These statistics form part of the National Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey (NNPAS), which ran from January 2023 to March 2024. More information on other topics of interest from the survey are available on the NNPAS 2023 page.
Measured physical activity and sleep
Latest release
Information on accelerometer-measured physical activity, inactivity and sleep in Australia
Reference period
2023
Released
24/03/2026
Next release Unknown
First release
Release date and time
24/03/2026 11:30am AEDT
Key statistics
Of people who volunteered to wear an accelerometer for this survey, on average:
- Adults spent 4 hours 26 minutes per day being active
- Adults were inactive for 11 hours 54 minutes per day
- Adults slept for 7 hours 36 minutes per night
Interpreting accelerometer data
Interpreting accelerometer data
NNPAS 2023 respondents aged 5 years and over who volunteered to wear an accelerometer (39.3% of all in scope NNPAS respondents) wore an accelerometer for 7 days after their survey interview. Accelerometers are wearable devices that detect change in speed. Accelerometer data were used to estimate respondents’ physical activity and inactivity, the number of steps they did, and the time they spent sleeping.
A person’s day is divided into their waking hours and their main sleep period.
- During their waking hours, a person spends time inactive or at different levels of physical activity (light, moderate, or vigorous) determined by how much their accelerometer is moving. Activity and inactivity during waking hours form physical activity and inactivity estimates.
- The main sleep period is a person’s longest, mostly inactive period with low overall change in arm angle. It is usually overnight. A person may be active in parts of the main sleep period, which is called wakefulness. Activity and inactivity during the main sleep period are excluded from physical activity and inactivity estimates.
The amount of time spent at physical activity levels is determined by acceleration threshold cut points. See the methodology for more information.
Estimates of physical activity measured by accelerometers are different from those collected in other ABS surveys where respondents are asked to recall and report on the physical activity they did (self-report). While accelerometers record all movement for the whole time they are worn, self-report physical activity data are based on survey questions about exercise, or activity while working or while getting to places.
This publication does not report on the Australian Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour Guidelines (2014) for adults or the Australian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines (2019) for children and young people[1][2]. See Physical activity from the National Health Survey for reporting against these guidelines.
In some cases, the accelerometer may not have been worn during particular activities, for example contact sports.
See the methodology for more information.
Physical activity and inactivity
Physical activity is important for maintaining a healthy lifestyle. It can take different forms, including deliberate exercise or sport, incidental movement and work-related activities[3].
Physical activity estimates in this section exclude any activity or inactivity that occurred during the main sleep period. See Sleep for more information.
Different methodologies were used to estimate physical activity for adults (aged 18 years and over) and children (aged 5–17 years). Comparing physical activity between these groups is not recommended. See the methodology for more information.
Adults
In 2023, adults aged 18 years and over who volunteered to wear an accelerometer spent an average of:
- 4 minutes (min) per day doing vigorous physical activity (such as running)
- 1 hour (h) 45 min per day doing moderate physical activity (such as brisk walking)
- 2h 37min per day doing light physical activity (such as slow walking).
In total, adults spent an average of 4h 26min each day being active.
Adults were inactive for an average of 11h 54min each day.
Distribution of physical activity and inactivity
The average amount of time adults spent per day being physically active varied.
On average per day:
- almost one in ten adults (9.3%) did 10 minutes or more of vigorous physical activity
- one quarter of adults (25.0%) did no vigorous physical activity.
| Minutes per day | Adults (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 25.0 | 23.1 | 26.9 |
| 1–4 | 52.5 | 49.8 | 55.2 |
| 5–9 | 13.1 | 11.4 | 14.8 |
| 10 or more | 9.3 | 8.0 | 10.6 |
Proportion of adults, by average time spent doing vigorous physical activity per day, 2023
["Minutes per day","Adults","95% confidence interval"]
[["0","1\u20134","5\u20139","10 or more"],[[25],[52.5],[13.1],[9.3]],[[23.1,26.9],[49.8,55.2],[11.4,14.8],[8,10.6]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"%","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(%)","table_units":"(%)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"60","tick_interval":"20","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]On average per day:
- 7.3% of adults did less than 30 minutes of moderate physical activity
- 9.7% of adults did 3 hours or more of moderate physical activity.
| Hours per day | Adults (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Less than 0.5 | 7.3 | 6.1 | 8.5 |
| 0.5 to less than 1 | 15.5 | 13.7 | 17.3 |
| 1 to less than 1.5 | 21.1 | 19.1 | 23.1 |
| 1.5 to less than 2 | 19.9 | 18.4 | 21.4 |
| 2 to less than 2.5 | 16.7 | 15.1 | 18.3 |
| 2.5 to less than 3 | 9.8 | 8.4 | 11.2 |
| 3 or more | 9.7 | 8.8 | 10.6 |
Proportion of adults, by average time spent doing moderate physical activity per day, 2023
["Hours per day","Adults","95% confidence interval"]
[["Less than 0.5","0.5 to less than 1","1 to less than 1.5","1.5 to less than 2","2 to less than 2.5","2.5 to less than 3","3 or more"],[[7.3],[15.5],[21.1],[19.9],[16.7],[9.8],[9.7]],[[6.1,8.5],[13.7,17.3],[19.1,23.1],[18.4,21.4],[15.1,18.3],[8.4,11.2],[8.8,10.6]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"%","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(%)","table_units":"(%)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"30","tick_interval":"10","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]Adults also varied in the average amount of time they spent inactive per day, with:
- 14.8% inactive for less than 10 hours
- 72.7% inactive for 10 to less than 14 hours
- 12.5% inactive for 14 hours or more.
| Hours per day | Adults (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Less than 9 | 5.9 | 4.9 | 6.9 |
| 9 to less than 10 | 8.9 | 7.7 | 10.1 |
| 10 to less than 11 | 14.6 | 12.8 | 16.4 |
| 11 to less than 12 | 23.8 | 22.0 | 25.6 |
| 12 to less than 13 | 19.6 | 17.8 | 21.4 |
| 13 to less than 14 | 14.7 | 13.0 | 16.4 |
| 14 to less than 15 | 7.9 | 6.7 | 9.1 |
| 15 or more | 4.6 | 3.4 | 5.8 |
Proportion of adults, by average time spent inactive per day, 2023
["Hours per day","Adults","95% confidence interval"]
[["Less than 9","9 to less than 10","10 to less than 11","11 to less than 12","12 to less than 13","13 to less than 14","14 to less than 15","15 or more"],[[5.9],[8.9],[14.6],[23.8],[19.6],[14.7],[7.9],[4.6]],[[4.9,6.9],[7.7,10.1],[12.8,16.4],[22,25.6],[17.8,21.4],[13,16.4],[6.7,9.1],[3.4,5.8]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"%","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(%)","table_units":"(%)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"30","tick_interval":"10","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]Age and sex
On average, males and females spent a similar amount of time per day doing:
- vigorous physical activity (4 min for both)
- moderate physical activity (1h 46min and 1h 44min)
- light physical activity (2h 36min and 2h 39min).
Males spent more time inactive than females (12h 3min compared to 11h 46min).
