National Forecasting Program

Population forecast for Victoria

Our 2025 population forecast for Victoria, and the starting point for the forecasts of its 17 regions.

State
Victoria
Regions
17, each forecast individually
Base
ABS ERP June 2024
Built on
2025 national forecast (2021.2024.3)
Status
Current
Boundaries
ASGS 2021 Ed. 3
Horizon
2046

The forecast

  • 6,547,822

    Population, 2021

  • 9,077,330

    Population, 2046

  • +2,529,508

    Total growth to 2046

  • 29.5%

    Share of national growth

  • +1,199,305

    Additional dwellings

  • 21.4%

    Aged 65 and over, 2046

  • 17

    Regions forecast individually

Age structure

Age group20212046Change, percentage points
Aged 0–1418.2%15.0%−3.2
Aged 15–6465.4%63.6%−1.8
Aged 65 and over16.4%21.4%+5.0

Victoria's population, 2021 to 2046

Our 2025 forecast, by year (at 30 June).

Victoria's population, 2021 to 2046Line chart, 2021 to 2046. Our forecast: National Forecasting Program, 2025 forecast 9.08m in 2046.
  • Our forecast · 9.08m (our forecast)

Source: Informed Decisions, National Forecasting Program, 2025 forecast. 2021 to 2024 are ABS estimated resident population.

+ Show the data
Victoria's population, 2021 to 2046: values by year (unit: m). Every year is in the CSV.
YearOur forecast
20216.55m
20267.23m
20317.73m
20368.21m
20418.66m
20469.08m

Download the full series (CSV)

Informed Decisions, National Forecasting Program, 2025 forecast

Where Victoria sits

  1. Nation
    Australia
    +8.6m to 2046
    Population growth, 2021 to 2046
    2025 forecast
  2. You are here: State
    Victoria
    +2.53m to 2046
    29.5% of national growth
    2025 forecast
  3. Below the state
    17 regions, forecast individually
    The largest growth is forecast for Melbourne – West. Each region carries its own release.

Victoria's share of national growth is set from the national drivers. How it is distributed inside Victoria is built from development assessed on the ground, region by region.

What we assess, and where

Different things drive population change at different scales. We form a view at each level, and each level constrains the one below it.

  1. Nation
    • Net overseas migration
    • Fertility and life expectancy
    • Housing completions
  2. State (this page)
    • Share of overseas migration
    • Interstate migration
    • State housing and planning policy
    • Economic conditions
  3. Region
    • Intrastate migration
    • Development pipeline
    • Capacity and limiting factors
    • Ageing in place
  4. Suburb and site
    • Site-by-site development assessment
    • Dwelling type and density
    • Local capacity

Components of population change, 2021 to 2046

Financial years 2021–22 to 2045–46. The first three years are ABS estimates.
Component2021 to 2046
Births+2,028,830
Deaths−1,513,500
Natural increase+515,330
Net overseas migration+2,010,224
Net interstate migration+3,953
Total change+2,529,508

Regional forecasts for Victoria

Each region shows its latest release. Regions released before the 2025 forecast do not sum to the state total above.
RegionPopulation, 2021Population, 2046Growth to 2046Version
Ballarat173,266236,919+63,6532021.2022.1.1.1 · May 2024
Bendigo167,196224,875+57,6792021.2022.1.1.1 · Jun 2024
Geelong327,419513,706+186,2872021.2022.1.1.2 · Jan 2025
Hume184,129230,268+46,1392021.2022.1.1.2 · Feb 2025
Latrobe – Gippsland299,758395,084+95,3262021.2022.1.1.2 · Feb 2025
Melbourne – Inner627,6711,044,902+417,2312021.2022.1.1.1 · May 2024
Melbourne – Inner East377,518471,759+94,2412021.2024.3.1.1 · Jul 2026
Melbourne – Inner South427,065518,518+91,4532021.2024.3.1.1 · Aug 2026
Melbourne – North East546,251916,111+369,8602021.2022.1.1.1 · Apr 2024
Melbourne – North West429,028629,938+200,9102021.2024.3.1.1 · Oct 2026
Melbourne – Outer East522,777608,790+86,0132021.2022.1.1.1 · Jul 2024
Melbourne – South East870,3981,239,753+369,3552021.2024.3.1.1 · Oct 2026
Melbourne – West864,1131,425,064+560,9512021.2024.3.1.1 · Jul 2026
Mornington Peninsula311,199359,536+48,3372021.2022.1.1.1 · Oct 2024
North West155,140157,586+2,4462021.2022.1.1.1 · Sep 2024
Shepparton137,375158,918+21,5432021.2022.1.1.2 · Feb 2025
Warrnambool and South West127,600136,347+8,7472021.2022.1.1.1 · Oct 2024

Our forecasting team

Rob Hall

Rob Hall

Chief Economist

Liza Ivanova

Liza Ivanova

Principal Forecast Consultant

Oliver Bowering

Oliver Bowering

Senior Forecast Consultant

Common questions about the forecast for Victoria

A credible, independent forecast

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Independent of government

Our forecasts are not commissioned by any government, so they give an independent view.

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Granular forecasts for custom catchments

Forecast at small-area level, so they can be built up into any catchment you need, such as a school catchment, a retail trade area or a utility service area.

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Every region, on one basis

A single national model, not a collection of unconnected local studies.

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Assessed site by site

Built on a national development sites layer maintained by our own forecasters.

500+

organisations across Australia trust Informed Decisions for data and insights

15,000+

suburbs forecast, covering every part of Australia

A named forecaster behind every region

Questions about a forecast go to the team who prepared it.

See the forecast for your exact area

Placemaker is our mapping and reporting platform for population, housing and development. Draw any catchment in Victoria and get the forecast for it, by single year, with age and sex detail and the development pipeline behind it.