The economy of Brisbane consists mainly of several industries, including health care, professional services and retail trade. It holds a population of over 2.4 million people in broader urban centres and localities, with a mean age of 35 years.^[6] Brisbane's Gross Domestic Product was $170.5 billion in 2017–18, contributing to around half of Queensland's overall economy and 9.4% of national gross domestic product.^[7]

Major export categories for the economy include tourism ($7.1 billion, year to September 2018), education ($3.8 billion, 2014) and goods exports through the Brisbane Airport and Port of Brisbane ($16.1 billion, 2017–18).^[8] The cyclical downturn of the 2000s mining boom has led to investments being directed towards other industry sectors, with a projected $15 billion infrastructure boom during the early 2020s. Projects include the Cross River Rail project, with the Palaszczuk government expected to fund approximately half of the operation.^[9]

The Greater Brisbane region expands over 15,826 square kilometres, covering 8 local government areas and is notable for its 344-kilometre (214 mi) Brisbane River.^[10] It is the third largest city in Australia.

Categorised as a global city, Brisbane is among Asia-Pacific cities with largest GDPs and is one of the major business hubs in Australia, with strengths in mining, banking, insurance, transportation, information technology, real estate and food.^[11]

Some of the largest companies headquartered in Brisbane, all among Australia's largest, include Suncorp Group, Virgin Australia, Aurizon, Bank of Queensland, Flight Centre, CUA, Sunsuper, QSuper, Domino's Pizza Enterprises, Star Entertainment Group, ALS, TechnologyOne, NEXTDC, Super Retail Group, New Hope Coal, Jumbo Interactive, National Storage, Collins Foods and Boeing Australia.^[12] Most major Australian companies, as well as numerous international companies, have contact offices in Brisbane.

Tourism is an important part of the Brisbane economy, both in its own right and as a gateway to other areas of Queensland,^[13] as international education, with over 95,000 international students enrolled in universities and other tertiary education institutions in the central Brisbane City Council local government area alone in 2018.^[14]

The penal era in Brisbane ended in 1842 and free settlers began to colonise the city, driving the population up to 6000 by 1859.^[15] Between the years 1860 and 1865, more than 35,000 free settlers moved to Brisbane after it was declared as Queensland's capital city.^[15]

During World War II, Brisbane experienced another population boom, becoming the headquarters for the South West Pacific campaign.^[16] The economy experienced significant growth as both US citizens and Australian citizens from other states migrated to the city to contribute to the war effort, almost doubling Brisbane's population and signifying Brisbane as a training area.^[17] Medical facilities, workshops and depots necessary for the war effort were erected, creating thousands of jobs and giving rise to significant economic growth.^[17]

The 2010-2011 Queensland floods severely affected Brisbane, with 78% of the state declared to be in a disaster zone.^[18] An estimated 18,000 properties were flooded in the Brisbane's metropolitan area, including the broader Brisbane River Valley and Ipswich.^[19]

By 11 January 2011, twenty thousand homes had been affected, with The Brisbane River Walk (a bridge suspending over the river), collapsing into the surrounding water.^[20] This, along with other damages, resulted in $2.55 billion of insurance payouts, with the loss of infrastructure and businesses within the city severely damaging the economy.^[19] As a consequence, population growth slowed as people feared future floods, whilst economic growth slowed as the city began to rebuild.

The top five industries in Brisbane by employment as of November 2018^[25] are:

1. Health care and social assistance (176,594 employed persons)
2. Professional, scientific and technical services (114,680 employed persons)
3. Retail trade (119,409 employed persons)
4. Education and training (100,450 employed persons)
5. Construction (113,310 employed persons)

Large population growth over South-East Queensland has led to the expansion of labour-intensive employment including construction, education, government, health and retail, which accounts for over half of Brisbane's total employment.^[26] Between 2011 and 2016, the number of employed persons in Greater Brisbane increased by 63,169, with the largest increase occurring in education and training (+16,983 persons) and health care and social assistance (+15,946 persons).^[27]

The population of Brisbane totals over 2.4 million citizens and ranks as the third largest city in Australia, accounting for 19% of the country's population.^[37] Unemployment in Greater Brisbane was at a rate of 6.1% in December 2018, which is in line with the state's unemployment rate, which ranks as the second-most unemployed state in the country as of March 2019.^[38] The 2016 census data shows that the median age in Brisbane is 35, with around 20% of the population being categorised as children aged 0–14.^[39] This is an indication of a relatively young population, pointing to the need for a strong education services sector.

The Lord Mayor's Economic Development Steering Committee has identified a need for growth in education employment, detailing that in the years 2012–2031, education will be amongst the fastest-growing industries for job growth.^[40] This is outlined in their Economic Development Plan 2012–2031, delineating that there is a strong need for a redirection of resources to improve education facilities and infrastructure across the city.

Retail in the CBD is centred around the Queen Street Mall, which is Queensland's largest pedestrian mall. Shopping centres in the CBD include the Myer Centre, the Wintergarden, MacArthur Central and QueensPlaza, with the last of these along with Edward Street forming the city's focus for luxury brands. There are historical shopping arcades at Brisbane Arcade and Tattersalls Arcade. Suburbs adjacent to the CBD such as Fortitude Valley (particularly James Street), South Brisbane and West End are also a major inner-city retail hubs.

Outside of the inner-city, retail is focused on indoor shopping centres, including numerous regional shopping centres along with six super regional shopping centres, all of which are among Australia's largest, namely: Westfield Chermside in the north; Westfield Garden City in the south; Westfield Carindale in the east; Indooroopilly Shopping Centre in the west; Westfield North Lakes in the outer-north; and Logan Hyperdome in the outer-south. Brisbane's major factory outlet centres are the Direct Factory Outlet at Skygate and Jindalee.

The 100 hectare Brisbane Markets at Rocklea are Brisbane's largest wholesale markets, whilst smaller markets operate at numerous locations throughout the city including South Bank Parklands, Davies Park in West End and the Eat Street Markets at Hamilton.

The Brisbane Economic Development Plan 2012-2031 is a council publication that sets out Brisbane's priorities and actions that are required in order to achieve its economic goals by 2031. It has three main pillars by which it measures its success:

• 1.5 million employed citizens (in the Brisbane metropolitan area)
• Achieving a $217 billion economy
• $75,000 per capita income

The plan outlines Brisbane's need to strengthen the city's relationship with Asia, maximise job growth, improve its tourism potential and to develop its digital economy, as outlined by the Lord Mayor of Brisbane (at the time of publication), Graham Quirk. Four goals are outlined that are necessary to achieve the above successes:

1. Build Brisbane's global reputation
2. Become more productive
3. Attract talented and global connections
4. Become a 'lifestyle city'

The plan outlines that in order to achieve these goals, Brisbane's population must grow significantly. An estimated 443,000 workers will need to be accommodated in the city by 2031, with 343,000 of these additional workers required by 2021. The council has also forecasted that the population within metropolitan Brisbane alone will grow by 820,000 people, with an estimated two-thirds of additional jobs to be within the Local Brisbane Government area.

The council also wants to increase Brisbane's global reputation as a new 'World City' by attracting international businesspeople. in doing so, they hope to increase global awareness of Brisbane's attractiveness and to promote growth in tourism, attract international investment and draw in talented workers. Numerous international conventions have already been held in Brisbane for this purpose, which contribute more than $200 million to the economy annually.^[42] These include:

• 26th Commonwealth Agricultural Conference 2014
• Annual Meeting of the International Society for Paediatric and Adolescent Diabetes 2015
• World Water Congress 2016