Australia vs New Zealand: Birth rate and death rate
Australia
6.66 deaths per 1,000 people
in 2021
New Zealand
6.79 deaths per 1,000 people
in 2021
Australia rank
40th
New Zealand rank
38th
Birth rate and death rate over time
- Australia
- New Zealand
How they compare
New Zealand currently reports 6.79 deaths per 1,000 people against 6.66 deaths per 1,000 people in Australia, a difference of 0.13 deaths per 1,000 people.
The two have swapped places 7 times across 74 shared years of data; in 1948 it was Australia ahead.
Australia ranks 40th and New Zealand ranks 38th of 41 countries.
Across the 9 decades both report, Australia averaged higher in 3 and New Zealand in 6.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Australia | New Zealand | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1940s | 9.22 deaths per 1,000 people | 8.72 deaths per 1,000 people | 0.499 deaths per 1,000 people | Australia |
| 1950s | 8.7 deaths per 1,000 people | 8.62 deaths per 1,000 people | 0.0805 deaths per 1,000 people | Australia |
| 1960s | 8.47 deaths per 1,000 people | 8.38 deaths per 1,000 people | 0.094 deaths per 1,000 people | Australia |
| 1970s | 7.89 deaths per 1,000 people | 8.05 deaths per 1,000 people | 0.1682 deaths per 1,000 people | New Zealand |
| 1980s | 7.22 deaths per 1,000 people | 8.01 deaths per 1,000 people | 0.782 deaths per 1,000 people | New Zealand |
| 1990s | 6.9 deaths per 1,000 people | 7.42 deaths per 1,000 people | 0.5205 deaths per 1,000 people | New Zealand |
| 2000s | 6.65 deaths per 1,000 people | 6.84 deaths per 1,000 people | 0.1868 deaths per 1,000 people | New Zealand |
| 2010s | 6.54 deaths per 1,000 people | 6.77 deaths per 1,000 people | 0.2355 deaths per 1,000 people | New Zealand |
| 2020s | 6.5 deaths per 1,000 people | 6.61 deaths per 1,000 people | 0.1084 deaths per 1,000 people | New Zealand |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher birth rate and death rate, Australia or New Zealand?
- New Zealand, at 6.79 deaths per 1,000 people against 6.66 deaths per 1,000 people in Australia as of 2021.
- What is the difference in birth rate and death rate between Australia and New Zealand?
- 0.13 deaths per 1,000 people, with New Zealand ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Australia and New Zealand?
- 74 years are reported by both, from 1948 to 2021.
- How do Australia and New Zealand rank globally for birth rate and death rate?
- Australia ranks 40th and New Zealand ranks 38th of 41 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Human Mortality Database (2025) β with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Birth rate and death rate. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Death rate, calculated as the number of deaths divided by the average number of people alive during the year.