Urban area over the long-term in Australia
Australia: Urban area over the long-term was 20,727 km² per grid cell in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2025)
20,727 km² per grid cell
Change on year
up 1.9%
World rank
6th
of 202 countries
All-time high
20,727 km² per grid cell
in 2025
All-time low
0.0048 km² per grid cell
in 1000
Years of data
108
1000–2025
Urban area over the long-term in Australia, 1000–2025
Source: HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in km² per grid cell.
Analysis
The most recent figure for urban area over the long-term in Australia is 20,727 km² per grid cell, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 108 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.9% on the previous year and up 21.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban area over the long-term in Australia peaked at 20,727 km² per grid cell in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0.0048 km² per grid cell, in 1000.
Australia ranks 6th of 202 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1000s | 0.0048 km² per grid cell | 0.0048 km² per grid cell | 0.0048 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1100s | 0.0145 km² per grid cell | 0.0145 km² per grid cell | 0.0145 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1200s | 0.0436 km² per grid cell | 0.0436 km² per grid cell | 0.0436 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1300s | 0.131 km² per grid cell | 0.131 km² per grid cell | 0.131 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1400s | 0.3936 km² per grid cell | 0.3936 km² per grid cell | 0.3936 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1500s | 1.18 km² per grid cell | 1.18 km² per grid cell | 1.18 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1600s | 3.57 km² per grid cell | 3.57 km² per grid cell | 3.57 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1700s | 10.57 km² per grid cell | 10.57 km² per grid cell | 10.57 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1710s | 12.33 km² per grid cell | 12.33 km² per grid cell | 12.33 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1720s | 14.38 km² per grid cell | 14.38 km² per grid cell | 14.38 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1730s | 16.78 km² per grid cell | 16.78 km² per grid cell | 16.78 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1740s | 19.58 km² per grid cell | 19.58 km² per grid cell | 19.58 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1750s | 22.84 km² per grid cell | 22.84 km² per grid cell | 22.84 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1760s | 26.65 km² per grid cell | 26.65 km² per grid cell | 26.65 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1770s | 31.1 km² per grid cell | 31.1 km² per grid cell | 31.1 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1780s | 36.34 km² per grid cell | 36.34 km² per grid cell | 36.34 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1790s | 42.59 km² per grid cell | 42.59 km² per grid cell | 42.59 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1800s | 47.18 km² per grid cell | 47.18 km² per grid cell | 47.18 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1810s | 52.43 km² per grid cell | 52.43 km² per grid cell | 52.43 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1820s | 60.64 km² per grid cell | 60.64 km² per grid cell | 60.64 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1830s | 75 km² per grid cell | 75 km² per grid cell | 75 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1840s | 108.96 km² per grid cell | 108.96 km² per grid cell | 108.96 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1850s | 218.19 km² per grid cell | 218.19 km² per grid cell | 218.19 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1860s | 498.17 km² per grid cell | 498.17 km² per grid cell | 498.17 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1870s | 840.17 km² per grid cell | 840.17 km² per grid cell | 840.17 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1880s | 1,253 km² per grid cell | 1,253 km² per grid cell | 1,253 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1890s | 1,993 km² per grid cell | 1,993 km² per grid cell | 1,993 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1900s | 2,708 km² per grid cell | 2,708 km² per grid cell | 2,708 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1910s | 3,464 km² per grid cell | 3,464 km² per grid cell | 3,464 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1920s | 4,200 km² per grid cell | 4,200 km² per grid cell | 4,200 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1930s | 4,532 km² per grid cell | 4,532 km² per grid cell | 4,532 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1940s | 4,533 km² per grid cell | 4,533 km² per grid cell | 4,533 km² per grid cell | 1 |
| 1950s | 4,929 km² per grid cell | 4,663 km² per grid cell | 5,260 km² per grid cell | 10 |
| 1960s | 5,974 km² per grid cell | 5,362 km² per grid cell | 6,657 km² per grid cell | 10 |
| 1970s | 7,372 km² per grid cell | 6,807 km² per grid cell | 7,966 km² per grid cell | 10 |
| 1980s | 8,826 km² per grid cell | 8,108 km² per grid cell | 9,641 km² per grid cell | 10 |
| 1990s | 10,734 km² per grid cell | 9,830 km² per grid cell | 11,702 km² per grid cell | 10 |
| 2000s | 13,223 km² per grid cell | 11,945 km² per grid cell | 14,710 km² per grid cell | 10 |
| 2010s | 16,787 km² per grid cell | 15,079 km² per grid cell | 18,444 km² per grid cell | 10 |
| 2020s | 19,757 km² per grid cell | 18,790 km² per grid cell | 20,727 km² per grid cell | 6 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More reference data data for Australia
- Spring temperature anomalies -0.4864 °C (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies 0.8615 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month 1.13 °C (2026)
- Universal right to vote in practice 2 (2025)
- Autumn temperature anomalies 0.0026 °C (2025)
- Winter temperature anomalies 0.4713 °C (2025)
- Consumer price index 148.46 2010 = 100 (2025)
- Universal right to vote 2 (2025)
- Competitive elections 1 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban area over the long-term in Australia?
- Urban area over the long-term in Australia was 20,727 km² per grid cell in 2025, according to HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest urban area over the long-term recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 20,727 km² per grid cell in 2025.
- What is the lowest urban area over the long-term recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0048 km² per grid cell in 1000.
- How does Australia rank for urban area over the long-term?
- Australia ranks 6th out of 202 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban area over the long-term rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 21.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Urban area over the long-term. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 108 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total built-up area of a country over time.