Adults aged 18–64 years were more active than adults aged 65 years and over, spending:
- more time doing vigorous physical activity (5 min compared to 1 min)
- more time doing moderate physical activity (1h 55min compared to 1h 13min)
- more time doing light physical activity (2h 42min compared to 2h 24min)
- less time inactive (11h 44min compared to 12h 26min).
| Physical activity level | 18–64 years (hours) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (low) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (high) | 65 years and over (hours) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (low) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moderate or vigorous physical activity | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1.2 | 1.1 | 1.3 |
| Light physical activity | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.4 | 2.3 | 2.5 |
| Inactivity | 11.7 | 11.6 | 11.8 | 12.4 | 12.3 | 12.5 |
Average time adults spent being physically active or inactive, by physical activity level and age, 2023
["Physical activity level","18\u201364 years","95% confidence interval","65 years and over","95% confidence interval"]
[["Moderate or vigorous physical activity","Light physical activity","Inactivity"],[[2],[2.7],[11.7]],[[2,2],[2.7,2.7],[11.6,11.8]],[[1.2],[2.4],[12.4]],[[1.1,1.3],[2.3,2.5],[12.3,12.5]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Hours per day(a)","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(hours)","table_units":"(hours)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"15","tick_interval":"5","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]- Data presented in decimal time. For example, 6 minutes is equal to 0.1 hours.
Males aged 18–24 years were more active than females of the same age, spending:
- more time doing moderate or vigorous physical activity (2h 25min compared to 1h 46min)
- more time doing light physical activity (2h 48min compared to 2h 20min)
- less time inactive (11h 1min compared to 12h 19min).
| Age group (years) | Males (hours) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (low) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (high) | Females (hours) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (low) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18–24 | 2.4 | 2.1 | 2.7 | 1.8 | 1.5 | 2.1 |
| 25–34 | 2.2 | 2.0 | 2.4 | 2.1 | 2.0 | 2.2 |
| 35–44 | 2.0 | 1.9 | 2.1 | 2.1 | 1.9 | 2.3 |
| 45–54 | 2.0 | 1.8 | 2.2 | 1.9 | 1.8 | 2.0 |
| 55–64 | 1.8 | 1.6 | 2.0 | 1.7 | 1.6 | 1.8 |
| 65–74 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.4 | 1.6 |
| 75 years and over | 0.9 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0.9 | 1.1 |
Average time adults spent doing moderate or vigorous physical activity, by age and sex, 2023
["Age group (years)","Males","95% confidence interval","Females","95% confidence interval"]
[["18\u201324","25\u201334","35\u201344","45\u201354","55\u201364","65\u201374","75 years and over"],[[2.4],[2.2],[2],[2],[1.8],[1.4],[0.9]],[[2.1,2.7],[2,2.4],[1.9,2.1],[1.8,2.2],[1.6,2],[1.3,1.5],[0.8,1]],[[1.8],[2.1],[2.1],[1.9],[1.7],[1.5],[1]],[[1.5,2.1],[2,2.2],[1.9,2.3],[1.8,2],[1.6,1.8],[1.4,1.6],[0.9,1.1]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Hours per day(a)","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(hours)","table_units":"(hours)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"3","tick_interval":"1","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]- Data presented in decimal time. For example, 6 minutes is equal to 0.1 hours.
Selected population characteristics
The average amount of time adults spent being active or inactive per day varied across different sub-populations.
Adults living in family households with dependent children were more active than adults living in family households with no dependent children, spending:
- more time doing moderate or vigorous physical activity (2h 5min compared to 1h 39min)
- more time doing light physical activity (2h 50min compared to 2h 32min)
- less time inactive (11h 33min compared to 12h 3min).
Adults aged 18–64 years who were employed were more active than those who were unemployed or not in the labour force, spending:
- more time doing moderate or vigorous physical activity (2h 4min compared to 1h 38min)
- more time doing light physical activity (2h 46min compared to 2h 23min)
- less time inactive (11h 36min compared to 12h 21min).
Based on measured waist circumference[4], adults who were at lowered risk of chronic disease were more active than adults at increased or substantially increased risk, spending:
- more time doing moderate or vigorous physical activity (2h 15min compared to 1h 39min)
- more time doing light physical activity (2h 47min compared to 2h 34min)
- less time inactive (11h 21min compared to 12h 7min).
| Measured waist circumference | Adults (hours) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (low) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lowered risk of chronic disease(b) | 2.3 | 2.2 | 2.4 |
| Increased risk of chronic disease(c) | 1.8 | 1.7 | 1.9 |
| Substantially increased risk of chronic disease(d) | 1.6 | 1.6 | 1.6 |
Average time adults spent doing moderate or vigorous physical activity, by waist circumference risk, 2023
["Measured waist circumference","Adults","95% confidence interval"]
[["Lowered risk of chronic disease(b)","Increased risk of chronic disease(c)","Substantially increased risk of chronic disease(d)"],[[2.3],[1.8],[1.6]],[[2.2,2.4],[1.7,1.9],[1.6,1.6]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Hours per day(a)","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(hours)","table_units":"(hours)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"3","tick_interval":"1","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]- Data presented in decimal time. For example, 6 minutes is equal to 0.1 hours.
- A waist circumference of below 94 cm for males or 80 cm for females[4].
- A waist circumference of between 94 cm and 101 cm for males or between 80 cm and 87 cm for females[4].
- A waist circumference of 102 cm or more for males or 88 cm or more for females[4].
Adults who undertook strength or toning activities on 2 or more days in the week prior to wearing the accelerometer were more active than those who did not, spending:
- more time doing moderate or vigorous physical activity (2h 3min compared to 1h 41min)
- more time doing light physical activity (2h 44min compared to 2h 34min)
- less time inactive (11h 31min compared to 12h 6min).
Bouts of physical activity and inactivity
Bouts are periods of time where a respondent is mostly active (or inactive) without a long break.
Long bouts of inactivity may include when a respondent was sedentary, such as sitting or lying down. Bouts exclude the main sleep period. Long periods of sitting can counteract the benefits of physical activity. Sitting is recommended to be broken up as much as possible[1].
On average per day:
- adults had 4.0 bouts of inactivity that lasted for 60 minutes or more
- adults aged 65 years and over had more bouts of inactivity that lasted for 60 minutes or more than adults aged 18–64 years (4.6 bouts compared to 3.9).
Longer bouts of moderate or vigorous physical activity may indicate that a respondent was doing deliberate exercise, rather than general movement throughout the day.
Each day, adults did an average of:
- 1.3 bouts of moderate or vigorous physical activity that lasted for 10 minutes or more
- 1.9 bouts of moderate or vigorous physical activity that lasted for 5–9 minutes.
Adults aged 18–64 years did more bouts of moderate or vigorous physical activity that lasted for 10 minutes or more than adults aged 65 years and over (1.5 bouts compared to 0.7).
Across the whole week:
- one quarter (25.0%) of adults did not do a single bout of moderate or vigorous physical activity that lasted for 10 minutes or more
- 42.4% of adults aged 65 years and over did not do a single bout of moderate or vigorous physical activity that lasted for 10 minutes or more, a higher proportion than those aged 18–64 years (19.4%).
