Hobart overtakes Adelaide as the nation’s oldest capital
Hobart has replaced Adelaide as the oldest capital city in 2024, according to data released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
Tricia Chester, ABS head of demography statistics, said: ’Hobart’s median age of 39.3 years edged ahead of Adelaide’s 39.2 years, swapping positions for the first time since 2020. Darwin still had the youngest median age at 34.8 years.
‘The areas within Australia with the oldest populations tended to be coastal retirement destinations. Tea Gardens - Hawks Nest on the NSW coast had the nation’s oldest median age at 66.5 years.
‘This was more than three times the median age of Acton in the ACT, home to the Australian National University, which had the youngest median age in the country at 21.1 years.’
Sex ratios also varied considerably across the country. Hobart and Adelaide not only had the oldest populations, but they were also the capitals where women outnumbered men the most.
‘Our youngest capital Darwin was the only capital with more men than women,’ Ms Chester said.
Men outnumbered women the most in Wacol, Brisbane, where multiple male correctional centres were based. Here, there were 290.1 males per 100 females.
Conversely, women outnumbered men the most in Woollahra, Sydney, where there were 80 males for every 100 females.
| Capital city | Median age (years) | Sex ratio |
|---|---|---|
| Sydney | 36.8 | 99.1 |
| Melbourne | 36.6 | 97.9 |
| Brisbane | 36.4 | 98.3 |
| Adelaide | 39.2 | 96.0 |
| Perth | 37.5 | 99.8 |
| Hobart | 39.3 | 95.2 |
| Darwin | 34.8 | 105.0 |
| Canberra | 35.7 | 97.1 |
| Total capital cities | 36.9 | 98.4 |
To find out more about your area, including its median age and sex ratio, see Regional population by age and sex.
Media notes
- The median age is the age at which half the population is older and half is younger. The sex ratio is the number of males per 100 females.
- Capital cities mentioned in this release are Greater Capital City Statistical Areas and areas are Statistical Areas Level 2, as defined in the Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) Edition 3.
- When reporting ABS data you must attribute the Australian Bureau of Statistics (or the ABS) as the source.
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