The Australian Capital Territory's Fastest-Growing Suburbs, 2016 to 2021
Coombs was the Australian Capital Territory's fastest-growing suburb between the 2016 and 2021 Census, growing 167.9% from 1,811 to 4,851 people. It also added the most new residents: 3,040. The Censible Index ranks suburbs on ABS Census counts and includes every suburb with at least 1,000 people in 2016.
Every suburb on these lists is in Canberra: Canberra's fastest-growing suburbs are Coombs, Greenway, Phillip, Dickson, Kingston, Gungahlin, Wright, Acton, Barton, Campbell, Belconnen and Franklin.
Last updated:
The top 10
The Australian Capital Territory's suburbs with at least 1,000 people in 2016, ranked by growth % or by new residents.
Ranked by population growth
| Rank | Suburb | State | 2016 | 2021 | Change | Growth % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coombs | ACT | 1,811 | 4,851 | +3,040 | +167.9% |
| 2 | Greenway | ACT | 1,894 | 4,129 | +2,235 | +118.0% |
| 3 | Phillip | ACT | 2,936 | 5,197 | +2,261 | +77.0% |
| 4 | Dickson | ACT | 2,149 | 3,292 | +1,143 | +53.2% |
| 5 | Kingston (ACT) | ACT | 4,424 | 6,579 | +2,155 | +48.7% |
| 6 | Gungahlin | ACT | 6,134 | 8,586 | +2,452 | +40.0% |
| 7 | Wright | ACT | 2,753 | 3,808 | +1,055 | +38.3% |
| 8 | Acton (ACT) | ACT | 2,086 | 2,848 | +762 | +36.5% |
| 9 | Barton | ACT | 1,439 | 1,946 | +507 | +35.2% |
| 10 | Campbell | ACT | 4,997 | 6,564 | +1,567 | +31.4% |
Source: ABS Census 2016 and 2021, compiled by Censible. Suburbs (ABS Suburbs and Localities) on 2026 boundaries. How we ranked suburbs
Ranked by new residents
| Rank | Suburb | State | 2016 | 2021 | Change | Growth % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coombs | ACT | 1,811 | 4,851 | +3,040 | +167.9% |
| 2 | Gungahlin | ACT | 6,134 | 8,586 | +2,452 | +40.0% |
| 3 | Phillip | ACT | 2,936 | 5,197 | +2,261 | +77.0% |
| 4 | Greenway | ACT | 1,894 | 4,129 | +2,235 | +118.0% |
| 5 | Kingston (ACT) | ACT | 4,424 | 6,579 | +2,155 | +48.7% |
| 6 | Belconnen | ACT | 6,657 | 8,502 | +1,845 | +27.7% |
| 7 | Campbell | ACT | 4,997 | 6,564 | +1,567 | +31.4% |
| 8 | Dickson | ACT | 2,149 | 3,292 | +1,143 | +53.2% |
| 9 | Franklin (ACT) | ACT | 6,419 | 7,484 | +1,065 | +16.6% |
| 10 | Wright | ACT | 2,753 | 3,808 | +1,055 | +38.3% |
Source: ABS Census 2016 and 2021, compiled by Censible. Suburbs (ABS Suburbs and Localities) on 2026 boundaries. How we ranked suburbs
Other states and territories
The top 10 in every other state and territory, and the national top 20.
How we ranked suburbs
The method
We compared each suburb's population in the 2016 and 2021 Census, counted where people usually live, on the ABS's 2026 suburb boundaries. Only suburbs with at least 1,000 people in 2016 are ranked, so a handful of new homes can't top the list. Suburbs are ranked two ways: by growth % and by the number of new residents. 95 suburbs in the Australian Capital Territory met the rules.
Download the data
Each ranking as a CSV, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0. Source: ABS Census, compiled by Censible.
Updates with the 2026 Census
The ranking updates with 2026 Census data after the ABS first release in June 2027.
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Badge for Coombs
#1 by population growth. To use another suburb's badge, swap the image address for one from the list alongside.
<a href="https://censible.com.au/censible-index/fastest-growing-suburbs/act"><img src="https://censible.com.au/badges/censible-index/fastest-growing-suburbs/act/growth/coombs-80041.svg" alt="Censible Index · #1 Fastest-Growing Suburb in Australian Capital Territory, 2016–2021: Coombs, 167.9% population growth" width="596" height="72" loading="lazy"></a> <p><a href="https://censible.com.au/censible-index/fastest-growing-suburbs/act">Censible Index: Fastest-Growing Suburbs</a></p>
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