Weekdays and weekends
Adults spent a similar amount of time being active on weekdays and weekends, spending an average per day of:
- 1h 49min doing moderate or vigorous physical activity on weekdays and 1h 48min on weekends
- 2h 37min doing light physical activity on weekdays and 2h 38min on weekends.
Time spent inactive was higher on weekdays than weekends (11h 58min compared to 11h 43min).
| Age group (years) | Weekdays (hours) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (low) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (high) | Weekends (hours) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (low) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18–64 | 11.8 | 11.7 | 11.9 | 11.5 | 11.4 | 11.6 |
| 65 years and over | 12.4 | 12.3 | 12.5 | 12.5 | 12.3 | 12.7 |
Average time adults spent inactive, by age and weekday or weekend, 2023
["Age group (years)","Weekdays","95% confidence interval","Weekends","95% confidence interval"]
[["18\u201364","65 years and over"],[[11.8],[12.4]],[[11.7,11.9],[12.3,12.5]],[[11.5],[12.5]],[[11.4,11.6],[12.3,12.7]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Hours per day(a)","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(hours)","table_units":"(hours)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"15","tick_interval":"5","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]- Data presented in decimal time. For example, 6 minutes is equal to 0.1 hours.
Time of day
Adults were primarily active between 8 am and 6 pm, after which engagement in physical activity steadily decreased. On average:
- 29.0% of all moderate or vigorous physical activity was done between 8 am and 12 pm
- 18.9% of all inactivity occurred between 7 pm and 10 pm.
Amounts of physical activity and inactivity between 11 pm and 6 am were low as adults were typically asleep during this time.
| Hour of day | Inactivity (%) | Light physical activity (%) | Moderate or vigorous physical activity (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 am | 1.5 | 0.6 | 0.5 |
| 1 am | 0.9 | 0.3 | 0.3 |
| 2 am | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
| 3 am | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
| 4 am | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| 5 am | 1.3 | 1.0 | 1.2 |
| 6 am | 2.6 | 2.7 | 3.1 |
| 7 am | 3.9 | 5.0 | 5.7 |
| 8 am | 4.7 | 6.3 | 7.1 |
| 9 am | 5.2 | 6.7 | 7.3 |
| 10 am | 5.5 | 6.9 | 7.3 |
| 11 am | 5.6 | 7.0 | 7.2 |
| 12 pm | 5.7 | 7.0 | 7.0 |
| 1 pm | 5.8 | 6.7 | 6.6 |
| 2 pm | 6.0 | 6.4 | 6.3 |
| 3 pm | 6.0 | 6.3 | 6.2 |
| 4 pm | 5.9 | 6.5 | 6.5 |
| 5 pm | 5.8 | 6.8 | 6.9 |
| 6 pm | 6.0 | 6.5 | 6.0 |
| 7 pm | 6.4 | 5.4 | 4.6 |
| 8 pm | 6.5 | 4.2 | 3.6 |
| 9 pm | 6.0 | 3.3 | 2.8 |
| 10 pm | 4.5 | 2.2 | 1.9 |
| 11 pm | 2.8 | 1.2 | 1.0 |
Proportion of adults’ physical activity and inactivity, by hour of day and activity level, 2023
["Hour of day","Inactivity","Light physical activity","Moderate or vigorous physical activity"]
[["12 am","1 am","2 am","3 am","4 am","5 am","6 am","7 am","8 am","9 am","10 am","11 am","12 pm","1 pm","2 pm","3 pm","4 pm","5 pm","6 pm","7 pm","8 pm","9 pm","10 pm","11 pm"],[[1.5],[0.9],[0.5],[0.4],[0.6],[1.3],[2.6],[3.9],[4.7],[5.2],[5.5],[5.6],[5.7],[5.8],[6],[6],[5.9],[5.8],[6],[6.4],[6.5],[6],[4.5],[2.8]],[[0.6],[0.3],[0.2],[0.2],[0.4],[1],[2.7],[5],[6.3],[6.7],[6.9],[7],[7],[6.7],[6.4],[6.3],[6.5],[6.8],[6.5],[5.4],[4.2],[3.3],[2.2],[1.2]],[[0.5],[0.3],[0.2],[0.2],[0.4],[1.2],[3.1],[5.7],[7.1],[7.3],[7.3],[7.2],[7],[6.6],[6.3],[6.2],[6.5],[6.9],[6],[4.6],[3.6],[2.8],[1.9],[1]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":"2","precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Proportion of daily activity (%)","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(%)","table_units":"(%)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"10","tick_interval":"2","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]Across age groups, the time of day that adults did moderate or vigorous physical activity varied. Adults aged 65 years and over:
- did over a third (34.9%) of their total moderate or vigorous physical activity between 8 am and 12 pm, a higher proportion than adults aged 18–64 years (27.8%) in the same period
- did less of their total moderate or vigorous physical activity between 5 pm and midnight compared to adults aged 18–64 years (20.5% compared to 28.2%).
| Hour of day | 18–64 years (%) | 65 years and over (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 12 am | 0.6 | 0.3 |
| 1 am | 0.4 | 0.1 |
| 2 am | 0.2 | 0.1 |
| 3 am | 0.2 | 0.1 |
| 4 am | 0.4 | 0.3 |
| 5 am | 1.2 | 0.9 |
| 6 am | 3.1 | 3.0 |
| 7 am | 5.6 | 5.9 |
| 8 am | 6.9 | 7.9 |
| 9 am | 6.9 | 9.4 |
| 10 am | 7.0 | 9.2 |
| 11 am | 7.0 | 8.4 |
| 12 pm | 6.8 | 7.5 |
| 1 pm | 6.6 | 6.6 |
| 2 pm | 6.3 | 6.6 |
| 3 pm | 6.1 | 6.4 |
| 4 pm | 6.5 | 6.5 |
| 5 pm | 7.1 | 5.8 |
| 6 pm | 6.3 | 4.5 |
| 7 pm | 4.9 | 3.4 |
| 8 pm | 3.8 | 2.4 |
| 9 pm | 3.0 | 2.1 |
| 10 pm | 2.0 | 1.5 |
| 11 pm | 1.1 | 0.8 |
Proportion of adults’ moderate or vigorous physical activity, by hour of day and age, 2023
["Hour of day","18\u201364 years","65 years and over"]
[["12 am","1 am","2 am","3 am","4 am","5 am","6 am","7 am","8 am","9 am","10 am","11 am","12 pm","1 pm","2 pm","3 pm","4 pm","5 pm","6 pm","7 pm","8 pm","9 pm","10 pm","11 pm"],[[0.6],[0.4],[0.2],[0.2],[0.4],[1.2],[3.1],[5.6],[6.9],[6.9],[7],[7],[6.8],[6.6],[6.3],[6.1],[6.5],[7.1],[6.3],[4.9],[3.8],[3],[2],[1.1]],[[0.3],[0.1],[0.1],[0.1],[0.3],[0.9],[3],[5.9],[7.9],[9.4],[9.2],[8.4],[7.5],[6.6],[6.6],[6.4],[6.5],[5.8],[4.5],[3.4],[2.4],[2.1],[1.5],[0.8]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":"2","precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Proportion of daily activity (%)","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(%)","table_units":"(%)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"10","tick_interval":"2","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]Children
In 2023, children aged 5–17 years who volunteered to wear an accelerometer spent an average of:
- 9 min per day doing vigorous physical activity
- 54 min per day doing moderate physical activity
- 3h 28min per day doing light physical activity.
