Prevalence of overweight, female in Australia
Australia: Prevalence of overweight, female was 57.7% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Prevalence of overweight, female in Australia, 1990–2022
Source: World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/). Measured in % of female adults.
Analysis
In 2022, prevalence of overweight, female in Australia stood at 57.7%. That is the highest value across all 33 years on record.
The figure is up 0.6% on the previous year and up 6.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of overweight, female in Australia peaked at 57.7% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 37.8%, in 1990.
That places Australia 83rd out of 196 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.
Prevalence of overweight, female in Australia, year by year
| Year | % of female adults | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 37.8% | — |
| 1991 | 39.0% | +3.1% |
| 1992 | 40.1% | +3.0% |
| 1993 | 41.3% | +2.8% |
| 1994 | 42.4% | +2.7% |
| 1995 | 43.5% | +2.5% |
| 1996 | 44.5% | +2.4% |
| 1997 | 45.5% | +2.2% |
| 1998 | 46.4% | +2.0% |
| 1999 | 47.3% | +1.9% |
| 2000 | 48.1% | +1.7% |
| 2001 | 48.9% | +1.6% |
| 2002 | 49.6% | +1.4% |
| 2003 | 50.2% | +1.3% |
| 2004 | 50.8% | +1.2% |
| 2005 | 51.3% | +1.0% |
| 2006 | 51.8% | +0.9% |
| 2007 | 52.2% | +0.8% |
| 2008 | 52.7% | +0.8% |
| 2009 | 53.0% | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 53.4% | +0.7% |
| 2011 | 53.7% | +0.6% |
| 2012 | 54.1% | +0.6% |
| 2013 | 54.4% | +0.6% |
| 2014 | 54.8% | +0.6% |
| 2015 | 55.1% | +0.7% |
| 2016 | 55.5% | +0.7% |
| 2017 | 55.9% | +0.7% |
| 2018 | 56.2% | +0.7% |
| 2019 | 56.6% | +0.7% |
| 2020 | 57.0% | +0.7% |
| 2021 | 57.3% | +0.6% |
| 2022 | 57.7% | +0.6% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 57.7% is above the median for high income countries, which is 55.4%, 1.0× the median. (66 countries reporting)
- Australia's 57.7% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 57.8%, 100% of the median. (32 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 42.8% | 37.8% | 47.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 50.9% | 48.1% | 53.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 55.0% | 53.4% | 56.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 57.3% | 57.0% | 57.7% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More health data for Australia
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.83 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate -0.9072 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 906.6 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 215 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 0 (2021)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 1.45 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0279 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 1.35 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is prevalence of overweight, female in Australia?
- Prevalence of overweight, female in Australia was 57.7% in 2022, according to World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/).
- What is the highest prevalence of overweight, female recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 57.7% in 2022.
- What is the lowest prevalence of overweight, female recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 37.8% in 1990.
- How does Australia rank for prevalence of overweight, female?
- Australia ranks 83rd out of 196 countries with data for 2022.
- Is prevalence of overweight, female rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/), published as part of Prevalence of overweight, female (% of female adults). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Prevalence of overweight female adults is the percentage of females ages 18 and over whose Body Mass Index (BMI) is more than 25 kg/m2. Body Mass Index (BMI) is a simple index of weight-for-height, or the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters.