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Regional Australia remains the beating heart of the nation. Our food, our energy, our minerals and our water all come from beyond the city limits. The health of the bush shapes the prosperity of the capitals where most of us live.
When regional towns thrive, they anchor supply chains, create jobs, and sustain the social fabric that keeps communities connected.
When they decline, we feel it in higher food prices, slower exports and a loss of the cultural diversity that defines our national story.
Our friends at the Australian Bureau of Statistics divide the nation into three “remoteness areas”: Major cities, regional Australia, and remote Australia.
Two of these three, the cities and the outback, dominate the headlines.
Australia is the most urbanised country in the world in the sense that we have the highest share of the population living in just the five biggest cities (disregarding city-states like Singapore, of course).
Housing stories, cultural stories, sporting events, big rock concerts all tend to be big-city stories. Yet thanks to Steve Irwin and Crocodile Dundee, the international perception of Australia is still one of the wild and remote outback.
But what about the middle child of remoteness areas – what about regional Australia?
At the last count (June 2025), 25% of us (seven million people) lived in an area the ABS classifies as regional. In 2001, that share was 28%.
We keep concentrating more of our population growth in the big cities. In the process, regional Australia continues to lose relative importance, at least politically, as its share of voters shrinks.
Overall, regional Australia still grew over the past 25 years, but at a lower rate (+29%) than the major cities (+50%).
Despite two decades of regionalisation efforts, we turn evermore into a big-city nation.
Successive federal governments have tried (with mixed success) to push more people into regional Australia through a blend of migration, education and housing incentives.
Since 2001, Canberra has rolled out a string of regional visa categories that offer faster pathways to permanent residency, special work rights for overseas students who study and stay outside the capitals and community sponsorship schemes to settle refugees in smaller towns.
Domestic programs such as relocation payments, regional employment trials and first-home buyer guarantees have sought to lure big-city dwellers inland, while splashy initiatives like City Deals, the Building Better Regions Fund, and the Move to More campaign aimed to make country life more appealing.
Collectively, these policies helped grow regional populations, attracted some younger workers and students, yet the share of Australians living regionally still declined.
The age imbalance
The population profile of Regional Australia is marked by a relative absence of people aged 18 to 45 when compared with metropolitan and even remote areas.
The skills shortage and the ageing of society are nationwide issues (as I regularly discuss in this column), but they hit harder outside the capitals.
Slowing the exodus of regional high school graduates is an uphill battle. Young Aussies will continue to be drawn to gap years and big city adventures. It’s doubtful if local education and career opportunities can convince them to spend their 20s and 30s in regional Australia.
Many people left the regions in the past five years of data. We know of 554,000 people who lived in regional Australia in 2016 and later moved to remote Australia (47,000) or metro Australia (507,000).
That won’t surprise anyone in the regions – young people continue to be drawn to the big cities in pursuit of education, jobs and deeper dating pools.
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Regional workers who are a bit more advanced in their career move towards rural job opportunities where mines pay a good coin. (We don’t know how many moved overseas, as they disappear from Census counts.)
The shrinking town problem
Mayors and councillors across regional Australia share a burning question – how can their towns attract new populations?
Once a town falls below a certain population threshold, services become unviable.
Maybe the local IGA closes and residents must drive 45 minutes for groceries. Maybe the local footy team can’t field a side and must merge with the evil bastards down the road.
Each loss makes a place less liveable and less attractive to newcomers. Without new residents, who will care for the ageing regional population? Who will run the farms once the baby boomer farmers retire?
The people who move to the regions tend to make the area younger and more dynamic. Overseas migrants make the biggest difference, as they are much younger than regional established populations.
Cutting migration numbers would hurt regional Australia by further shrinking the available workforce.
How to grow a regional town
If you’re a regional mayor hoping to grow your population base, what do you need to offer?
If you’re beyond commuting distance to a major CBD, new residents need local jobs – and not just one.
Dual-income households are the norm. You need employment for both partners and those jobs need to have staying power. Seasonal or project-based work isn’t enough to secure permanent settlers.
Next comes housing. Availability matters, but affordability matters more.
Diversity of housing stock matters too. A doctor and their family will want a decent-sized home with a backyard. A migrant worker in aged care may need a small, cheaper unit near the workplace and shops, allowing for a car-free lifestyle and greater remittances to be sent home.
You’ll also need basic services – healthcare, education, childcare, and retail. Before moving, people actively check these things.
Connectivity (both physical and digital) is equally vital. Good road or rail links are a big plus. A regional airport is a game-changer. If your town has one, treat it like a jewel. And digital connectivity is non-negotiable. Full 5G coverage and reliable high-speed internet are must-haves for streaming, gaming, business, and remote work alike.
You can influence most of these factors. Others, you can’t.
Climate, scenery and natural amenities play a huge role in people’s decisions, as do risks.
How likely is your town to flood or burn? Are homes still insurable? Is your community investing in climate adaptation?
Why regional Australia still matters
Regional Australia remains the beating heart of the nation. Our prosperity flows through its paddocks, ports, and power stations.
The next wave of national renewal (whether in food security, housing supply or the transition to clean energy) will depend on the strength of our regions.
If we want Australia to thrive, we must ensure that regional Australia doesn’t just survive but grows, innovates and attracts the next generation of Australians to build their lives there.
Simon Kuestenmacher
Co-founder of The Demographics Group
15-apr-2026
Simon Kuestenmacher is a co-founder of The Demographics Group. His columns, media commentary and public speaking focus on current socio-demographic trends and how these impact Australia. His podcast, Demographics Decoded, explores the world through the demographic lens. Follow Simon on Twitter (X),Facebook, or LinkedIn.