In total, children spent an average of 4h 31min each day being active.
Children were inactive for an average of 10h 54min per day.
Age and sex
On average, male children aged 5–17 years spent more time per day than female children of the same age doing moderate or vigorous physical activity (1h 9min compared to 55 min). They spent a similar amount of time:
- doing light physical activity (3h 26min and 3h 30min)
- inactive (10h 51min and 10h 57min).
Children aged 5–11 years were more active than children aged 12–17 years, spending:
- more time doing moderate or vigorous physical activity (1h 24min compared to 40 min)
- more time doing light physical activity (3h 46min compared to 3h 7min)
- less time inactive (9h 44min compared to 12h 10min).
| Physical activity level | 5–11 years (hours) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (low) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (high) | 12–17 years (hours) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (low) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moderate or vigorous physical activity | 1.4 | 1.3 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.8 |
| Light physical activity | 3.8 | 3.7 | 3.9 | 3.1 | 2.9 | 3.3 |
| Inactivity | 9.7 | 9.5 | 9.9 | 12.2 | 11.9 | 12.5 |
Average time children spent being physically active or inactive, by physical activity level and age, 2023
["Physical activity level","5\u201311 years","95% confidence interval","12\u201317 years","95% confidence interval"]
[["Moderate or vigorous physical activity","Light physical activity","Inactivity"],[[1.4],[3.8],[9.7]],[[1.3,1.5],[3.7,3.9],[9.5,9.9]],[[0.7],[3.1],[12.2]],[[0.6,0.8],[2.9,3.3],[11.9,12.5]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Hours per day(a)","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(hours)","table_units":"(hours)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"15","tick_interval":"5","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]- Data presented in decimal time. For example, 6 minutes is equal to 0.1 hours.
For both age groups, male children did more moderate or vigorous physical activity per day than female children.
- Males aged 5–11 years did 1h 32min on average compared to 1h 14min for females of the same age.
- Males aged 12–17 years did 45 min on average compared to 33 min for females of the same age.
| Age and sex | Moderate physical activity (minutes) | Vigorous physical activity (minutes) |
|---|---|---|
| Males 5–11 years | 77 | 15 |
| Females 5–11 years | 64 | 10 |
| Males 12–17 years | 40 | 5 |
| Females 12–17 years | 31 | 2 |
Average time children spent doing moderate or vigorous physical activity, by age and sex, 2023
["Age and sex","Moderate physical activity","Vigorous physical activity"]
[["Males 5\u201311 years","Females 5\u201311 years","Males 12\u201317 years","Females 12\u201317 years"],[[77],[64],[40],[31]],[[15],[10],[5],[2]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Minutes per day","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(minutes)","table_units":"(minutes)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"100","tick_interval":"20","precision":"0","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]Selected population characteristics
On average, children aged 5–17 years living in Regional and Remote Australia did more light physical activity than those living in Major Cities (3h 37min compared to 3h 24min), and spent:
- less time inactive (10h 34min compared to 11h 3min)
- a similar amount of time doing moderate or vigorous physical activity (1h 4min and 1h 3min).
Children aged 5–17 years who were in the obese Body Mass Index range spent less time doing moderate or vigorous physical activity than those in the underweight or healthy weight range (47 min compared to 1h 4min). They also spent more time inactive (11h 42min compared to 10h 48min).
Children aged 5–17 years who participated in organised physical activity in the week prior to wearing the accelerometer did more physical activity compared to those who did not, spending:
- more time doing moderate or vigorous physical activity (1h 9min compared to 53 min)
- more time doing light physical activity (3h 35min compared to 3h 15min)
- less time inactive (10h 37min compared to 11h 21min).
Bouts of physical activity and inactivity
Bouts of inactivity may include when a respondent was sedentary, such as sitting or lying down. Bouts exclude the main sleep period. Long bouts of sedentary behaviour can counteract the benefits of physical activity and are recommended to be reduced or broken up[2]. On average:
- children aged 5–17 years had 3.4 bouts of inactivity per day lasting 60 minutes or longer
- children aged 5–11 years had fewer bouts of inactivity lasting 60 minutes or longer than children aged 12–17 years (2.4 bouts compared to 4.6).
Long bouts of moderate or vigorous physical activity may indicate a respondent was doing deliberate exercise, rather than general movement throughout the day. On average, male children aged 5–17 years did more long bouts of moderate or vigorous physical activity per day than females of the same age.
- Male children did 0.8 bouts lasting 10 minutes or longer compared to 0.3 bouts for female children.
- Male children did 1.2 bouts lasting 5–9 minutes compared to 0.6 bouts for female children.
Across the whole week, 43.5% of children aged 5–17 years did zero bouts of moderate or vigorous physical activity lasting 10 minutes or longer.
| Sex | 5–11 years (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) | 12–17 years (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Males | 17.4 | 9.6 | 25.2 | 49.5 | 40.3 | 58.7 |
| Females(a) | 46.5 | 37.0 | 56.0 | 67.5 | 54.5 | 80.5 |
Proportion of children who did zero bouts of moderate or vigorous physical activity lasting 10 minutes or longer over the week, by age and sex, 2023
["Sex","5\u201311 years","95% confidence interval","12\u201317 years","95% confidence interval"]
[["Males","Females(a)"],[[17.4],[46.5]],[[9.6,25.2],[37,56]],[[49.5],[67.5]],[[40.3,58.7],[54.5,80.5]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"%","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(%)","table_units":"(%)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"100","tick_interval":"20","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]- The proportion for '12–17 years' has a high margin of error and should be used with caution.
Weekdays and weekends
Comparing weekdays to weekends, on average per day children aged 5–17 years spent:
- more time doing moderate or vigorous physical activity on weekdays (1h 5min compared to 58 min)
- a similar amount of time doing light physical activity (3h 31min and 3h 21min)
- a similar amount of time inactive (10h 51min and 11h 1min).
