Living in Darwin

In Darwin, unemployment is 3.3% (2026).

Darwin's population was 127,215 in August 2021. In August 2021, the foreign population was 37,259.

Last checked 2026-10-0412 sources

Population127,215people10 Aug 2021Official source · 2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia

Median gross salary (region)3,017EUR/month31 Dec 2021Official source · www.abs.gov.au

Median rent1,059EUR/month31 Dec 2021Official source · 2021 Darwin, Census All persons QuickStats | Australian Bureau of Statistics

Unemployment rate3.3%country median 4.5% — 27% belowIndependent source · DEWR — Small Area Labour Markets, smoothed unemployment rate by LGA, March quarter 2026

PM2.5, annual mean9.1µg/m³country median 6.0 — 52% aboveOfficial source · cdn.who.int

Lower unemployment than 78% of Australian cities that publish it and dirtier air than 97% of Australian cities that publish it.

Which Australia-wide rules apply when you move to Darwin?

National rules stay on the country page instead of being relabelled as city data.

Visa and entry rulesPassport-specific entry and national residence context.BenefitsCountry-wide eligibility and official application routes.Taxes in AustraliaNational rates and thresholds that apply in Darwin.Healthcare eligibilityCountry-wide insurance and residence conditions.

Housing and cost

Median rent was A$385 per week, and median monthly mortgage repayment was A$2,054 in August 2021.

What recurs every month6 published recurring costs, € per month

€ / month

Private kindergarten€1669

Utilities, 85 m² flat€161

Internet, 60 Mbps€57

Transport pass€41

Fitness club€41

Mobile plan, 10 GB€29

Supplemental estimate lane; these items are not official statistics.

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Fitness club membership, monthly	40.69 EUR/month	31 Dec 2022	Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2¹²Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Internet, 60 Mbps unlimited	57.31 EUR/month	31 Dec 2022	Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2¹²Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Private kindergarten, monthly	1,669 EUR/month	31 Dec 2022	Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2¹²Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Meal at an inexpensive restaurant	13.48 EUR	31 Dec 2022	Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2¹²Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Mobile plan, 10 GB	29.49 EUR/month	31 Jul 2026	Cost of Living in Darwin. Jul 2026. Prices in Darwin¹⁰Commercial estimate · Supplemental context
Monthly transport pass	40.74 EUR/month	31 Dec 2022	Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2¹²Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Basic utilities, 85 m² home	161.2 EUR/month	31 Dec 2022	Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2¹²Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Dwellings	47,731 dwellings	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics⁵Official
Main residence dwellings	43,351 dwellings	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics⁵Official
Median weekly rent (AUD)	385 AUD/week	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia⁵Official
Median monthly rent (whole dwelling)	1,059 EUR/month	31 Dec 2021	2021 Darwin, Census All persons QuickStats \| Australian Bureau of Statistics¹Official

Is Darwin a good place to live?

There is no universal answer. The profile scores below show who the available published evidence may suit; they are a decision aid, not a personal recommendation.

Try your profile

Remote worker54%strong on work, weak on safety · range 45–63%

Skilled employee67%strong on work, weak on safety · range 59–75%

Student43%strong on education, weak on safety · range 35–51%

Family65%strong on family, weak on safety · range 56–74%

Retirement31%strong on legal route, weak on admin · range 20–42%

Work and income

The unemployment rate was 3.3% in March 2026. Median personal income was A$1,122 per week in August 2021. Median household income was A$2,199 per week in August 2021.

What is the unemployment rate in Darwin?

The unemployment rate is 3.3 % (March 2026). Source: DEWR — Small Area Labour Markets, smoothed unemployment rate by LGA, March quarter 2026¹¹

Unemployment across cities in AustraliaUnemployment in Darwin is 3.3%. Of 100 cities with data, 32 have unemployment of 4 to under 5%.

