The demographics of New Zealand encompass the gender, ethnic, religious, geographic, and economic backgrounds of the 5.2 million people living in New Zealand. New Zealanders predominantly live in urban areas on the North Island. The five largest cities are Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Hamilton, and Tauranga. Few New Zealanders live on New Zealand's smaller islands. Waiheke Island (near Auckland) is easily the most populated smaller island with 9,420 residents, while Great Barrier Island, the Chatham and Pitt Islands, and Stewart Island each have populations below 1,000. New Zealand is part of a realm and most people born in the realm's external territories of Tokelau, the Ross Dependency, the Cook Islands and Niue are entitled to New Zealand passports.

As at the 2018 census, the majority of New Zealand's population of European descent (70 percent; often referred to as Pākehā), with the indigenous Māori being the largest minority (16.5 percent), followed by Asians (15.3 percent), and non-Māori Pacific Islanders known collectively as Pasifika (9.0 percent).^[3] This is reflected in immigration, with most new migrants coming from Britain and Ireland, although the numbers from Asia in particular are increasing. Auckland is the most ethnically diverse region in New Zealand with 53.5 percent identifying as Europeans, 28.2 percent as Asian, 11.5 percent as Māori, 15.5 percent as Pasifika, and 2.3 percent as Middle Eastern, Latin American or African (MELAA).^[5] New Zealand is considered by some to be unique among Western countries for its high levels of ethnic intermarriage,^[6] which has historically been viewed with tolerance.^[7][8][6] According to a 2006 study, Māori have on average roughly 43% European ancestry, although the notion of being "mixed-race" is uncommon.^[9][10]

English, Māori and New Zealand Sign Language are the official languages, with English predominant. New Zealand English is mostly non-rhotic, but has distinct rhotic dialects as well. Rhoticity is widespread among Pasifika and Māori and is becoming increasingly common across the upper North Island.^[11] The closest English dialect to non-rhotic New Zealand English is Australian English, but they have several key distinctions, such as the New Zealand centralisation of the short i. The Māori language has undergone a process of revitalisation and is spoken by 4 percent of the population. New Zealand has an adult literacy rate of 99 percent and over half of the population aged 15–29 hold a tertiary qualification. In the adult population 14.2 percent have a bachelor's degree or higher, 30.4 percent have some form of secondary qualification as their highest qualification and 22.4 percent have no formal qualification. As at the 2018 census, 37 percent of the population identify as Christians, with Hinduism and Buddhism being the largest minority religions; almost half of the population (48.5 percent) is irreligious.^[3]

Farming is a major occupation in New Zealand, although more people are employed as sales assistants. Most New Zealanders earn wage or salary income, with a median weekly income in 2022 of NZ$848.^[12]

While the demonym for a New Zealand citizen is New Zealander, the informal "Kiwi" is commonly used both internationally^[13] and by locals.^[14] The name derives from the kiwi, a native flightless bird, which is the national symbol of New Zealand. The Māori loanword "Pākehā" usually refers to New Zealanders of European descent, although some reject this appellation,^[15][16] and some Māori use it to refer to all non-Polynesian New Zealanders.^[17] Most people born in New Zealand or one of the realm's external territories (Tokelau, the Ross Dependency, the Cook Islands and Niue) before 2006 are New Zealand citizens. Further conditions apply for those born from 2006 onwards.^{[n 2][19]}

The 2018 census enumerated a resident population of 4,699,755 – a 10.8 percent increase over the population recorded in the 2013 census.^[3] As of April 2024, the total population has risen to an 5,348,800 (estimated by extrapolation).^[20] The population is increasing at a rate of 1.4–2.0 percent per year.^[21] In May 2020, Statistics New Zealand reported that New Zealand's population had climbed above 5 million people in March 2020;^[22] in September 2020, this was revised six months earlier to September 2019 when population estimates were rebased to the 2018 census.^[23]

The median child birthing age was 30 and the total fertility rate is 2.1 births per woman in 2010. In Māori populations the median age is 26 and fertility rate 2.8.^[24] In 2010 the age-standardised mortality rate was 3.8 deaths per 1000 (down from 4.8 in 2000) and the infant mortality rate for the total population was 5.1 deaths per 1000 live births.^[24] The life expectancy of a New Zealand child born in 2021-23 was 83.7 years for females, and 80.3 years for males,^[2] which is among the highest in the world. Life expectancy at birth is forecast to increase from 80 years to 85 years in 2050 and infant mortality is expected to decline.^[25] In 2050 the median age is forecast to rise from 36 years to 43 years and the percentage of people 60 years of age and older rising from 18 percent to 29 percent.^{[25][n 3]} During early migration in 1858, New Zealand had 131 males for every 100 females, but following changes in migration patterns and the modern longevity advantage of women, females came to outnumber males in 1971.^[27] As of 2012 there are 0.99 males per female, with males dominating under 15 years and females dominating in the 65 years or older range.^[28]

Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org.

Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org.

New Zealand is a multiethnic society, and home to people of many different national origins. Originally composed solely of the Māori who arrived in the thirteenth century, the ethnic makeup of the population later became dominated by New Zealanders of European descent.^[62] In the nineteenth century, European settlers brought diseases for which the Māori had no immunity. By the 1890s, the Māori population was approximately 40 percent of its size pre-contact.^[62] The Māori population increased during the twentieth century,^[63] though it remains a minority. The 1961 New Zealand census recorded that the population was 92 percent European and 7 percent Māori, with Asian and Pasifika minorities sharing the remaining 1 percent.^[64]

At the latest census in 2018, 70.2 percent identified as European, 16.5 percent as Māori, 15.1 percent as Asian, 8.1 percent as Pasifika, and 1.2 percent as Middle-Eastern, Latin American, and African (MELAA).^{[n 1][5]} Most New Zealanders are of English,^[65] Scottish,^[66] and Irish ancestry,^[67] with smaller percentages of other European ancestries, such as Dutch, Dalmatian, French, German and Scandinavian.^[68] Auckland was the most diverse region with 53.5 percent identifying as European, 28.2 percent as Asian, 11.5 percent as Māori, 15.5 percent as Pasifika and 1.1 percent as MELAA.^[5] According to Massey University sociologist Paul Spoonley, ethnic intermarriage has consistently been very common in New Zealand since colonisation. Unlike the United States, New Zealand has never prohibited interracial marriages; they have in fact been historically enouraged by many.^[8] In 2015, more than half of Maori, or 53.5 per cent, and almost four in 10, or 37.2 per cent of Pasifika, identified with two or more ethnic groups. At current rates of population growth, Asians, Pasifika and Māori will outnumber Europeans in Auckland within the next decade.^[6]

All major ethnic groups except European increased when compared with the 2013 census, in which 74 percent identified as European, 14.6 percent as Māori, 11.8 percent as Asian, and 7.4 percent of Pasifika origin.^[61] Heightened immigration from Asia and the Pacific,^[50] and higher fertility rates amongst Māori and Pasifika,^[69] have resulted in the population of Māori, Asian and Pasifika descent growing at a higher rate than those of European descent.^[70] Moreover, non-European ethnic groups make up a greater proportion of younger people, whereas European ethnic groups make up a large proportion of older people due to historic immigration trends and lower life expectancy in Māori and Pasifika ethnic groups.^[71] For instance, in 2013, the population aged under 15 years was 67 percent European, 27 percent Māori, 14 percent Pacific, 16 percent Asian, and 2 percent MELAA, while the population aged 65 years and older consisted of 86 percent European, 7 percent Māori, 6 percent Asian and 3 percent Pacific.^[72]

There was significant public discussion about usage of the term "New Zealander" during the months leading up to the 2006 census.^[73] The number of people identifying with this term increased from approximately 80,000 (2.4 percent) in 2001 to just under 430,000 people (11.1 percent) in 2006.^[74] The European grouping significantly decreased from 80.0 percent of the population in 2001 to 67.6 percent in 2006, however, this is broadly proportional to the large increase in "New Zealanders".^[74] The number of people identifying as a "New Zealander" dropped back to under 66,000 in 2013,^[74] and further declined to about 45,300 in 2018.^[5]

Statistics New Zealand has not released official statistical counts of Māori iwi (tribes) from the 2018 census due to a low response rate.^[75] As last recorded in the 2013 census, the largest iwi is Ngāpuhi with 125,601 people (or 18.8 percent of people of Māori descent).^[34] Between 2006 and 2013 the number of people of Māori descent stating Ngāpuhi as their iwi increased by 3,390 people (2.8 percent). The second-largest was Ngāti Porou, with 71,049 people (down 1.2 percent from 2006). Ngāi Tahu was the largest in the South Island and the third-largest overall, with a count of 54,819 people (an increase of 11.4 percent from 2006). A total of 110,928 people (or 18.5 percent) of Māori descent did not know their iwi (an increase of 8.4 percent compared with 2006).^[34] A group of Māori migrated to Rēkohu, now known as the Chatham Islands, where they developed their distinct Moriori culture.^[76][77] The Moriori population was decimated, first, by disease brought by European sealers and whalers and, second, by Taranaki Māori, with only 101 surviving in 1862 and the last known full-blooded Moriori dying in 1933.^[77] The number of people identifying as having Moriori descents increased from 105 in 1991 to 945 in 2006,^[78] but decreased to 738 in 2013.^[79]

