This 2023 Census release on families, households, and housing includes 53 new Aotearoa Data Explorer tables and a news story Families and households in the 2023 Census - further insights into how we live.
The census provides the only comprehensive source of data on the structure of families and households in Aotearoa New Zealand. Information about the relationships between people who usually live together informs social policy, planning, monitoring programmes, and research.
Housing statistics from the census include information on topics such as housing quality, home ownership, and household crowding. This information provides important insights into people's living standards and is used to identify areas of need and inform housing policy.
This release of 2023 Census data on families, households, and housing includes the following information.
31 new 2023 Census families and households topic tables in Aotearoa Data Explorer
These include new datasets on household composition, family type, child dependency status, and family income, combined with a range of other concepts. The tables are available by geographic area and census year. For the first time, tables are also available for families and households by the ethnic group of at least one person in the family or household.
22 new 2023 Census housing topic tables in Aotearoa Data Explorer
These include new datasets on housing quality, home ownership, private dwellings in retirement villages, heating, rent, and household crowding (for both households and families). For individuals within households, the housing concepts are combined with age, gender, and ethnicity. These are available by geographic area and census year.
Find topic tables from the latest 2023 Census releases contains the tables in this release, as well as details about them.
Families and households in the 2023 Census - further insights into how we live provides information from the 2023 Census about families with adult children, sole parents, and households by ethnic group.
More detailed insights from this release of families and households data are presented in the sections below.
Families and households by ethnic group
The information below compares European, Māori, Pacific peoples, and Asian families and households, using the following definitions:
- European family/household - at least one member of the family/household belongs to the European ethnic group
- Māori family/household - at least one member of the family/household belongs to the Māori ethnic group
- Pacific peoples family/household - at least one member of the family/household belongs to the Pacific peoples ethnic group
- Asian family/household - at least one member of the family/household belongs to the Asian ethnic group.
Note that families and households can belong to more than one of the categories above.
Households reflect New Zealand's increasing ethnic diversity
In 2023, for households in occupied private dwellings in New Zealand:
- almost four-fifths (79.1 percent) were European households
- almost one-fifth (19.3 percent) were Māori households
- 17.2 percent were Asian households
- 7.8 percent were Pacific peoples households.
The proportion of European households decreased between 2018 and 2023. In contrast, the proportions of Māori, Pacific peoples, and Asian households all increased. This reflects New Zealand's increasingly diverse population.
| Ethnicity | 2018 Census | 2023 Census |
| European | 82.4 | 79.1 |
| Māori | 17.9 | 19.3 |
| Pacific peoples | 7 | 7.8 |
| Asian | 15.1 | 17.2 |
Pacific peoples households larger than European, Māori, and Asian households
In 2023, the overall average size of households in occupied private dwellings in New Zealand was 2.7 usual residents per household.
The average household size for households by ethnic group was:
- 4.0 people per household for Pacific peoples households
- 3.3 people per household for Māori households
- 3.3 people per household for Asian households
- 2.6 people per household for European households.
In terms of the number of usual residents in the household:
- European households were more likely than those of other ethnic groups to have one or two people
- Asian households were more likely than those of other ethnic groups to have three or four people
- Pacific peoples households were more likely than those of other ethnic groups to have five or more people.
| Household size | European | Māori | Pacific peoples | Asian |
| 1 | 24.1 | 12.9 | 7.4 | 9.2 |
| 2 | 35.9 | 27.3 | 19.1 | 25.8 |
| 3 | 15.8 | 20.5 | 19.3 | 23.6 |
| 4 | 14.5 | 18.6 | 19.5 | 22.6 |
| 5 | 6.1 | 10.6 | 14 | 10.2 |
| 6 | 2.1 | 5.2 | 9.1 | 4.8 |
| 7 | 0.8 | 2.4 | 5.1 | 2 |
| 8+ | 0.6 | 2.4 | 6.5 | 1.7 |
Variation in household composition for households by ethnic group
In 2023, household composition varied for households by ethnic group:
- European households were less likely to contain families and substantially more likely to be a person living alone than households of other ethnic groups
- Asian households were more likely than those of other ethnic groups to be one-family households
- Pacific peoples households were more likely to be multiple-family households than those of other ethnic groups.
