Australia vs New Zealand: population pyramids in 2008
AustraliaNew Zealand
Each bar is the share of the total population at that single year of age (men left, women right), so countries of different sizes can be compared.
Australia and New Zealand compared
In 2008, Australia has a population of 21.2 million and New Zealand 4.2 million; Australia is about 5.0 times the size of New Zealand.
The share aged 65 and over is 13.1% in Australia and 12.5% in New Zealand, 0.6 points higher in Australia. The median age is 36.8 years in Australia and 36.3 years in New Zealand.
The total fertility rate is 2.02 in Australia and 2.19 in New Zealand, so only Australia is below the replacement level of about 2.1. Life expectancy at birth is 81.4 years in Australia and 80.2 years in New Zealand.
By 2050, the population of Australia is projected to grow by 53.1% and that of New Zealand to grow by 35.5% compared with 2008.
GDP per person is $65K in Australia (2025) and $50K in New Zealand (2025).
Key figures (2008)
| Australia | New Zealand | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 21.2 million | 4.2 million |
| Aged 0–14 | 19.4% | 21.1% |
| Aged 15–64 | 67.5% | 66.4% |
| Aged 65+ | 13.1% | 12.5% |
| Median age | 36.8 yrs | 36.3 yrs |
| Old-age dependency | 19.4 | 18.8 |
| Total fertility rate | 2.02 | 2.19 |
| Life expectancy | 81.4 yrs | 80.2 yrs |
| Population growth | +2.02% | +0.92% |
| Net migration (per year) | +275,773 | +4,804 |
| GDP | $1.8T (2025) | $264B (2025) |
| GDP per person | $65K (2025) | $50K (2025) |
| Unemployment | 4.1% (2025) | 5.1% (2025) |
Economic figures are the latest year published for each country.