Greater Melbourne
Proficiency in English
In Greater Melbourne in 2021, 267,947 people who spoke a language other than English at home reported difficulty speaking English.
Proficiency in English measures the self-assessed proficiency in spoken English of people who speak a language other than English at home. The data, when viewed with other ethnic and cultural indicators, such as Ancestry, Country of Birth, Language Spoken at Home and Religion, reflects Greater Melbourne's ethnic composition and how long the overseas born have been in Australia. This helps service providers determine whether they need to communicate with the local population in languages other than English.
Derived from the Census question:
'How well does the person speak English?'
Total population
| Proficiency in English | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greater Melbourne - Total persons (Usual residence) | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
| English proficiency | Number | % | Regional Australia % | Number | % | Regional Australia % | 2016 to 2021 | |
| Speaks English only | 3,003,007 | 61.1 | 85.0 | 4001 | 2,781,183 | 62.0 | 85.4 | +221,824 |
| Speaks English well or very well | 1,422,906 | 28.9 | 7.1 | 4002 | 1,198,088 | 26.7 | 6.2 | +224,818 |
| Speaks English not well or not at all | 267,947 | 5.4 | 1.0 | 4003 | 251,545 | 5.6 | 1.0 | +16,402 |
| Not stated | 223,887 | 4.6 | 6.8 | 4005 | 254,391 | 5.7 | 7.4 | -30,504 |
| Total population | 4,917,747 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 4,485,207 | 100.0 | 100.0 | +432,540 | |
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing (opens a new window) 2016 and 2021. Compiled and presented by .id (opens a new window)(informed decisions).
Compiled and presented in profile.id by .id (informed decisions).
Compiled and presented in profile.id by .id (informed decisions).
Dominant groups
Analysis of the proficiency in English data of the population in Greater Melbourne in 2021 compared to Regional Australia shows that there was a lower proportion of people who spoke English only, and a higher proportion of people who spoke another language and English not well or not at all.
Overall, 61.1% of people spoke English only, and 5.4% spoke another language and English not well or not at all, compared with 85.0% and 1.0% respectively for Regional Australia.
Emerging groups
The most significant changes in the proficiency in English of the population in this area between 2016 and 2021 were in those speaking:
- Speaks English well or very well (+224,818 persons)
- Speaks English only (+221,824 persons)
- Speaks English not well or not at all (+16,402 persons)