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2018 New Zealand census

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Thirty-fourth census of New Zealand
← 2013 6 March 2018; 6 years ago (2018-03-06) 2023 →
General information
CountryNew Zealand
Results
Total population4,699,755[1] (Increase 10.79%)
Most populous ​regionAuckland (1,571,718)
Least populous ​regionWest Coast (31,575)

The 2018 New Zealand census, which took place on Tuesday 6 March 2018, was the thirty-fourth national census in New Zealand.[2] The population of New Zealand was counted as 4,699,755 – an increase of 457,707 (10.79%) over the 2013 census.[1]

Results from the 2018 census were released to the public on 23 September 2019, from the Statistics New Zealand website.[3] The most recent New Zealand census was held in March 2023.[4]

History

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Background

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The Census Act 1877 required censuses to be held every fifth year and is well embedded in legislation and government systems.[5] Since 1881, censuses have been held every five years, with the exceptions of those in 1931 and 1941 and the one in 2011 which was cancelled due to the February 2011 earthquake in Christchurch, which displaced many Canterbury residents from their homes only a few weeks before census day. It was rescheduled for March 2013, so the 2013 census is the previous census completed before this one.[6]

Issues and controversies

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In July 2018, it was estimated that the 2018 census had a "full or partial" response for 90 percent of individuals, down from 94.5 percent in the 2013 census and the planned release date for census information was changed from October of the same year to March 2019.[7] This drop, which already amounted to the lowest census response rate for fifty years, was blamed on a 'digital-first' policy for the census.[8][9] An independent review was initiated by the Government Statistician in October 2019, and in November Statistics NZ announced that release of census data would be pushed back to at least April 2019 due to "the complex nature of the task".[10]

In early April 2019, the Government Statistician, Liz MacPherson was facing possible charges of contempt of parliament.[11] She had twice refused, on 13 February and in early April, to disclose the number of partially and fully completed responses.[12] On 9 April, she reported that one in seven New Zealanders, 700,000 people, failed to complete the census.[11]

In July 2019 the independent inquiry returned its findings to the Government Statistician, the Minister of Statistics and the State Services Commissioner, reporting that too little attention had been paid to the non-digital aspects of the census, but also blamed operational complexity and flaws in management. Due to a decision to conduct the census primarily online, the census attracted only an 83% response rate, even lower than the 90% earlier reported, and well short of the 94% census percent target and a nine percent drop from the previous 2013 New Zealand census.[13]

On 13 August 2019 the report was released to the public and Liz MacPherson offered her resignation, taking ultimate responsibility for the results, stating "I'm sorry, the buck stops with me."[14][15] State Services Commissioner Peter Hughes agreed with her assessment, and asked MacPherson to remain in her role until Christmas of 2019, noting that "she is the best person to finish the remediation work".[16][17]

Topics

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The 2018 census collected data on the following topics:[18]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Required to be included under the Statistics Act 1975 or the Electoral Act 1993.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Topic not included in 2013 census.

Projections

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Statistics New Zealand annually conducts population projections for New Zealand as a whole, which are based on data from the previous census (in this case, the 2013 census) and calculated using a cohort-component method. Population projections also take into consideration births, deaths, and net migration.

In 2016, New Zealand's population at the time of the 2018 census was projected to be between 4,807,000 and 4,944,000.[19]

Results

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Data uses fixed random rounding to protect confidentiality;[20] each data point is rounded either to the nearest multiple of 3 (2⁄3 chance) or the next-nearest multiple of 3 (1⁄3 chance).[21]

The census usually-resident population count of New Zealand is a count of all people who usually live in and were present in the country on census night (6 March 2018), and excludes overseas visitors and New Zealand residents who are temporarily overseas.[22]

Due to the high rate of non-response in the census, the published results combine answers from census forms with data from the 2013 Census and from government administrative data. Reports from an External Data Quality Review Panel include quality ratings for each variable, taking the added data into account.[23]

Population and dwellings

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Population counts for regions of New Zealand.[24] All figures are for the census usually-resident population count.

Region Population Change
2013 census 2018 census Change pp
Northland 151,689 179,076 Increase27,387 Increase18.05
Auckland 1,415,550 1,571,718 Increase156,168 Increase11.03
Waikato 403,638 458,202 Increase54,564 Increase13.52
Bay of Plenty 267,744 308,499 Increase40,755 Increase15.22
Gisborne 43,656 47,517 Increase3,861 Increase8.84
Hawke's Bay 151,179 166,368 Increase15,189 Increase10.05
Taranaki 109,608 117,561 Increase7,953 Increase7.26
Manawatū-Whanganui 222,672 238,797 Increase16,125 Increase7.24
Wellington 471,315 506,814 Increase35,499 Increase7.53
North Island 3,237,048 3,594,552 Increase357,504 Increase11.0
Tasman 47,154 52,389 Increase5,235 Increase11.10
Nelson 46,437 50,880 Increase4,443 Increase9.57
Marlborough 43,416 47,340 Increase4,014 Increase9.25
West Coast 32,148 31,575 Decrease573 Decrease1.78
Canterbury 539,436 599,694 Increase60,258 Increase11.17
Otago 202,467 225,186 Increase22,719 Increase11.22
Southland 93,342 97,467 Increase4,125 Increase4.42
South Island 1,004,397 1,104,537 Increase100,140 Increase9.97
Area outside region 600 669 Increase69 Increase11.50
New Zealand New Zealand 4,242,048 4,699,755 Increase457,707 Increase10.79
  • Resident population count was 4,699,755, up 457,707 from the 2013 Census.[3]
    • There are 2,319,558 males in New Zealand (49.35% of the population) and 2,380,197 females (50.65% of the population).[20]
  • On average, the population grew by around 2.1% per year since the 2013 Census – significantly higher than the annual average growth between 2006 and 2013, which was 0.7%.[3]
    • The higher growth rate is consistent with higher net migration of 259,000 in the five years ended 30 June 2018 compared with 59,000 in the seven years ended 30 June 2013.[3]
  • Among children (under 15 years), males outnumbered females, with around 105 males for every 100 females. The ratio declined with age: there were 104 males for every 100 females in the age group of 15–29, 95 males for every 100 females at ages 30–64 years, and 87 males for every 100 females at age 65 or above.[3]
  • There was a total of 1,855,962 occupied and unoccupied private dwellings, 108,558 more than in 2013.[3]
    • Ten percent of private dwellings were unoccupied.[3]

Birthplace

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In 2018, 3,370,122 people (71.7%) were born in New Zealand, with 1,329,633 (28.3%) born overseas.

Data is for the census's usually-resident population.[20]

Birthplace of New Zealanders

  New Zealand (71.71%)
  England (4.49%)
  China (2.83%)
  India (2.50%)
  Australia (1.61%)
  South Africa (1.52%)
  Philippines (1.44%)
  Fiji (1.33%)
  Samoa (1.18%)
  Unspecified (1.22%)
  Other (10.17%)
Birthplace Responses Change from 2013
Number % Number pp
New Zealand 3,370,122 71.71 Increase 389,298 Decrease 1.44
Overseas 1,329,633 28.29 Increase 327,846 Increase 4.68
England 210,915 4.49 Decrease 4,674 Decrease 0.92
China, Mainland 132,906 2.83 Increase 43,785 Increase 0.73
India 117,348 2.50 Increase 50,172 Increase 0.91
Australia 75,696 1.61 Increase 12,984 Increase 0.04
South Africa 71,382 1.52 Increase 17,104 Increase 0.61
Philippines 67,632 1.44 Increase 30,333 Increase 0.50
Fiji 62,310 1.33 Increase 9,555 Decrease 0.01
Samoa 55,512 1.18 Increase 4,851 Decrease 0.09
South Korea 30,975 0.66 Increase 4,374 Decrease 0.01
United States 27,678 0.59 Increase 6,216 Increase 0.05
Tonga 26,856 0.57 Increase 4,443 Increase 0.04
Scotland 26,136 0.56 Increase 183 Decrease 0.09
Total people stated 4,641,897 98.77 – –
Inadequately described 432 0.01 – –
Not stated 57,426 1.22 – –
Total 4,699,755 100 Increase 457,707 Increase 9.74

Ethnicity

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There was no change in the top five ethnicities between the 2013 and 2018 censuses, which are New Zealand European (64.1%), Māori (16.5%), Chinese (4.9%), Indian (4.7%), and Samoan (3.9%).[22]

Data is for the census usually-resident population count.[20]

Results add up to over 100% due to people declaring multiple ethnicities.

Ethnicity of New Zealanders
Ethnicity Percent
European
71.76
Māori
16.51
Asian
15.30
Pasifika
9.00
MELAA
1.54
Other
1.24
Ethnic group Population %
European 3,372,708 71.76
   New Zealand European 3,013,440 64.12
   English 72,204 1.54
   South African European 37,155 0.79
   Australian 29,349 0.62
   European nfd 34,632 0.74
   Dutch 29,820 0.63
   Scottish 18,627 0.40
   Irish 17,835 0.38
   German 16,818 0.36
   American European 16,245 0.35
   Other European 86,583 1.84
Māori 775,836 16.51
Asian 718,995 15.30
   Chinese nfd 231,387 4.92
   Indian nfd 221,916 4.72
   Filipino 72,612 1.55
   Korean 35,664 0.76
   Japanese 18,141 0.39
   Fijian Indian 15,132 0.32
   Asian nfd 11,811 0.25
   Thai 10,623 0.23
   Vietnamese 10,086 0.21
   Other Asian 91,623 1.95
Pasifika 423,036 9.00
   Samoan 182,721 3.89
   Tongan 82,389 1.75
   Cook Islands Maori 80,532 1.71
   Niuean 30,867 0.66
   Fijian 19,722 0.42
MELAA 72,231 1.54
   Latin American 27,756 0.59
   Middle Eastern 28,626 0.61
   African 15,849 0.34
Other 58,104 1.24
   New Zealander nfd 45,330 0.96
   Other 8,757 0.19
   Not listed 4,017 0.09
Total 4,699,755 100

Religion

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Most New Zealanders, 48.5% of the population, identify as being irreligious. Data is for the census usually-resident population count.[20]

Religious affiliation Population %
Irreligious 2,278,185 48.47
   No Religion nfd 2,264,601 48.19
   Atheism 7,068 0.15
   Agnosticism 6,516 0.14
Christian 1,738,638 37.00
   Anglican 314,913 6.70
   Christian nfd 307,926 6.55
   Roman Catholic 295,743 6.29
   Presbyterian 221,199 4.71
   Catholicism nfd 173,016 3.68
   Latter-day Saints 54,123 1.15
   Methodist nfd 52,734 1.12
   Baptist nfd 35,967 0.77
   Born Again 33,486 0.71
   Pentecostal nfd 22,296 0.47
   Jehovah's Witnesses 20,061 0.43
   Christian Fellowship 18,042 0.38
   Seventh-day Adventist 17,799 0.38
   Assemblies of God 14,883 0.32
   Tongan Methodist 11,169 0.24
   Other Christian 145,281 3.09
Hinduism 123,504 2.63
   Hinduism nfd 121,644 2.59
   Other Hinduism 1,890 0.04
Islam 61,455 1.31
   Islam nfd 57,276 1.22
   Sunni 2,961 0.06
   Other Islam 1,218 0.03
Buddhism 52,779 1.12
   Buddhism nfd 44,355 0.94
   Theravada Buddhism 4,851 0.10
   Zen Buddhism 1,401 0.03
   Mahayana Buddhism 1,026 0.02
   Other Buddhism 1,144 0.02
Judaism 5,274 0.11
   Judaism nfd 3,348 0.07
   Other Judaism 1,926 0.04
Māori Religions 62,634 1.33
   Rātana 43,821 0.93
   Ringatū 12,336 0.26
   Māori Religions, Beliefs and Philosophies nfd/nec 5,283 0.11
   Pai Mārire 1,194 0.03
New Age 19,011 0.40
   Spiritualist 8,262 0.18
   Pagan 2,730 0.06
   Rastafari 1,707 0.04
   Wiccan 1,482 0.03
   Other New Age Religions nec 1,311 0.03
   Satanism 1,149 0.02
Other 91,239 1.94
   Sikhism 40,908 0.87
   Jedi 20,409 0.43
   Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster 4,248 0.09
   Baháʼí 2,925 0.06
   Taoism 1,098 0.02
   Zoroastrian 1,068 0.02
   Other 20,583 0.44
Object to answering 312,795 6.66
Total people stated 4,699,755 100
Total responses 4,732,641 N/A

Language

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The vast majority of New Zealanders, 95.4%, speak English; in second place is Māori, with 4.0% of the population being able to speak it. Data is for the census usually-resident population count.[20]

Language Population %
English 4,482,135 95.37
Māori 185,955 3.96
Samoan 101,937 2.17
No language (e.g., too young to talk) 101,751 2.17
Northern Chinese 95,253 2.03
Hindi 69,471 1.48
French 55,116 1.17
Yue 52,767 1.12
Sinitic (not further defined) 51,501 1.10
Tagalog 43,278 0.92
German 41,385 0.88
Spanish 38,823 0.83
Afrikaans 36,966 0.79
Tongan 35,820 0.76
Panjabi 34,227 0.73
Korean 31,323 0.67
Fiji Hindi 26,805 0.57
Japanese 24,885 0.53
Dutch 23,343 0.50
New Zealand Sign Language 22,986 0.49
Gujarati 22,200 0.47
Other 256,275 5.45
Total people 4,699,755 100
Total responses 5,834,166 N/A

Māori descent

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New Zealanders who declare Māori descent.

  Some descent (18.51%)
  No descent (79.04%)
  Unknown descent (2.44%)

18.5% of New Zealanders have at least some Māori descent. Data is for the census usually-resident population count.[20]

Māori descent indicator Population %
Māori descent 869,850 18.51
No Māori descent 3,715,050 79.04
Do not know 114,855 2.44
Total 4,699,755 100

Age

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The largest age group is people aged 25 to 29, who comprise 7.3% of the population. Data is the census usually-resident population count.[20]

Ages Population %
0–4 294,921 6.28
5–9 322,632 6.86
10–14 305,847 6.51
15–19 301,821 6.42
20–24 317,400 6.75
25–29 344,466 7.33
30–34 317,034 6.75
35–39 295,395 6.29
40–44 291,345 6.20
45–49 321,483 6.84
50–54 308,589 6.57
55–59 302,759 6.44
60–64 260,901 5.55
65–69 229,032 4.87
70–74 183,636 3.91
75–79 132,792 2.83
80–89 85,362 1.82
85–89 53,979 1.15
90–94 23,817 0.59
95–99 5,910 0.13
100–104 606 0.01
105–109 39 0.00
110+ 0 0.00
Minors (0–17) 1,104,240 23.50
Working-age adults (18–64) 2,880,345 61.29
Seniors (65+) 715,173 15.22
Total 4,699,755 100

Sex

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Data is the census usually-resident population count.[20]

Declared sex of New Zealanders

  Male (49.35%)
  Female (50.65%)
Sex Population
Male 2,319,558
Female 2,380,197

Income

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Data is for the census usually-resident population count of people aged 15 years and over.[20]

Income (NZD) Population %
Loss 20,625 0.55
Zero income 257,310 6.81
$1–$5,000 210,705 5.58
$5,001–$10,000 177,423 4.70
$10,001–$15,000 262,197 6.94
$15,001–$20,000 375,282 9.94
$20,001–$25,000 306,639 8.12
$25,001–$30,000 210,132 5.56
$30,001–$35,000 186,087 4.93
$35,001–$40,000 212,724 5.63
$40,001–$50,000 364,719 9.66
$50,001–$60,000 309,375 8.19
$60,001–$70,000 234,606 6.21
$70,001–$100,000 361,317 9.57
$100,001–$150,000 176,310 4.67
$150,001 or more 110,910 2.94
Total 3,776,355 100

Industry of employment

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Data is for the census usually-resident population count of employed people aged 15 years and over.[20]

Industry (ANZSIC division) Population %
Agriculture, forestry and fishing 143,127 5.85
Mining 6,054 0.25
Manufacturing 238,413 9.75
Electricity, gas, water and waste services 18,006 0.74
Construction 226,161 9.25
Wholesale trade 119,928 4.90
Retail trade 219,132 8.96
Accommodation and food services 159,753 6.53
Transport, postal and warehousing 105,150 4.30
Information media and telecommunications 38,889 1.59
Financial and insurance services 64,941 2.66
Rental, hiring and real estate services 49,122 2.01
Professional, scientific and technical services 242,619 9.92
Administrative and support services 111,648 4.57
Public administration and safety 132,279 5.41
Education and training 198,018 8.10
Health care and social assistance 232,119 9.49
Arts and recreation services 44,466 1.82
Other services 95,292 3.90
Total 2,445,141 100.00

Home ownership

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Home ownership among New Zealanders.

