Melbourne shrank while Queensland grew: what the pandemic did to Australia’s population

Melbourne residents spent 262 days in lockdown across the first two years of the pandemic, contributing to an exodus from Victoria. Photograph: Go Australia/Neil Sutherland/Alamy

Melbourne’s population growth turned negative during the pandemic as people fled prolonged Covid lockdowns, while Queensland welcomed a steady stream of people moving from other states, new population data shows.

The data from the Centre for Population showed Melbourne’s rate of population growth dropped from 1.8% in 2018-19 to -1.6% in 2020-21. Both international and interstate migration to Victoria fell, with annual population growth going backwards at -0.9%.