How many people live in Canterbury?

Which data should I use?

There are two sources of information about how many people usually live in a region, city or district in New Zealand.

Census of population and dwellings

The Census counts the usually resident population present on Census night – usually every five years
Census counts let us compare several different variables (e.g. age, sex, ethnicity, occupation)
Because the Census counts the total population, it provides useful data for sub-district/city analysis down to ‘statistical area 2 ’ (population of 1,000 to 4,000; e.g. a suburb), ‘statistical area 1’ (population of 100-200, maximum of 500) and ‘mesh block’ (the smallest geographic unit for which Statistics New Zealand collects statistical data – around 60 to 120 people).

Estimates of the resident population

Estimates of the resident population are prepared by Statistics New Zealand and published annually, as of 30 June
Estimates are based on Census counts, updated for residents missed or counted more than once by the census (‘net census undercount’), residents temporarily overseas on census night, and births, deaths and net migration between census night in early March and the 30 June date of the estimate
Consequently, population estimates are generally higher than the Census count.

Population estimates provide the most reliable numbers for annual planning and reporting purposes, and for describing the usually resident population of a region or territorial authority for a particular year.

Census of population and dwellings

The 2023 Census was conducted on Tuesday, 7 March 2023 and provides counts for the usually resident population in New Zealand, regional council areas and territorial authority areas within Canterbury.

The first release of Census 2023 data was on 29 May 2023. Information is published on the Stats NZ website.

The 2011 Census was postponed due to the Christchurch earthquake on 22 February 2011. Because the gap between Census 2006 and Census 2013 was seven years, changes in the data between 2006 and 2013 may be greater than in the usual five-year gap between censuses. Be careful when comparing trends.

For planning purposes, remember to use the estimated resident population (as at 30 June each year), not Census counts of the usually resident population.

Population of New Zealand

The usually resident population of New Zealand grew from 4.7 million in 2018 to 5 million in 2023 - a 6.3 per cent growth from Census 2018.
Population growth slowed between censuses, down from the 10.8 per cent growth rate (totalling 457,707 people) between the 2013 and 2018 Censuses.
3 in 4 people (3.8 million people)) of New Zealand’s population lived in the North Island and 1 in 4 people (1.2million people) lived in the South Island.

Canterbury region statistics

At the time of the 2023 Census, Canterbury, with 13% of New Zealand’s population (651, 027 people), was the most populous region in the South Island, and the second most populous region in New Zealand after the Auckland region. Even so, the population of the Auckland region (1.7 million people, 33% of New Zealand’s total population) is more than 2.5 times larger than Canterbury’s.
Between 2013 and 2018, Canterbury’s population grew by 11.2% just above the national population growth rate of 10.8%.
Population growth dropped both nationally and in the Canterbury region between 2018 and 2023, to 8.6% average growth in Canterbury, and 6.3% in New Zealand as a whole.
All regions’ growth rates were lower between 2018–23 than in 2013–18, except the West Coast region, which experienced an average increase in population of 5.7% (51, 333 people). Tasman and Canterbury regions were the fastest growing regions between 2018–2023 in the South Island, and Waikato, Bay of Plenty and Northland were the fastest growing regions in the North Island.

Canterbury territorial authorities

Calculated as a percentage of the usually resident population in the Canterbury regional council area, 60% live in Christchurch City, and 82% live in the three ‘greater Christchurch’ territorial authority areas: Waimakariri District, Christchurch City and Selwyn District.
Before the Canterbury earthquakes of 2010–11, 65% of the Canterbury region’s population lived in Christchurch City (348,456 in 2006). Christchurch City’s population (391, 383) has increased in population after experiencing a decrease following the 2011 earthquakes (341,469 in 2013).
Selwyn and Queenstown remain the fastest-growing territorial authorities in New Zealand. At the time of the 2023 Census, 78, 144 people lived in Selwyn district, representing a 29 % increase since the 2018 Census (60, 561 people).