  Own or partly own (34.71%)
  Does not own (40.99%)
  Held in trust (9.27%)
  Other (15.02%)

Data is for the census usually-resident population count of people aged 15 years and over.[20]

Individual home ownership Population %
Hold in a family trust 350,136 9.27
Own or partly own 1,310,925 34.71
Do not own and do not hold in a family trust 1,548,078 40.99
Other 567,213 15.02
Total 3,776,355 100

Marriage status

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Marriage among New Zealanders.

  Unmarried (29.12%)
  Married (40.12%)
  Separated (2.47%)
  Divorced (6.48%)
  Widowed (4.42%)
  Other (17.38%)

Data is for the census usually-resident population count of people aged 15 years and over.[20]

Legally-registered relationship status Population %
Married (not separated) 1,515,261 40.12
Separated 93,408 2.47
Divorced or dissolved 244,857 6.48
Widowed or surviving civil union partner 166,869 4.42
Never married and never in a civil union 1,099,722 29.12
Other 656,234 17.38
Total 3,776,355 100

References

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  1. ^ a b "NZ population nears 5 million after fastest growth in 50 years". The New Zealand Herald. 23 September 2019. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
  2. ^ "2018 Census". Stats NZ. Retrieved 7 January 2019.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g "2018 Census population and dwelling counts". Stats NZ. 23 September 2019. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
  4. ^ "$16m for census improvements and catch-up". Newsroom. 29 April 2019. Retrieved 24 December 2019.
  5. ^ Future New Zealand censuses: Archived 14 February 2013 at the Wayback Machine Implications of changing census frequency or adopting other models
  6. ^ "2018 Census". Stats NZ. Retrieved 7 January 2019.
  7. ^ "Update on release of 2018 Census data". Statistics New Zealand. 10 July 2018. Retrieved 7 January 2019. Stats NZ's interim calculations show that full or partial information for at least 90 percent of individuals was received, compared with 94.5 percent for the 2013 Census.
  8. ^ Cooke, Henry (12 July 2018). "Census response rate drops as survey moves to online focus". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 7 January 2019.
  9. ^ Huffadine, Leith (11 October 2018). "2018 Census – what happened?". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 7 January 2019. The 2018 Census had the lowest response in more than 50 years – now a team is looking for answers.
  10. ^ "2018 Census data release delayed". Stats NZ. 27 November 2018.
  11. ^ a b Manch, Thomas (10 April 2019). "One in seven failed to complete Census 2018, a back down from Govt Statistician reveals". Stuff. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  12. ^ "Government Statistician Liz MacPherson faces complaint to Speaker Trevor Mallard over 2018 Census data". The New Zealand Herald. 7 April 2019. Retrieved 7 April 2019.
  13. ^ Report of the Independent Review of New Zealand's 2018 Census (PDF) (Report). Statistics New Zealand. July 2019. ISBN 978-1-98-858337-2. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  14. ^ "Report of the Independent Review of New Zealand's 2018 Census". Statistics New Zealand. 13 August 2019. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  15. ^ Whyte, Anna (13 August 2019). "Government's top statistician resigns in wake of Census 2018 debacle". 1News Now. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  16. ^ Manch, Thomas (13 August 2019). "Census 2018: Chief Statistician Liz MacPherson has resigned". Stuff. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  17. ^ "Head of Stats NZ Liz MacPherson resigns over botched census". Radio New Zealand. 13 August 2019. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  18. ^ "2018 Census report on final content". Archived from the original on 6 August 2017. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
  19. ^ "National Population Projections: 2016(base)–2068 (spreadsheet)". Stats NZ. 19 October 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2019.
  20. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "2018 Census totals by topic" (Microsoft Excel spreadsheet). Statistics New Zealand. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  21. ^ "Data confidentiality principles and methods report – data.govt.nz". data.govt.nz. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  22. ^ a b "2018 Census totals by topic – national highlights". Stats NZ. 23 September 2019. Archived from the original on 23 September 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
  23. ^ "2018 Census External Data Quality Panel: Assessment of variables". stats.govt.nz. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  24. ^ "2018 Census population and dwelling counts – amended". stats.govt.nz. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
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