Due to a technicality, Melbourne has surpassed Sydney to become Australia’s most populous city. The city’s borders, which serve as the capital of Victoria state, have been redrawn to incorporate the Melton district, enabling Melbourne to overtake Sydney.
According to the federal government’s 2022 population statement, Melbourne is expected to overtake Sydney as Australia’s most populous city in under a decade, by 2031-32. With almost 19,000 more inhabitants than Sydney, Melbourne now has a total of approximately 5.8 million people.
Professor Nick Parr, a demographer at Macquarie University, explained to Sydney radio station 2GB that more individuals have relocated from Sydney to other parts of Australia than have relocated in the opposite direction. In contrast, in some years, more individuals have relocated to Melbourne than have relocated away.
Parr added that while both Sydney’s and Melbourne’s populations are expected to continue to grow, immigration will make up for the low birth rates in both cities.
Liz Allen, a demographer at the Australian National University, told CNN that Melbourne’s growth is mostly due to international migration over the last decade, as well as internal migration within Australia and a natural increase in births. Allen clarified that Melbourne has become a highly desirable destination among recent waves of overseas migration to Australia, particularly among individuals born in India, and growing community networks have resulted in subsequent new arrivals from India to the Melbourne area.
