Most Popular Regions

The number of people moving from Australia’s capital cities to regional centres continues to grow.

The latest Regional Movers Index shows a 2.5% increase in people moving to the regions in the September 2025 quarter.

Overall, internal migration from capital cities to the regions remains elevated and is at higher levels than in the opposite direction.

During the quarter, capital city to region migration accounted for 11.5% of all major relocations, compared with 8.4% in the other direction

Sydney and Melbourne lost the highest number of residents to the regions. While losses from the smaller capital cities are lower, the report says levels are increasing.

“Compared with a year earlier:  Brisbane increased its share from 1% to 2%, Adelaide rose from 2% to 6%, Perth shifted from receiving net inflows to recording a net outflow, now accounting for 3% of the total,” the report says.

The Sunshine Coast (Qld) remains the region attracting the most new residents, followed by Greater Geelong (Vic), Lake Macquarie (NSW), the Fraser Coast (Qld) and Moorabool (Vic).