Number of children under 5 in Australia
Australia: Number of children under 5 was 1.53 million people in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
1.53 million people
Change on year
up 0.2%
World rank
71st
of 236 countries
All-time high
1.58 million people
in 2017
All-time low
888,741 people
in 1950
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Number of children under 5 in Australia, 1950–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
Australia recorded 1.53 million people for number of children under 5 in 2023.
The figure is up 0.2% on the previous year and down 0.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of children under 5 in Australia peaked at 1.58 million people in 2017 and was at its lowest, 888,741 people, in 1950.
That places Australia 71st out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Number of children under 5 in Australia, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 888,741 people | — |
| 1951 | 923,696 people | +3.9% |
| 1952 | 940,771 people | +1.8% |
| 1953 | 955,930 people | +1.6% |
| 1954 | 974,997 people | +2.0% |
| 1955 | 993,114 people | +1.9% |
| 1956 | 1.01 million people | +1.8% |
| 1957 | 1.03 million people | +1.7% |
| 1958 | 1.05 million people | +1.8% |
| 1959 | 1.07 million people | +2.1% |
| 1960 | 1.09 million people | +2.3% |
| 1961 | 1.12 million people | +2.3% |
| 1962 | 1.14 million people | +1.9% |
| 1963 | 1.15 million people | +1.3% |
| 1964 | 1.16 million people | +0.7% |
| 1965 | 1.16 million people | +0.1% |
| 1966 | 1.16 million people | -0.4% |
| 1967 | 1.15 million people | -0.6% |
| 1968 | 1.15 million people | -0.1% |
| 1969 | 1.17 million people | +1.2% |
| 1970 | 1.20 million people | +2.8% |
| 1971 | 1.24 million people | +3.8% |
| 1972 | 1.28 million people | +2.8% |
| 1973 | 1.29 million people | +1.1% |
| 1974 | 1.29 million people | -0.1% |
| 1975 | 1.27 million people | -1.4% |
| 1976 | 1.24 million people | -2.8% |
| 1977 | 1.20 million people | -3.2% |
| 1978 | 1.17 million people | -2.6% |
| 1979 | 1.15 million people | -1.8% |
| 1980 | 1.14 million people | -0.7% |
| 1981 | 1.14 million people | +0.5% |
| 1982 | 1.16 million people | +1.2% |
| 1983 | 1.17 million people | +1.3% |
| 1984 | 1.19 million people | +1.3% |
| 1985 | 1.20 million people | +1.2% |
| 1986 | 1.21 million people | +0.9% |
| 1987 | 1.22 million people | +0.9% |
| 1988 | 1.24 million people | +1.0% |
| 1989 | 1.25 million people | +1.1% |
| 1990 | 1.26 million people | +1.2% |
| 1991 | 1.28 million people | +1.1% |
| 1992 | 1.29 million people | +0.9% |
| 1993 | 1.30 million people | +0.6% |
| 1994 | 1.30 million people | +0.3% |
| 1995 | 1.30 million people | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 1.30 million people | -0.2% |
| 1997 | 1.30 million people | -0.2% |
| 1998 | 1.29 million people | -0.3% |
| 1999 | 1.29 million people | -0.4% |
| 2000 | 1.28 million people | -0.3% |
| 2001 | 1.28 million people | -0.2% |
| 2002 | 1.28 million people | -0.2% |
| 2003 | 1.28 million people | -0.1% |
| 2004 | 1.28 million people | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 1.29 million people | +0.6% |
| 2006 | 1.31 million people | +1.6% |
| 2007 | 1.35 million people | +2.8% |
| 2008 | 1.39 million people | +3.3% |
| 2009 | 1.43 million people | +2.9% |
| 2010 | 1.46 million people | +1.8% |
| 2011 | 1.47 million people | +1.3% |
| 2012 | 1.50 million people | +1.8% |
| 2013 | 1.53 million people | +1.9% |
| 2014 | 1.55 million people | +1.2% |
| 2015 | 1.56 million people | +1.0% |
| 2016 | 1.58 million people | +0.9% |
| 2017 | 1.58 million people | +0.2% |
| 2018 | 1.57 million people | -0.5% |
| 2019 | 1.56 million people | -0.8% |
| 2020 | 1.54 million people | -1.2% |
| 2021 | 1.53 million people | -1.0% |
| 2022 | 1.52 million people | -0.3% |
| 2023 | 1.53 million people | +0.2% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 1.53 million people is above the median for high income countries, which is 127,928 people, 11.9× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Australia's 1.53 million people is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 156,933 people, 9.7× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 983,286 people | 888,741 people | 1.07 million people | 10 |
| 1960s | 1.15 million people | 1.09 million people | 1.17 million people | 10 |
| 1970s | 1.23 million people | 1.15 million people | 1.29 million people | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.19 million people | 1.14 million people | 1.25 million people | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.29 million people | 1.26 million people | 1.30 million people | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.32 million people | 1.28 million people | 1.43 million people | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.54 million people | 1.46 million people | 1.58 million people | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.53 million people | 1.52 million people | 1.54 million people | 4 |
Countries ranked near Australia
- 68 Spain 1.76 million people compare
- 69 North Korea 1.71 million people compare
- 70 Sri Lanka 1.64 million people compare
- 72 South Sudan 1.48 million people compare
- 73 Ecuador 1.40 million people compare
- 74 South Korea 1.36 million people compare
More reference data data for Australia
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.21 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 28.02 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 38.41 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 38.41 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 4.07 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 6.14 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 118.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 170.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 13.9 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of children under 5 in Australia?
- Number of children under 5 in Australia was 1.53 million people in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of children under 5 recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 1.58 million people in 2017.
- What is the lowest number of children under 5 recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 888,741 people in 1950.
- How does Australia rank for number of children under 5?
- Australia ranks 71st out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is number of children under 5 rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of children under 5. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total population, measured on 1 July of the year shown. This only includes people aged 0-4.