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Image: The Spinoff

SocietyOctober 3, 2024

12 things we learned from the latest release of Census 2023 data

Wellington editor
a purple grid background overlaid with a pink starburst overlaid with a 3D blue NZ map
Image: The Spinoff

Diversity, age, cigarette smoking, working from home – Joel MacManus rounds up some fascinating facts from today’s new dump of census data.

There are 1.1 million New Zealanders aged over 60 

  • In case you ever wondered why Country Calendar is still on air. But seriously, these people are important and valuable members of New Zealand society. Without them, who would buy Graham Norton’s wine? 

One quarter of adults have degrees

  • That’s right. I’m not trying to be obtuse. It’s an acute observation. 

The median income of adult New Zealanders is $41,500

More than half of the population have no religion (51.6%, a rise from 48.2% at the previous census)

  • Said one respondent: “That’s me in the corner, that’s me in the spot-light.”
  • A great opportunity for a store selling non-secular communion wafers. 

The South African-born population is up 34%

  • Great news for the New Zealand cricket team.

The number of people born in the Philippines has increased from 37,299 to 99,204 since 2013

  • Good news for choirs and pickup basketball games

Cigarette smoking has halved since the 2013 Census. 

  • That makes sense. Half a cigarette is all I can handle before it makes me feel sick. 
  • A great opportunity for a store selling a cigarette alternative that is cheaper, more addictive and appealing to children. 

0.7% of adults identified as transgender

  • That’s 26,097 people, or about 25,697 more than have ever attended a Terf protest. 

4.9% of people identified with Rainbow or LGBTIQ+ communities

  • Not including other important members of the rainbow community, like straight boyfriends of bi girls. 

Wellington region has the highest proportion of LGBTIQ+ adults, at 7.6%

  • Duh. 
  • And that’s not even counting all the polycules. 
More Reading

    The percentage of people working from home is 17.7% and has doubled in Wellington and Auckland since 2018

    • Nicola Willis’s nightmare. 

    The percentage of people driving to work is 84.9%, up by 1.8% since last census

    • Simeon Brown’s dream. 

    The full release of census data is here

    Keep going!