1–22–33–44–55–66–77–88–99–1013–14

Darwin 3.3%

Unemployment rate (%)

Metric	Value	Period	Source
People in full-time employment	46,662 people	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics⁵Official
Employment rate	67.1 %	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics⁵Official
Median household income (AUD/week)	2,199 AUD/week	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia⁵Official
Median personal income (AUD/week)	1,122 AUD/week	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia⁵Official
Median gross salary (regional)	3,017 EUR/month	31 Dec 2021	www.abs.gov.au⁹Official
Unemployment rate	3.3 %country median 4.5%	31 Mar 2026	DEWR — Small Area Labour Markets, smoothed unemployment rate by LGA, March quarter 2026¹¹Independent

What does a salary buy in Darwin?

Take-home pay after tax, minus rent and the everyday bills this city publishes. Each line names its source.

Left over each month€1,182of €2,530 take-home

Rent
Utilities
Transport
Internet
Mobile
Left over

Line-by-line breakdown and sources

Each month	€
Take-home payOECD Taxing Wages 2025, single, no children. Includes central and local income tax and employee social contributions; euro amounts at the ECB average for 2026-08.	€2,530
Rentmedian rent of a whole dwelling · official · 2021 Darwin, Census All persons QuickStats \| Australian Bureau of Statistics · 2021-12-31	− €1,059
Public transport pass€41 · market price · Global Cost of Living · 2022-12-31	− €41
Utilities, 85 m²€161 · market price · Global Cost of Living · 2022-12-31	− €161
Internet€57 · market price · Global Cost of Living · 2022-12-31	− €57
Mobile plan€29 · market price · Cost of Living in Darwin. Jul 2026. Prices in Darwin · 2026-07-31	− €29
Left over	€1,182

Take-home pay for other salaries and households Compare with another city Check a job offer in Darwin Salary needed to live in Darwin

Public employment service

No exact public employment office is currently linked to Darwin. The verified national service may still offer online registration, job search or an official office finder.

Country-level information

Workforce Australia — Public employment service

Australian Government Department of Employment and Workplace Relations

Job Search

Open official service

Open the Australia service overview

Country-level service information is not treated as proof of a physical office in Darwin. Sources checked through 11 Aug 2026.

Family and education

Metric	Value	Period	Source
People who speak a language other than English at home	25.36 %	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia⁵Official

Language courses and integration in Darwin

1 exact course-location record is linked to this city. Check the linked source for dates, availability and enrolment.

Verified locally

1verified local records

Melaleuca Australia

View official record

Check courses in Darwin How the country programme works

Exact city-linked record checked 2026-08-10. Provider-supplied records are supplemental and are not presented as official accreditation.

Find courses near Darwin

Climate and air quality

Is the air quality good in Darwin?

The annual PM2.5 mean is 9.1 µg/m³ (2019) — above the WHO 2021 guideline of 5 µg/m³ but within the EU limit of 25 µg/m³. Source: cdn.who.int⁴

Annual mean at the measuring site(s) serving the city; current-day readings differ.

Temperature through the yearAverage daytime high and night-time low, °C

32°25°

33°24°

32°22°

31°20°

31°19°

32°20°

33°23°

34°25°

33°26°

JFMAMJJASOND

Night-time low to daytime high

Rainfall through the yearAverage monthly precipitation, mm

471

412

314

105

144

279

JFMAMJJASOND

Sunshine through the yearAverage monthly sunshine, hours

JFMAMJJASOND

hours

Air quality vs health guidelinesAnnual means against WHO 2021 guidelines and EU legal limits

Within WHO 2021 guidelineAbove WHO, within EU limitAbove EU legal limitCity annual mean · µg/m³

PM2.59.1WHO 5 · EU 25

City values from the published air-quality observations. WHO 2021 guidelines and EU limit values are published constants.

PM2.5 across cities in AustraliaAnnual PM2.5 in Darwin is 9.1 µg/m³. Of 37 cities with data, 12 have annual PM2.5 of 5 to under 6 µg/m³.