The maps below (taken from 2013 census data^[61]) show the percentages of people in each census area unit identifying themselves as European, Māori, Asian, or Pacific Islander (as defined by Statistics New Zealand). As people could identify themselves with multiple groups, percentages are not cumulative.

• European from 2006 to 2018
• Māori in 2018
• Asian in 2018
• Pasifikas in 2018

English has long been entrenched as a de facto national language due to its widespread use.^[80] In the 2018 census, 95.4 percent of respondents spoke English,^[3] down from 96.1 percent in 2013.^[4] The New Zealand English dialect is mostly non-rhotic with an exception being the Southern Burr found principally in Southland and parts of Otago.^[81] It is similar to Australian English and many speakers from the Northern Hemisphere are unable to tell the accents apart.^[82] In New Zealand English the short i (as in kit) has become centralised, leading to the phrase fish and chips sounding like "fush and chups" to the Australian ear.^[83] The words rarely and really, reel and real, doll and dole, pull and pool, witch and which, and full and fill can sometimes be pronounced as homophones.^[84][85][81] Some New Zealanders pronounce the past participles grown, thrown and mown using two syllables, whereas groan, throne and moan are pronounced as one syllable.^[86] New Zealanders often reply to a question or emphasise a point by adding a rising intonation at the end of the sentence.^[87]

Initially, the Māori language (te reo Māori) was permitted in native schools to facilitate English instruction, but as time went on official attitudes hardened against any use of the language. Māori were discouraged from speaking their own language in schools and work places and it existed as a community language only in a few remote areas.^[88] The language underwent a revival beginning in the 1970s, and now more people speak Māori.^[89][90] The future of the language was the subject of a claim before the Waitangi Tribunal in 1985. As a result, Māori was declared an official language in 1987.^[91] In the 2013 census, 21.3 percent of Māori people—and 3.7 percent of all respondents, including some non-Māori people—reported conversational fluency in the language.^{[92][n 6]} There are now Māori language immersion schools and two Māori Television channels, the only nationwide television channels to have the majority of their prime-time content delivered in Māori.^[94] Many places have officially been given dual Māori and English names in recent years.

In the 2018 census, 22,987 people reported the ability to use New Zealand Sign Language.^[3] It was declared one of New Zealand's official languages in 2006.^[95]

Samoan is the most widely spoken non-official language (2.2 percent), followed by "Northern Chinese" (including Mandarin; 2.0 percent), Hindi (1.5 percent) and French (1.2 percent).^[3] A considerable proportion of first- and second-generation migrants are multilingual.^[3]

The predominant religion in New Zealand is Christianity. As recorded in the 2018 census, about 38 percent of the population identified themselves as Christians,^[3] although regular church attendance is estimated at 15 percent.^[97] Another 48.5 percent indicated that they had no religion^[3] (up from 41.9 percent in 2013 and 34.7 percent in 2006^[98]) and around 7.5 percent affiliated with other religions.^[3]

The indigenous religion of the Māori population was animistic, but with the arrival of missionaries from the early nineteenth century most of the Māori population converted to Christianity.^[99] In the 2018 census, 3,699 Māori identify themselves as adhering to "Māori religions, beliefs and philosophies".^[3]

In the 2018 census, the largest reported Christian affiliations are Anglican (6.7 percent of the population), Roman Catholic (6.3 percent), Presbyterian (4.7 percent). There are also significant numbers of Christians who identify themselves with Methodist, Pentecostal, Baptist and Latter-day Saint churches, and the New Zealand-based Rātana church has adherents among Māori.^[3] Immigration and associated demographic change in recent decades has contributed to the growth of minority religions,^[100] especially Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam.^[101][102]

• Demographics of Auckland
• Demographics of the Cook Islands, associated with New Zealand
• Health in New Zealand
• Homelessness in New Zealand
• Housing in New Zealand
• List of cities in New Zealand
• New Zealand census
• Social class in New Zealand