Powered by .id (informed decisions) for Cairns Regional Council
.id community is an evidence base for over 250 local government areas in Australia and New Zealand, helping you make informed decisions.
LEARN MORE ABOUT .idIn 2021, 22.3% of people in Cairns were born overseas, compared with 18.4% in Regional QLD.
Country of Birth data identifies where people were born and is indicative of the level of cultural diversity in Cairns. The mix of Country of Birth groups is also indicative of historical settlement patterns, as source countries for Australia's immigration program have varied significantly over time.
To get a more complete picture of cultural and ethnic characteristics, Cairns's Country of Birth data should be viewed together with Ancestry, Language Spoken at Home and Religion.
Please note: Due to changes in ABS rules around perturbation and additivity of data to protect the confidentiality of individuals, counts of individual birthplace groups and totals derived from them may differ slightly from those published by the ABS. For more information see notes on data confidentiality.
Q:
Derived from the Census question:
'In which country was the person born?'
| Birthplace - Summary | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cairns - Total persons (Usual residence) | 2021 | 2006 | Change | ||||
| Birthplace | Number | % | Regional QLD % | Number | % | Regional QLD % | 2006 to 2021 |
| Total overseas born | 37,272 | 22.3 | 18.4 | 23,101 | 18.1 | 14.8 | +14,171 |
| Australia | 115,273 | 69.1 | 74.4 | 91,935 | 72.1 | 77.8 | +23,338 |
| Not stated | 14,392 | 8.6 | 7.3 | 12,401 | 9.7 | 7.4 | +1,991 |
| Total Population | 166,937 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 127,437 | 100.0 | 100.0 | +39,500 |
Show all (109 entries)
Dominant groups
Analysis of the country of birth of the population in Cairns in 2021 compared to Regional QLD shows that there was a larger proportion of people born overseas.
Overall, 22.3% of the population was born overseas, compared with 18.4% for Regional QLD.
The largest non-English speaking country of birth in Cairns was Papua New Guinea, where 1.4% of the population, or 2,361 people, were born.
The major difference between the countries of birth of the population in Cairns and Regional QLD was:
- A larger percentage of people born in Papua New Guinea (1.4% compared to 0.3%)
Emerging groups
Between 2006 and 2021, the number of people born overseas increased by 14171 or 61.3%.
The largest changes in birthplace countries of the population in this area between 2006 and 2021 were for those born in:
- United Kingdom (+1,785 persons)
- India (+1,556 persons)
- Philippines (+1,192 persons)
- Papua New Guinea (+933 persons)
DISCLAIMER: While all due care has been taken to ensure that the content of this website is accurate and current, there may be errors or omissions in it and no legal responsibility is accepted for the information and opinions in this website.
Please view our Privacy Policy, Terms of use and Legal notices.
ABS Data and the copyright in the ABS Data remains the property of the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The copyright in the way .id has modified, transformed or reconfigured the ABS Data as published on this website remains the property of .id. ABS Data can be accessed from the Australian Bureau of Statistics at www.abs.gov.au. ABS data can be used under license - terms published on ABS website. intermediary.management@abs.gov.au if you have any queries or wish to distribute any ABS data.