3–44–55–66–77–88–99–10

Darwin 9.1

Annual PM2.5 (µg/m³)

Metric	Value	Period	Source
PM2.5 — annual mean	9.1 µg/m³country median 6.0	31 Dec 2019	cdn.who.int⁴Official
Average daytime high by month	Jan 32 · Feb 31.7 · Mar 32.3 · Apr 33 · May 32.3 · Jun 31.1 · Jul 31.1 · Aug 31.9 · Sep 33.1 · Oct 33.8 · Nov 33.7 · Dec 33 °C	31 Dec 2020	BOM monthly climate statistics — DARWIN AIRPORT, 1991-2020³Official
Average night-time low by month	Jan 25.1 · Feb 25.1 · Mar 24.9 · Apr 24.2 · May 22.3 · Jun 20 · Jul 19.3 · Aug 19.8 · Sep 22.9 · Oct 24.8 · Nov 25.4 · Dec 25.5 °C	31 Dec 2020	BOM monthly climate statistics — DARWIN AIRPORT, 1991-2020³Official
Average temperature by month	Jan 28.5 · Feb 28.3 · Mar 28.5 · Apr 28.6 · May 27.3 · Jun 25.6 · Jul 25.2 · Aug 25.9 · Sep 28 · Oct 29.3 · Nov 29.6 · Dec 29.3 °C	1991–2020	WMO Climatological Normals 1991-2020 — station DARWIN AIRPORT⁸Official · nearest-station reading
Average precipitation by month	Jan 470.7 · Feb 412.4 · Mar 313.7 · Apr 105.1 · May 20.7 · Jun 2.2 · Jul 0.9 · Aug 0.8 · Sep 14.3 · Oct 68.9 · Nov 143.5 · Dec 279.3 mm	31 Dec 2020	BOM monthly climate statistics — DARWIN AIRPORT, 1991-2020³Official
Average sunshine by month	Jan 5.7 · Feb 5.8 · Mar 6.9 · Apr 8.8 · May 9.7 · Jun 10.1 · Jul 10.3 · Aug 10.5 · Sep 9.9 · Oct 9.5 · Nov 8.5 · Dec 6.5 hours	31 Dec 2020	BOM monthly climate statistics — DARWIN AIRPORT, 1991-2020³Official

Population and city profile

The city covered 378.0 km² in 2021. Population density was 383.6 people per km² in 2025.

How many people live in Darwin?

The published population was 127,215 people in August 2021. Source: 2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia⁵

Foreign residents and their share come from different publications that count different groups (for example citizens of another country, or people born abroad, or of foreign origin), so 37,259 is not 37.4% of the population. Each row names its source.

Who lives hereResidents by nationality, % of population

By nationality

National passport70.7%
Foreign residents29.3%

Calculated from the population and foreign-resident facts on this page.

Metric	Value	Period	Source
City area	378 km²	31 Dec 2021	Official ASGS2016 SUA area from ABS ArcGIS attributes, area albers sqkm. Exact queue geography; not GCCSA or LGA.⁶Official
Foreign-resident share	37.4 %	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics²Official
Foreign residents	37,259 people	10 Aug 2021	Official 2021 Census GCP G01 Birthplace_Elsewhere_P: persons born outside Australia, at exact associated 2021 SUA grain. This is foreign-born, not foreign nationality.⁵Official
Population density	383.6 people/km²	31 Dec 2025	Reproducible exact-ASGS2016-SUA density: ABS ERP at 30 June 2021 divided by ABS ASGS2016 SUA area. Existing local population baseline is only a recovered cross-check; no GCCSA/LGA observation.⁷Official
Female residents	63,059 people	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics⁵Official
Male residents	64,159 people	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics⁵Official
Population	127,215 people	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia⁵Official

Population over time25 published observations, 2001–2025

96,087

113,606

131,125

148,644

145,019200120052011201520212025

Population rose 45.4% between 2001 and 2025, from 99,730 to 145,019.

International community in Darwin

Named groups from exact city-grain official distributions. Citizenship, birthplace, language and ancestry answer different questions and stay separate.

