Three reasons why Melbourne’s population will overtake Sydney’s within a decade

‘That Federation Square thing’, as Dominic Perrottet described it. Melbourne’s population is growing faster than Sydney’s for several key demographic reasons. Photograph: Scott E Barbour/Getty Images

Despite losing some ground to Sydney because of an exodus of citizens during the pandemic, Melbourne is still on track to become Australia’s most populous city, as it once again becomes the destination of choice for overseas and internal migrants.

Melbourne is predicted to overtake Sydney by 2031-32, when the Victorian capital is forecast to reach a population of six million, pipping its northern rival by a couple of hundred thousand people, new data from the Centre for Population reveals.