Time of day
Children aged 5–17 years did more moderate or vigorous physical activity between 1 pm and 2 pm compared to any other hour of the day. Of all children’s moderate and vigorous physical activity:
- 44.2% occurred between 9 am and 3 pm
- proportionally more occurred between 6 am and 9 am on weekdays compared to weekends (11.1% compared to 7.6%).
| Hour of day | Weekdays (%) | Weekends (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 12 am | 0.1 | 0.2 |
| 1 am | 0.0 | 0.1 |
| 2 am | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| 3 am | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| 4 am | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| 5 am | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| 6 am | 0.8 | 0.6 |
| 7 am | 3.2 | 2.0 |
| 8 am | 7.1 | 5.1 |
| 9 am | 4.7 | 5.4 |
| 10 am | 6.1 | 6.7 |
| 11 am | 8.6 | 8.4 |
| 12 pm | 6.4 | 7.3 |
| 1 pm | 10.8 | 8.8 |
| 2 pm | 7.4 | 7.9 |
| 3 pm | 9.0 | 8.6 |
| 4 pm | 8.4 | 9.5 |
| 5 pm | 8.5 | 8.8 |
| 6 pm | 7.1 | 6.8 |
| 7 pm | 5.1 | 5.6 |
| 8 pm | 3.4 | 3.8 |
| 9 pm | 1.8 | 2.4 |
| 10 pm | 0.9 | 1.3 |
| 11 pm | 0.3 | 0.6 |
Proportion of children's moderate or vigorous physical activity, by hour of day and weekday or weekend, 2023
["Hour of day","Weekdays","Weekends"]
[["12\u00a0am","1\u00a0am","2\u00a0am","3\u00a0am","4\u00a0am","5\u00a0am","6\u00a0am","7\u00a0am","8\u00a0am","9\u00a0am","10\u00a0am","11\u00a0am","12\u00a0pm","1\u00a0pm","2\u00a0pm","3\u00a0pm","4\u00a0pm","5\u00a0pm","6\u00a0pm","7\u00a0pm","8\u00a0pm","9\u00a0pm","10\u00a0pm","11\u00a0pm"],[[0.1],[0],[0],[0],[0],[0.1],[0.8],[3.2],[7.1],[4.7],[6.1],[8.6],[6.4],[10.8],[7.4],[9],[8.4],[8.5],[7.1],[5.1],[3.4],[1.8],[0.9],[0.3]],[[0.2],[0.1],[0],[0],[0],[0.1],[0.6],[2],[5.1],[5.4],[6.7],[8.4],[7.3],[8.8],[7.9],[8.6],[9.5],[8.8],[6.8],[5.6],[3.8],[2.4],[1.3],[0.6]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":"2","precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Proportion of daily activity (%)","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(%)","table_units":"(%)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"12","tick_interval":"4","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]Steps
Counts of steps offer a common and easily understood measure of physical activity. In the NNPAS 2023, accelerometers were used to estimate the average daily steps of people. Step data obtained from accelerometers are not directly comparable to data collected using pedometers in the NNPAS 2011–12. See the methodology for more information.
Adults
In 2023, adults aged 18 years and over who volunteered to wear an accelerometer did an average of 9,065 steps per day.
Males and females did a similar number of steps per day on average (9,047 and 9,082).
Adults aged 65 years and over did fewer steps than those aged 18–64 years, with daily averages of:
- 9,714 steps for adults aged 18–64 years
- 7,959 steps for adults aged 65–74 years
- 5,776 steps for adults aged 75 years and over.
Among younger adults aged 18–24 years, males did more steps than females of the same age (10,776 compared to 8,481).
| Age group (years) | Males (steps) | 95% confidence interval (steps) (low) | 95% confidence interval (steps) (high) | Females (steps) | 95% confidence interval (steps) (low) | 95% confidence interval (steps) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18–24 | 10,776 | 9,575 | 11,977 | 8,481 | 7,127 | 9,835 |
| 25–34 | 10,204 | 9,455 | 10,953 | 9,964 | 9,342 | 10,586 |
| 35–44 | 9,430 | 8,806 | 10,054 | 10,241 | 9,642 | 10,840 |
| 45–54 | 9,684 | 9,004 | 10,364 | 9,418 | 8,913 | 9,923 |
| 55–64 | 9,437 | 8,679 | 10,195 | 9,247 | 8,597 | 9,897 |
| 65–74 | 7,531 | 7,071 | 7,991 | 8,371 | 7,771 | 8,971 |
| 75 years and over | 5,726 | 5,157 | 6,295 | 5,829 | 5,288 | 6,370 |
Average steps per day for adults, by age and sex, 2023
["Age group (years)","Males","95% confidence interval","Females","95% confidence interval"]
[["18\u201324","25\u201334","35\u201344","45\u201354","55\u201364","65\u201374","75 years and over"],[[10776],[10204],[9430],[9684],[9437],[7531],[5726]],[[9575,11977],[9455,10953],[8806,10054],[9004,10364],[8679,10195],[7071,7991],[5157,6295]],[[8481],[9964],[10241],[9418],[9247],[8371],[5829]],[[7127,9835],[9342,10586],[9642,10840],[8913,9923],[8597,9897],[7771,8971],[5288,6370]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Steps per day","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(steps)","table_units":"(steps)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"12000","tick_interval":"3000","precision":"0","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]On average, adults did a similar number of steps on weekdays and weekends (9,102 and 8,974).
Children
In 2023, children aged 5–17 years who volunteered to wear an accelerometer did an average of 10,799 steps per day. Males and females did a similar number of steps (11,070 and 10,462).
- Children aged 5–11 years did more steps on average per day than children aged 12–17 years (12,908 compared to 9,382).
- Children aged 5–11 years did more steps on average on weekdays than on weekend days (12,406 compared to 11,328).
Male and female children did similar numbers of steps on average on weekend days (9,923 and 9,910). However, males did more steps on average than females on weekdays (11,529 compared to 10,683).
Male children were more likely than female children to do high levels of daily steps on average.
- One in five (20.5%) male children did 14,000 steps or more per day on average, higher than female children (12.0%).
| Steps per day | Males (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) | Females (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Less than 4,000 | 3.3 | 1.0 | 5.6 | 2.6 | 0.4 | 4.8 |
| 4,000 to less than 6,000 | 4.6 | 1.2 | 8.0 | 5.1 | 2.3 | 7.9 |
| 6,000 to less than 8,000 | 13.5 | 8.8 | 18.2 | 19.1 | 12.0 | 26.2 |
| 8,000 to less than 10,000 | 13.3 | 8.5 | 18.1 | 17.0 | 12.0 | 22.0 |
| 10,000 to less than 12,000 | 26.1 | 19.1 | 33.1 | 20.7 | 14.8 | 26.6 |
| 12,000 to less than 14,000 | 18.7 | 12.4 | 25.0 | 23.5 | 17.1 | 29.9 |
| 14,000 to less than 16,000 | 12.0 | 6.7 | 17.3 | 7.1 | 2.8 | 11.4 |
| 16,000 or more | 8.5 | 4.8 | 12.2 | 4.9 | 2.1 | 7.7 |
Proportion of children, by average steps per day and sex, 2023
["Steps per day","Males","95% confidence interval","Females","95% confidence interval"]
[["Less than 4,000 ","4,000 to less than 6,000","6,000 to less than 8,000","8,000 to less than 10,000","10,000 to less than 12,000","12,000 to less than 14,000","14,000 to less than 16,000","16,000 or more "],[[3.3],[4.6],[13.5],[13.3],[26.1],[18.7],[12],[8.5]],[[1,5.6],[1.2,8],[8.8,18.2],[8.5,18.1],[19.1,33.1],[12.4,25],[6.7,17.3],[4.8,12.2]],[[2.6],[5.1],[19.1],[17],[20.7],[23.5],[7.1],[4.9]],[[0.4,4.8],[2.3,7.9],[12,26.2],[12,22],[14.8,26.6],[17.1,29.9],[2.8,11.4],[2.1,7.7]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"%","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(%)","table_units":"(%)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"40","tick_interval":"10","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]Sleep
Sleep is essential to supporting good health and wellbeing. Getting good sleep can contribute to healthy growth and development, aid cognitive performance and improve quality of life[5].