Country of birth

Persons usually resident in the ABS Significant Urban Area; 2021 Census G01 total persons denominator · 2021 Census

Published group	People	Share
Total persons	127,215	100.0%
Australia	79,645	62.6%
Elsewhere (excludes country of birth not stated)	37,259	29.3%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source⁵

Country of birth

Persons usually resident in the ABS Significant Urban Area; 2021 Census G09 PERSONS total across age groups and sex · 2021 Census

Published group	People	Share
Total	127,215	100.0%
Australia	79,645	62.6%
Country of birth not stated	10,312	8.1%
Philippines	5,208	4.1%
Born elsewhere(d)	4,338	3.4%
India	3,804	3.0%
England	3,368	2.6%
Nepal	2,541	2.0%
New Zealand	2,207	1.7%
China (excludes SARs and Taiwan)(c)	1,392	1.1%
Indonesia	1,250	1.0%

Show 42 more groups

Published group	People	Share
Greece	1,139	0.9%
Sri Lanka	1,056	0.8%
Vietnam	1,040	0.8%
Thailand	838	0.7%
Bangladesh	639	0.5%
Malaysia	628	0.5%
South Africa	610	0.5%
Pakistan	598	0.5%
Ireland	579	0.5%
Germany	528	0.4%
Zimbabwe	415	0.3%
Taiwan	405	0.3%
Scotland	404	0.3%
United States of America	393	0.3%
Papua New Guinea	392	0.3%
Italy	350	0.3%
Fiji	290	0.2%
Korea, Republic of (South)	283	0.2%
Hong Kong (SAR of China)(c)	271	0.2%
Singapore	268	0.2%
Canada	236	0.2%
France	214	0.2%
Netherlands	209	0.2%
Japan	167	0.1%
Brazil	165	0.1%
Myanmar	165	0.1%
Cambodia	159	0.1%
Wales	103	0.1%
Poland	90	0.1%
Iran	87	0.1%
Mauritius	68	0.1%
Chile	56	0.0%
Egypt	54	0.0%
Bosnia and Herzegovina	42	0.0%
Lebanon	41	0.0%
Turkey	37	0.0%
Samoa	32	0.0%
Afghanistan	27	0.0%
Croatia	27	0.0%
Malta	22	0.0%
Iraq	15	0.0%
North Macedonia	7	0.0%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source⁵

Citizenship

Persons usually resident in the ABS Significant Urban Area; 2021 Census G01 total persons denominator · 2021 Census

Published group	People	Share
Total persons	127,215	100.0%
Australian citizen	97,959	77.0%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source⁵

Additional context

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Residents born abroad	29.29 %	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia⁵Official
Households	43,351 households	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics⁵Official
Labour force participation rate	69.9 %	31 Dec 2021	Australian Bureau of Statistics⁵Official
Median age	34 years	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia⁵Official
Median monthly mortgage repayment (AUD)	2,054 AUD/month	10 Aug 2021	2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia⁵Official

Alternatives for people set on Darwin

Nothing here reaches an argued comparison yet: no other published city shares enough metrics with Darwin from the same source, period and grain. What is collected is below.

Alternative cities in Australia

Other cities in Australia to compare with Darwin, nearest in population first.

All Australia cities

Toowoomba143,942 residents Ballarat111,973 residents Cairns155,574 residents Bendigo103,034 residents Albury - Wodonga97,793 residents Launceston90,953 residents

How does Darwin compare?

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Darwin in rankings

#2 of 30 in Cities with the mildest winters #2 of 30 in Most international cities in Australia #15 of 30 in Cities with lowest unemployment in Australia #16 of 30 in Largest cities in Australia #19 of 30 in Cities with the highest published annual rainfall #20 of 30 in Cities with the highest foreign-population share

Yes — migrants can receive medical care in Darwin when the national insurance or residence conditions are met.

Healthcare access follows the country-wide insurance rules; local capacity facts remain city data and are not used as proof of eligibility.

Open the official coverage guide

Country rule verified 2026-08-03.

Put Darwin's key facts on your site — a card with this page's figures and a link back, free under CC BY 4.0.

Common questions

Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.

How many people live in Darwin?

The published population was 127,215 people in August 2021. Source: 2021 Census General Community Profile — Significant Urban Areas, Australia.

Is the air quality good in Darwin?