Three Canterbury territorial authority areas experienced average annual population increases greater than either the national or regional averages: Selwyn District (6.3%), Waimakariri District (3.5%) and Mackenzie District (3.2%).
The remaining seven territorial authorities also experienced average annual population increases between Census 2013 and Census 2018 but at a lower rate than the national or regional averages: Waimate District (0.7%), Christchurch City (1.6%), Ashburton District (1.5%), Hurunui District (1.7%), Timaru District (0.4%), Waitaki District (1.4%) and Kaikōura District (1.9%).

Download data on 2023 Census counts for Canterbury (XLSX File, 58.1KB)

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Population estimates

Population estimates provide the most reliable numbers for annual planning and reporting purposes, and for describing the usually resident population of a region or district for a particular year. Understanding historical trends in components of population change is important when planning for future population growth (or decline).

From March 2020 to July 2022, New Zealand had border and lockdown controls in place in response to the COVID-19 global pandemic. Given the impact on net international migration, care should be taken when comparing data from 2020 to 2022 to previous years.

Population estimates and change for New Zealand

New Zealand’s estimated resident population as of 30 June 2024 was 5,287,500.
During the June 2024 year, New Zealand’s population grew by 87,500 (1.7 per cent), below the population growth rate in the year to June 2023 (2.3 per cent). Between 1997 and 2019, New Zealand’s population grew by an average of 56,300, or 1.3 per cent per year.
The population in an area grows or declines because of a combination of natural increase (more births than deaths) and net migration (the number of people who move into an area minus the number who leave)
Net international migration was 67,200 in the year to June 2024. In the year to June 2023, net international migration was 108,400 after two years of negative net international migration due to the impact of pandemic border restrictions.
Natural increase (births minus deaths) in the year to June 2024 was 20,300. In the year to June 2023, natural increase (19,100) was the lowest since World War 2
On 30 June 2024, half of New Zealand’s population was aged over 38 years (the median age). Long term, the median age is expected to continue to trend upward as migrants and the general population age. In the year to June 2024:
- children (0-14 years) were 18.5 per cent of the total population
- the younger working-age population (15-39 years) was 34.5 per cent of the total population
- the older working-age population (40-64 years) was 30.5 per cent of the total population
- the population aged 65+ was 16.5 per cent of the total population.
Over the last 25 years (1996-202):
- children have decreased from 23.0 per cent to 18.5 per cent of the population
- younger working age has decreased from 38.4 per cent to 34.5 per cent
- older working age has increased from 27.0 per cent to 30.5 per cent
- and the population aged 65+ has increased from 11.5 per cent to 16.5 per cent.

Population estimates and change in regional council areas

The estimated resident population of Canterbury in the year to 30 June 2024 was 687,100, the second most populous region in New Zealand after Auckland and the most populous region in the South Island, with over half (55%) of the South Island’s population living in Canterbury. The median age in Canterbury is 39 years, just above the national median age of 38.
In the year to June 2024, all 16 regions experienced population growth. The national population growth rate was 1.7 per cent. Population growth in Canterbury was 1.6 per cent, a total population change of 10,500.
Two regions were above the national population growth rate - Auckland had the highest population growth rate by region (2.4 per cent or 42,100 people), followed by the Waikato, 2.1 per cent, 10,800.

Population estimates and change for Canterbury territorial authorities

Canterbury’s population is unevenly distributed across its 10 districts. As of 30 June 2024, 60 per cent of Canterbury’s population was estimated to live in Christchurch City (412,000 people). This has decreased from 67 per cent in 2006. 82.4 per cent of Canterbury’s population lived in the three ‘greater Christchurch’ districts: Waimakariri District, Christchurch City and Selwyn District (566,200 people).
At the other end of the scale, three districts are estimated to have fewer than 10,000 residents: Kaikōura District (4,380 people), Mackenzie District (5,500 people) and Waimate District (8,400 people). 1,980 people reside in the Waitaki District in the Canterbury region.
All districts in Canterbury experienced population growth in June 2024. Selwyn and Mackenzie Districts were the fastest-growing districts in New Zealand in June 2024 – Selwyn's population growth was 3.9 per cent or 3,200 people. Mackenzie District was 3.8 per cent or 200 people.

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