People using at least a basic drinking water source in Australia
Australia: People using at least a basic drinking water source was 26.71 million people in 2024. ▲ Rising
People using at least a basic drinking water source in Australia, 2000–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
In 2024, people using at least a basic drinking water source in Australia stood at 26.71 million people. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
The figure is up 1.0% on the previous year and up 13.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, people using at least a basic drinking water source in Australia peaked at 26.71 million people in 2024 and was at its lowest, 19.08 million people, in 2000.
Australia ranks 48th of 231 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
People using at least a basic drinking water source in Australia, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 19.08 million people | — |
| 2001 | 19.31 million people | +1.2% |
| 2002 | 19.54 million people | +1.2% |
| 2003 | 19.77 million people | +1.2% |
| 2004 | 20.00 million people | +1.2% |
| 2005 | 20.25 million people | +1.3% |
| 2006 | 20.55 million people | +1.5% |
| 2007 | 20.92 million people | +1.8% |
| 2008 | 21.34 million people | +2.0% |
| 2009 | 21.75 million people | +2.0% |
| 2010 | 22.12 million people | +1.7% |
| 2011 | 22.46 million people | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 22.83 million people | +1.7% |
| 2013 | 23.22 million people | +1.7% |
| 2014 | 23.59 million people | +1.6% |
| 2015 | 23.94 million people | +1.5% |
| 2016 | 24.32 million people | +1.6% |
| 2017 | 24.72 million people | +1.6% |
| 2018 | 25.11 million people | +1.6% |
| 2019 | 25.48 million people | +1.4% |
| 2020 | 25.74 million people | +1.0% |
| 2021 | 25.95 million people | +0.8% |
| 2022 | 26.19 million people | +0.9% |
| 2023 | 26.44 million people | +1.0% |
| 2024 | 26.71 million people | +1.0% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 26.71 million people is above the median for high income countries, which is 3.05 million people, 8.8× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Australia's 26.71 million people is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 1.22 million people, 21.8× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 20.25 million people | 19.08 million people | 21.75 million people | 10 |
| 2010s | 23.78 million people | 22.12 million people | 25.48 million people | 10 |
| 2020s | 26.21 million people | 25.74 million people | 26.71 million people | 5 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More environment data for Australia
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -4.75 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -5.98 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.345 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.4 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.6708 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 0.0861 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is people using at least a basic drinking water source in Australia?
- People using at least a basic drinking water source in Australia was 26.71 million people in 2024, according to WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest people using at least a basic drinking water source recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 26.71 million people in 2024.
- What is the lowest people using at least a basic drinking water source recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 19.08 million people in 2000.
- How does Australia rank for people using at least a basic drinking water source?
- Australia ranks 48th out of 231 countries with data for 2024.
- Is people using at least a basic drinking water source rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 13.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of People using at least a basic drinking water source. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of people using an improved drinking water source, which is either available on premises, or collection time is no more than 30 minutes for a roundtrip.