
| C5 | Australia unemployment rate (seasonally adjusted) | 4.72% | 2026-09 | Australian Bureau of Statistics | |
| C6 | Australia GDP growth (annual %) | 1.35% | 2025 | World Bank | |
| C7 | Australia Unemployment, total (% of labour force, ILO modelled estimate) | 4.09% | 2025 | World Bank | |
| C8 | Australia Fertility rate, total (births per woman) | 1.48 | 2024 | World Bank | |
| C10 | Australia Population growth (annual %) | 1.53% | 2025 | World Bank |
Sources
How this report was checked
- Data: the newest reference period cited is 2026-09.
- Figures were collected from the source on
- Written by an AI model (claude-opus-5-5) using only the official figures listed in this report.
- Automatic checks passed: every number matches a cited figure, every paragraph names its evidence, and there is no investment advice or copied source text.
- A separate quality-check model raised concerns, and the report was rewritten once to address them.
- No person reviewed this report before publication. Automatic checks confirm the numbers, not every interpretation.
Update history
- 2026-10-29 01:00 UTC — created
- 2026-10-29 01:00 UTC — approved+published