Western Australia's population: size, growth and where people live

Western Australia added 65,465 people, or 2.17 per cent, in the year to 31 December 2025. The ABS summary rounds this to 65,500 or 2.2 per cent. Western Australia had the fastest growth rate of the eight states and territories¹. By population growth, it ranked fourth, behind Victoria's 117,315, New South Wales's 104,611 and Queensland's 92,162.

The population has increased in every calendar year since 1982. Across the 44 calendar years from 1982 to 2025, based on the December-to-December changes in the quarterly series, the slowest growth came in 2015, when the state added 19,126 people or 0.76 per cent, the smallest increase and the slowest rate over that period. The fastest rates came in 2008 and 2023, both 3.46 per cent when rounded to two decimal places, with 2008 marginally faster before rounding; the largest increase was 98,124 people, in 2023¹.

Year-ending growth measured at other quarters covered a wide range. It slowed to 15,306 people or 0.60 per cent in the year to the June quarter 2016, the slowest reading from 1982 to 2025, and peaked at 100,315 or 3.56 per cent in the year to the September quarter 2023¹.

Western Australia had a larger share of its people in the capital than any other state at 30 June 2025. Greater Perth held 2,452,765 people at 30 June 2025 and the rest of the state 591,617, so the capital held 80.6 per cent of the 3,044,382 people²³.

Among the other state capitals, Adelaide held 78.4 per cent of its two-region total, Melbourne 76.8, Sydney 65.6, Brisbane 50.0 and Hobart 44.3²³.

Perth's share increased from 76.3 per cent of the two-region total at 30 June 2001 to 80.6 per cent at 30 June 2025, and the population difference between the capital and the rest of the state widened from 1,004,448 people to 1,861,148 over the same period. The rest of the state's population fell in 2014-15 and 2015-16, from 543,685 at 30 June 2014 to 536,715 at 30 June 2016, before resuming growth²³.

Greater Perth grew faster than any other capital city in 2024-25. The capital grew by 58,088 people or 2.4 per cent over the financial year, and the rest of the state by 8,147 or 1.4 per cent. The ABS publishes these increases, rounded, as 58,100 and 8,100. Perth had the highest growth rate of the eight capital cities, at 2.4 per cent, followed by Brisbane at 2.1 and Melbourne at 2.0². Greater Perth's growth comprised net overseas migration of 37,300 people, natural increase of 12,600 and a net internal migration gain of 8,200, rounded to the nearest hundred. Brisbane and Perth were the only capitals to have net internal migration gains.

The largest population increases in the state in 2024-25 were on Perth's outer edges. Alkimos - Eglinton, in the outer north-west, grew by 2,500 people, Brabham - Henley Brook, in the outer north-east, by 1,800 and Baldivis - North, in the outer south, by 1,700. These three areas had the highest growth rates in the state, at 13, 12 and 11 per cent. Alkimos - Eglinton also recorded the state's largest net internal migration gain, at 1,900 people².

The capital's own long-run series is covered in the Perth population article.

The state added 1,756,307 people between 31 December 1981 and 31 December 2025, growing from 1,320,221 to 3,076,528, or 2.33 times its 1981 population¹.

Western Australia first exceeded 1.5 million people in the September quarter 1987, 2 million in the March quarter 2005, 2.5 million in the December quarter 2013 and 3 million in the December quarter 2024¹. These milestones are based on the first quarter in which the population reached or exceeded each threshold. The gaps between milestones were 17 years and 6 months from 1.5 million to 2 million, 8 years and 9 months from 2 million to 2.5 million, and 11 years from 2.5 million to 3 million.

The annual increase fell from 52,395 people in 2019 to 39,388 in 2020 and 35,053 in 2021, then rose to 76,283 in 2022 and 98,124 in 2023, before falling to 73,416 in 2024 and 65,465 in 2025, based on the December-to-December population changes¹.