In this section, sleep refers to the main sleep period, which is the period between when a person falls asleep (sleep onset) and when they wake up (wake time). This is usually overnight. This can include periods of wakefulness, which is any time a person moves or wakes during the main sleep period. See the methodology for more information.
Adults
Sleep duration
In 2023, adults aged 18 years and over who volunteered to wear an accelerometer slept for 7h 36min on average per night. Average nightly sleep duration varied in the adult population.
- Almost one in ten (9.1%) slept for less than 6 hours.
- A majority (62.5%) slept for 7 to less than 9 hours.
- A small proportion (2.4%) slept for 10 hours or longer.
| Hours per night | Adults (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Less than 6 | 9.1 | 7.4 | 10.8 |
| 6 to less than 7 | 17.7 | 16.1 | 19.3 |
| 7 to less than 8 | 35.1 | 33.4 | 36.8 |
| 8 to less than 9 | 27.3 | 25.3 | 29.3 |
| 9 to less than 10 | 8.4 | 7.3 | 9.5 |
| 10 or more | 2.4 | 1.7 | 3.1 |
Proportion of adults, by average sleep duration per night, 2023
["Hours per night","Adults","95% confidence interval"]
[["Less than 6","6 to less than 7","7 to less than 8","8 to less than 9","9 to less than 10","10 or more"],[[9.1],[17.7],[35.1],[27.3],[8.4],[2.4]],[[7.4,10.8],[16.1,19.3],[33.4,36.8],[25.3,29.3],[7.3,9.5],[1.7,3.1]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"%","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(%)","table_units":"(%)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"40","tick_interval":"10","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]Average sleep duration per night was:
- longer for females than males (7h 42min compared to 7h 29min)
- longer for adults aged 75 years and over (7h 59min) than most other age groups
- similar across all age groups between 18–24 and 55–64 years, ranging from 7h 26min to 7h 37min.
| Age group (years) | Males (hours) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (low) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (high) | Females (hours) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (low) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18–24 | 7.6 | 7.3 | 7.9 | 7.5 | 6.9 | 8.1 |
| 25–34 | 7.3 | 7.1 | 7.5 | 7.6 | 7.4 | 7.8 |
| 35–44 | 7.2 | 7.0 | 7.4 | 7.7 | 7.5 | 7.9 |
| 45–54 | 7.3 | 7.1 | 7.5 | 7.6 | 7.3 | 7.9 |
| 55–64 | 7.4 | 7.2 | 7.6 | 7.8 | 7.6 | 8.0 |
| 65–74 | 7.8 | 7.6 | 8.0 | 7.8 | 7.7 | 7.9 |
| 75 years and over | 8.0 | 7.7 | 8.3 | 7.9 | 7.7 | 8.1 |
Average sleep duration for adults, by age and sex, 2023
["Age group (years)","Males","95% confidence interval","Females","95% confidence interval"]
[["18\u201324","25\u201334","35\u201344","45\u201354","55\u201364","65\u201374","75 years and over"],[[7.6],[7.3],[7.2],[7.3],[7.4],[7.8],[8]],[[7.3,7.9],[7.1,7.5],[7,7.4],[7.1,7.5],[7.2,7.6],[7.6,8],[7.7,8.3]],[[7.5],[7.6],[7.7],[7.6],[7.8],[7.8],[7.9]],[[6.9,8.1],[7.4,7.8],[7.5,7.9],[7.3,7.9],[7.6,8],[7.7,7.9],[7.7,8.1]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Hours per night(a)","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(hours)","table_units":"(hours)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"10","tick_interval":"2","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]- Data presented in decimal time. For example, 6 minutes is equal to 0.1 hours.
On average, adults slept for longer on weekend nights than weeknights (7h 55min compared to 7h 32min). One in five (20.8%) adults slept for an average of 9 hours or more on weekend nights, compared to 10.4% on weeknights.
Sleep duration by selected population characteristics
On average per night, adults:
- living in Major Cities slept less than those living in Regional and Remote Australia (7h 33min compared to 7h 42min)
- living in family households with dependent children slept less than those living in family households without dependent children (7h 27min compared to 7h 43min)
- who usually worked 35 hours or more per week slept less (7h 23min) than those who usually worked 1–34 hours (7h 43min) or those who were unemployed or not in the labour force (7h 48min)
- who currently smoked slept less than those who did not currently smoke (7h 21min compared to 7h 37min).
Sleep efficiency
Sleep efficiency measures wakefulness, or how much a person moves or wakes during their main sleep period. Wakefulness while trying to sleep can impact sleep quality[5]. A higher sleep efficiency percentage means they spent less time moving or awake during the sleep period. See the methodology for more information.
Among all adults, the top 10% (highest decile) had an average nightly sleep efficiency of 92.5% or higher, while the bottom 10% (lowest decile) had a sleep efficiency of 72.4% or lower.
On average, sleep efficiency for all adults was 83.7% per night. There were minor differences in average sleep efficiency by sex, age and night of the week. On average:
- females had a slightly higher sleep efficiency than males (84.2% compared to 83.1%)
- adults aged 65 years and over had a slightly higher sleep efficiency than adults aged 18–64 years (84.5% compared to 83.4%)
- adults had a slightly higher sleep efficiency on weekend nights than weeknights (85.0% compared to 83.8%).
| Age group (years) | Males (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) | Females (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18–64 | 83.0 | 82.2 | 83.8 | 83.8 | 83.1 | 84.5 |
| 65 years and over | 83.4 | 82.4 | 84.4 | 85.5 | 84.8 | 86.2 |
Average sleep efficiency(a) for adults, by age and sex, 2023
["Age group (years)","Males","95% confidence interval","Females","95% confidence interval"]
[["18\u201364","65 years and over"],[[83],[83.4]],[[82.2,83.8],[82.4,84.4]],[[83.8],[85.5]],[[83.1,84.5],[84.8,86.2]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Sleep efficiency (%)","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(%)","table_units":"(%)","axis_min":"70","axis_max":"90","tick_interval":"5","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]- Sleep efficiency is a measure of the amount of wakefulness during the main sleep period, with a higher sleep efficiency indicating less wakefulness.
Adults who did less than 30 minutes per day of moderate or vigorous physical activity on average had a lower sleep efficiency than those who did at least 60 minutes per day (80.9% compared to 84.2%).
| Average time spent doing moderate or vigorous physical activity per day (hours) | Adults (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Less than 0.5 | 80.9 | 79.3 | 82.5 |
| 0.5 to less than 1 | 82.6 | 81.5 | 83.7 |
| 1 to less than 1.5 | 83.7 | 82.8 | 84.6 |
| 1.5 to less than 2 | 84.2 | 83.4 | 85.0 |
| 2 to less than 2.5 | 84.5 | 83.5 | 85.5 |
| 2.5 to less than 3 | 84.5 | 83.3 | 85.7 |
| 3 or more | 84.2 | 83.2 | 85.2 |
Average sleep efficiency(a) for adults, by time spent doing moderate or vigorous physical activity per day, 2023
["Average time spent doing moderate or vigorous physical activity per day (hours)","Adults","95% confidence interval"]
[["Less than 0.5","0.5 to less than 1","1 to less than 1.5","1.5 to less than 2","2 to less than 2.5","2.5 to less than 3","3 or more"],[[80.9],[82.6],[83.7],[84.2],[84.5],[84.5],[84.2]],[[79.3,82.5],[81.5,83.7],[82.8,84.6],[83.4,85],[83.5,85.5],[83.3,85.7],[83.2,85.2]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Sleep efficiency (%)","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(%)","table_units":"(%)","axis_min":"70","axis_max":"90","tick_interval":"5","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]- Sleep efficiency is a measure of the amount of wakefulness during the main sleep period, with a higher sleep efficiency indicating less wakefulness.