The annual PM2.5 mean is 9.1 µg/m³ (2019) — above the WHO 2021 guideline of 5 µg/m³ but within the EU limit of 25 µg/m³. Source: cdn.who.int.

What is the unemployment rate in Darwin?

The unemployment rate is 3.3 % (March 2026). Source: DEWR — Small Area Labour Markets, smoothed unemployment rate by LGA, March quarter 2026.

What is the typical salary around Darwin?

The median gross salary is 3,017 EUR/month. Source: www.abs.gov.au.

How many foreign residents live in Darwin?

37,259 residents hold a foreign nationality. Source: Official 2021 Census GCP G01 Birthplace_Elsewhere_P: persons born outside Australia, at exact associated 2021 SUA grain. This is foreign-born, not foreign nationality..

How much is public transport in Darwin?

A monthly transport pass is 40.74 EUR/month. This is a supplemental estimate, not an official municipal measurement. Source: Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2.

Is Darwin a good place to live?

Darwin may suit different people for different reasons. The page's profile scores compare published cost, work, housing, safety, healthcare and other available factors; they are a decision aid, not a universal recommendation.

How many people born in Australia live in Darwin?

The official country of birth distribution records 79,645 people (62.6%) in the source-defined population for 2021 Census. This is a country of birth measure, not a general estimate of ethnicity or migration status.

Cite this page

Open a format to select or copy this ImmigrationDB compilation citation. The native disclosure and text fallback work without JavaScript.

APA citation

ImmigrationDB. (2026, October 16). Darwin, Australia: population, rent, salary, cost of living [ImmigrationDB compilation; version 27937f5a6e1715ffa54d0db450a08efa]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/cities/au/darwin/ Retrieved 2026-10-16. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

BibTeX citation

@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_darwin-australia-population-rent-salary-cost-of-living_a83722a62231,
  author = {ImmigrationDB},
  title = {Darwin, Australia: population, rent, salary, cost of living},
  publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
  year = {2026},
  date = {2026-10-16},
  version = {27937f5a6e1715ffa54d0db450a08efa},
  url = {https://immigrationdb.com/cities/au/darwin/},
  note = {Retrieved 2026-10-16. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}

Markdown citation

[Darwin, Australia: population, rent, salary, cost of living](https://immigrationdb.com/cities/au/darwin/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; version 27937f5a6e1715ffa54d0db450a08efa; retrieved 2026-10-16; built 2026-10-16.

This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.

Sources

JSON Markdown

2021 Darwin, Census All persons QuickStats | Australian Bureau of Statistics abs.gov.au · checked 2026-10-03
Australian Bureau of Statistics abs.gov.au · checked 2026-08-03
BOM monthly climate statistics — DARWIN AIRPORT, 1991-2020 BOM monthly climate statistics · bom.gov.au · checked 2026-07-26
cdn.who.int cdn.who.int · checked 2026-08-26
Official 2021 Census GCP G01 Birthplace_Elsewhere_P: persons born outside Australia, at exact associated 2021 SUA grain. This is foreign-born, not foreign nationality. abs.gov.au · checked 2021-08-10
Official ASGS2016 SUA area from ABS ArcGIS attributes, area albers sqkm. Exact queue geography; not GCCSA or LGA. geo.abs.gov.au · checked 2016-07-01
Reproducible exact-ASGS2016-SUA density: ABS ERP at 30 June 2021 divided by ABS ASGS2016 SUA area. Existing local population baseline is only a recovered cross-check; no GCCSA/LGA observation. abs.gov.au · checked 2021-06-30
WMO Climatological Normals 1991-2020 — station DARWIN AIRPORT WMO Climatological Normals 1991-2020 · ncei.noaa.gov · checked 2026-07-31
www.abs.gov.au abs.gov.au · checked 2026-08-27
Cost of Living in Darwin. Jul 2026. Prices in Darwin numbeo.com · checked 2026-07-27

Show 2 more sources

DEWR — Small Area Labour Markets, smoothed unemployment rate by LGA, March quarter 2026 DEWR · dewr.gov.au · checked 2026-07-26
Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2 Global Cost of Living · kaggle.com · checked 2026-07-27

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