Consistency in sleep timing
Going to sleep and waking up at a consistent time can improve many aspects of health and wellbeing, including physical and mental health, cardiovascular health and alertness[6].
For adults, consistency in sleep onset was measured by counting how often they fell asleep within the same 60-minute window over each night of the week. The same method was used to measure consistency in wake time. See the methodology for more information.
Across the week:
- around one in four (24.1%) adults were consistent in their sleep onset for 6–7 nights
- more than one in four (27.7%) were consistent in their wake time for 6–7 mornings.
Adults were generally more consistent in when they woke up compared to when they fell asleep.
| Number of times in the week | Consistency in sleep onset(a) (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) | Consistency in wake time(b) (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Less than 4 | 22.2 | 19.9 | 24.5 | 15.8 | 13.4 | 18.2 |
| 4–5 | 53.7 | 51.5 | 55.9 | 56.4 | 54.4 | 58.4 |
| 6–7 | 24.1 | 21.8 | 26.4 | 27.7 | 25.5 | 29.9 |
Proportion of adults, by number of times in the week with consistent sleep onset(a) or wake time(b), 2023
["Number of times in the week","Consistency in sleep onset(a)","95% confidence interval","Consistency in wake time(b)","95% confidence interval"]
[["Less than 4","4\u20135","6\u20137"],[[22.2],[53.7],[24.1]],[[19.9,24.5],[51.5,55.9],[21.8,26.4]],[[15.8],[56.4],[27.7]],[[13.4,18.2],[54.4,58.4],[25.5,29.9]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"%","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(%)","table_units":"(%)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"60","tick_interval":"20","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]- Consistency in sleep onset is the number of nights, over seven nights, a respondent fell asleep within the same 60-minute window.
- Consistency in wake time is the number of mornings, over seven mornings, a respondent woke up within the same 60-minute window.
Males and females were similarly likely to have:
- fallen asleep at a consistent time for 6–7 nights (22.5% and 25.6%)
- woken up at a consistent time for 6–7 mornings (25.8% and 29.5%).
Adults aged 65 years and over were more consistent with when they fell asleep and woke up than adults aged 18–64 years.
| Consistency in sleep onset or wake time | 18–64 years (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) | 65 years and over (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Consistency in sleep onset for 6–7 nights(a) | 21.9 | 19.7 | 24.1 | 30.0 | 25.3 | 34.7 |
| Consistency in wake time for 6–7 mornings(b) | 26.3 | 23.4 | 29.2 | 31.6 | 27.5 | 35.7 |
Proportion of adults who were consistent in sleep onset(a) or wake time(b) 6–7 times in the week, by age, 2023
["Consistency in sleep onset or wake time","18\u201364 years","95% confidence interval","65 years and over","95% confidence interval"]
[["Consistency in sleep onset for 6\u20137 nights(a)","Consistency in wake time for 6\u20137 mornings(b)"],[[21.9],[26.3]],[[19.7,24.1],[23.4,29.2]],[[30],[31.6]],[[25.3,34.7],[27.5,35.7]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"%","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(%)","table_units":"(%)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"40","tick_interval":"10","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]- Consistency in sleep onset is the number of nights, over seven nights, a respondent fell asleep within the same 60-minute window.
- Consistency in wake time is the number of mornings, over seven mornings, a respondent woke up within the same 60-minute window.
Consistency in sleep timing by selected population characteristics
Consistency in sleep onset for 6–7 nights was more likely for adults:
- living in areas of least socio-economic disadvantage than those living in areas of most socio-economic disadvantage (28.1% compared to 18.7%)
- who did not currently smoke than those who currently smoked (25.3% compared to 11.7%).
Consistency in wake time for 6–7 mornings was more likely for adults:
- who were unemployed or not in the labour force than those who were employed (31.4% compared to 25.7%)
- who did not currently smoke than those who currently smoked (28.4% compared to 20.7%)
- who were in the underweight or healthy weight Body Mass Index range than those who were in the overweight or obese range (32.3% compared to 25.9%).
Children
Sleep duration
In 2023, children aged 5–17 years who volunteered to wear an accelerometer slept for 8h 31min per night on average.
- Male and female children aged 5–17 years slept for a similar amount of time (8h 28min and 8h 35min).
- Children aged 5–11 years slept over an hour longer than children aged 12–17 years (9h 2min compared to 7h 56min)
- Children aged 5–17 years slept for a similar length of time on weeknights and weekend nights (8h 32min and 8h 33min).
| Age group (years) | Males (hours) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (low) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (high) | Females (hours) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (low) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5–11 | 9.0 | 8.9 | 9.1 | 9.1 | 8.9 | 9.3 |
| 12–17 | 7.9 | 7.7 | 8.1 | 8.0 | 7.8 | 8.2 |
Average sleep duration for children, by age and sex, 2023
["Age group (years)","Males","95% confidence interval","Females","95% confidence interval"]
[["5\u201311","12\u201317"],[[9],[7.9]],[[8.9,9.1],[7.7,8.1]],[[9.1],[8]],[[8.9,9.3],[7.8,8.2]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Hours per night(a)","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(hours)","table_units":"(hours)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"10","tick_interval":"2","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]- Data presented in decimal time. For example, 6 minutes is equal to 0.1 hours.
Sleep duration by selected population characteristics
On average per night, children aged 5–17 years:
- living in Major Cities slept less than those living in Regional and Remote Australia (8h 25min compared to 8h 43min)
- who were in the obese Body Mass Index range slept less (8h 2min) than those who were overweight (8h 34min) or those in the underweight or healthy weight range (8h 33min).
Children aged 5–17 years who had screen-based devices in their bedroom slept less on average than those who did not.
- Children aged 5–11 years with screen-based devices in their bedrooms slept 20 minutes less than those without (8h 49min compared to 9h 9min).
- Children aged 12–17 years with screen-based devices in their bedrooms slept 29 minutes less than those without (7h 51min compared to 8h 20min).
| Age group (years) | Had screen-based devices in bedroom (hours) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (low) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (high) | Did not have screen-based devices in bedroom (hours) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (low) | 95% confidence interval (hours) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5–11 | 8.8 | 8.6 | 9.0 | 9.1 | 9.0 | 9.2 |
| 12–17 | 7.9 | 7.8 | 8.0 | 8.3 | 7.9 | 8.7 |
Average sleep duration for children, by age and whether had screen-based devices in their bedroom, 2023
["Age group (years)","Had screen-based devices in bedroom","95% confidence interval","Did not have screen-based devices in bedroom","95% confidence interval"]
[["5\u201311","12\u201317"],[[8.8],[7.9]],[[8.6,9],[7.8,8]],[[9.1],[8.3]],[[9,9.2],[7.9,8.7]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Hours per night(a)","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(hours)","table_units":"(hours)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"10","tick_interval":"2","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]- Data presented in decimal time. For example, 6 minutes is equal to 0.1 hours.
Sleep efficiency
Sleep efficiency measures wakefulness, or how much a person moves or wakes during their main sleep period. Wakefulness while trying to sleep can impact sleep quality[5]. A higher sleep efficiency percentage means they spent less time moving or awake during the sleep period. See the methodology for more information.
Among all children aged 5–17 years, the top 10% (highest decile) had an average nightly sleep efficiency of 89.4% or higher, while the bottom 10% (lowest decile) had a sleep efficiency of 69.5% or lower.
On average, children aged 5–17 years had a sleep efficiency of 81.1% per night. On average:
- female children aged 5–17 years had a higher sleep efficiency than male children of the same age (82.5% compared to 80.0%)
- children aged 5–11 years and 12–17 years had a similar sleep efficiency (80.8% and 81.5%)
- sleep efficiency was similar between weeknights and weekend nights (81.4% and 82.6%).
| Sex | Weeknights (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) | Weekend nights (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Males | 80.4 | 79.0 | 81.8 | 81.2 | 79.6 | 82.8 |
| Females | 82.7 | 81.7 | 83.7 | 84.4 | 83.3 | 85.5 |
Average sleep efficiency(a) for children aged 5–17 years, by sex and weeknight or weekend night, 2023
["Sex","Weeknights","95% confidence interval","Weekend nights","95% confidence interval"]
[["Males","Females"],[[80.4],[82.7]],[[79,81.8],[81.7,83.7]],[[81.2],[84.4]],[[79.6,82.8],[83.3,85.5]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"Sleep efficiency (%)","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(%)","table_units":"(%)","axis_min":"70","axis_max":"90","tick_interval":"5","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]- Sleep efficiency measures the amount of wakefulness during the main sleep period, with a higher sleep efficiency indicating less wakefulness.
Consistency in sleep timing
Varying bedtime and wake-up time by no more than 30 minutes helps establish and maintain healthy sleep patterns for children[2].
For children aged 5–17 years, consistency in sleep onset was measured by counting how often they fell asleep within the same 30-minute window over each night of the week. The same method was used to measure consistency in wake time. See the methodology for more information.
Across the week:
- 8.3% of children aged 5–17 years were consistent in their sleep onset for 6–7 nights
- 4.9% of children aged 5–17 years were consistent in their wake time for 6–7 mornings.
| Number of times in the week | Consistency in sleep onset(a) (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) | Consistency in wake time(b) (%) | 95% confidence interval (%) (low) | 95% confidence interval (%) (high) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Less than 4 | 38.6 | 32.5 | 44.7 | 35.0 | 28.2 | 41.8 |
| 4–5 | 53.1 | 45.7 | 60.5 | 60.1 | 53.5 | 66.7 |
| 6–7 | 8.3 | 4.2 | 12.4 | 4.9 | 2.1 | 7.7 |
Proportion of children aged 5–17 years, by number of times in the week with consistent sleep onset(a) or wake time(b), 2023
["Number of times in the week","Consistency in sleep onset(a)","95% confidence interval","Consistency in wake time(b)","95% confidence interval"]
[["Less than 4","4\u20135","6\u20137"],[[38.6],[53.1],[8.3]],[[32.5,44.7],[45.7,60.5],[4.2,12.4]],[[35],[60.1],[4.9]],[[28.2,41.8],[53.5,66.7],[2.1,7.7]]]
[]
[{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"","table_units":"","axis_min":null,"axis_max":null,"tick_interval":null,"precision":"-1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}][{"value":"0","axis_id":"0","axis_title":"%","axis_units":"","tooltip_units":"(%)","table_units":"(%)","axis_min":"0","axis_max":"80","tick_interval":"20","precision":"1","data_unit_prefix":"","data_unit_suffix":"","reverse_axis":false}]- Consistency in sleep onset is the number of nights, over seven nights, a respondent fell asleep within the same 30-minute window.
- Consistency in wake time is the number of mornings, over seven mornings, a respondent woke up within the same 30-minute window.
When comparing inconsistency in sleep onset (less than 4 nights in the week) by sex and age:
- male and female children aged 5–17 years were similarly likely to have fallen asleep at a consistent time for less than 4 nights (41.4% and 35.2%)
- children aged 12–17 years were more likely than children aged 5–11 years to have fallen asleep at a consistent time for less than 4 nights (46.5% compared to 31.6%).
Data downloads
See National Nutrition and Physical Activity 2023 data downloads for the full suite of available data.
Data relating to measured physical activity and sleep can be found in tables:
- Measured physical activity (accelerometer) – Adults 18 years and over
- Measured physical activity (accelerometer) – Children 5–17 years
- Measured sleep (accelerometer) – Adults 18 years and over
- Measured sleep (accelerometer) – Children 5–17 years.
Footnotes
- Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, ‘Physical activity and exercise guidelines for all Australians’, https://www.health.gov.au/topics/physical-activity-and-exercise/physical-activity-and-exercise-guidelines-for-all-australians; accessed 02/02/2026
- Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, ‘For children and young people (5 to 17 years)’, https://www.health.gov.au/topics/physical-activity-and-exercise/physical-activity-and-exercise-guidelines-for-all-australians/for-children-and-young-people-5-to-17-years; accessed 02/02/2026.
- Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, ‘Physical activity’, https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports-data/behaviours-risk-factors/physical-activity/overview; accessed 02/02/2026.
- World Health Organisation, ‘Waist circumference and waist-hip ratio : report of a WHO expert consultation, Geneva, 8-11 December 2008’, https://iris.who.int/items/8e0d5a48-7103-4ecd-905d-7476f2a98ed0; accessed 02/02/2026.
- Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, ‘Sleep problems as a risk factor for chronic conditions’, https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/risk-factors/sleep-problems-as-a-risk-factor/summary; accessed 02/02/2026.
- National Sleep Foundation, ‘Setting a Regular Sleep Schedule’, https://www.thensf.org/setting-a-regular-sleep-schedule/; accessed 02/02/2026.
Methodology
Scope
Includes:
- usual residents in Australia aged 2+ years living in private dwellings
- urban and rural areas in all states and territories, excluding very remote parts of Australia and discrete Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities.
Geography
The data available includes estimates for Australia.
Source
The National Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Collection method
- Face-to-face interview with an ABS Interviewer
- 24-hour dietary recall data collected face-to-face with an ABS Interviewer or via an online interview
- Some physical activity and sleep data was collected on a voluntary basis via an accelerometer.
Concepts, sources and methods
- Descriptions of the concepts underlying the data are available in IHMHS: Concepts, Sources and Methods
- 24-hour dietary recall is presented using a classification based on the AUSNUT files by FSANZ.