| Household composition | European | Māori | Pacific peoples | Asian |
| One-family hhld (with or without other people) | 67.4 | 71.1 | 72.2 | 74.4 |
| Two-family hhld (with or without other people) | 2.7 | 6.7 | 11.7 | 7.4 |
| Three-or-more family hhld (with or without other people) | 0.2 | 0.6 | 1.3 | 0.5 |
| One-person hhld | 24.2 | 13.1 | 7.5 | 9.3 |
| Other multi-person hhld | 5.5 | 8.6 | 7.3 | 8.4 |
In terms of more specific household composition categories:
- European households were substantially more likely than those of other ethnic groups to be 'couple-only' households
- Asian households were more likely than those of other ethnic groups to be 'couple with children' households
- Māori and Pacific peoples households were more likely to be sole-parent households than those of other ethnic groups.
| Household composition | Couple only | "Couple only | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| and other people" | Couple with children | "Couple with children | ||||||||
| and other people" | One parent with children | "One parent with children | ||||||||
| and other people" | "Two or more families | |||||||||
| (with or without other people)" | "Household of related people | |||||||||
| (with or without unrelated people)" | "Household of | |||||||||
| unrelated people" | One-person household | |||||||||
| European | 28.2 | 2.6 | 25 | 1.9 | 7.8 | 1.8 | 2.8 | 1 | 4.5 | 24.2 |
| Māori | 16.5 | 4 | 26.4 | 4 | 14.5 | 5.6 | 7.3 | 2 | 6.5 | 13.1 |
| Pacific peoples | 10.4 | 3.9 | 29.6 | 7.1 | 14.5 | 6.6 | 13 | 2.2 | 5.1 | 7.5 |
| Asian | 18.8 | 5.1 | 35.4 | 7 | 6 | 2.1 | 7.9 | 1.2 | 7.2 | 9.3 |
Income
Household equivalised income lower for people in rented dwellings
In 2023, household equivalised income was lower for individuals living in rented dwellings than for individuals living in dwellings owned by the household or held in a family trust. Household equivalised income accounts for differences in a household's size and composition.
Differences were particularly marked for the lowest and highest income bands:
- people in households in rented dwellings were substantially more likely to have a household equivalised income of $22,000 or less than people in other dwellings
- a considerably higher percentage of people living in dwellings held in a family trust had a household equivalised income of $120,001 or more.
| Household equivalised income | Dwelling owned or partly owned | Dwelling held in family trust | Dwelling rented |
| "$22 | 6.5 | 7.1 | 17.5 |
| 000 or less" | 5.9 | 5.5 | 7.8 |
| "$22 | 8 | 7.3 | 11.1 |
| 001-$28 | 9.5 | 8.2 | 12.1 |
| 000" | 10.4 | 8 | 11.7 |
| "$28 | 12 | 9.5 | 11.3 |
| 001-$36 | 13.7 | 10.9 | 10.7 |
| 000" | 10.5 | 9 | 7.2 |
| "$36 | 12 | 12.2 | 6.4 |
| 001-$45 | 11.5 | 22.3 | 4.2 |
| 000" | |||
| "$45 | |||
| 001-$55 | |||
| 000" | |||
| "$55 | |||
| 001-$66 | |||
| 000" | |||
| "$66 | |||
| 001-$80 | |||
| 000" | |||
| "$80 | |||
| 001-$94 | |||
| 000" | |||
| "$94 | |||
| 001-$120 | |||
| 000" | |||
| "$120 | |||
| 001 or more" |
Families
Increase in families with adult children living at home
In 2023, 34.5 percent of all families with children had adult children living with them. In the census, an adult child is defined as a child in a family who is aged 15 years or over and employed full time, or a child in a family who is aged 18 years or over.
The proportion of families with adult children at home varied for families by ethnic group:
- Pacific peoples families had the highest percentage (38.7 percent)
- the percentage was lower for European families (33.8 percent), Māori families (32.9 percent), and Asian families (30.9 percent).
Between 2013 and 2023:
- the number of families with adult children living at home increased by 27.3 percent
- the number of families with dependent children increased by 8.2 percent
- the number of families with children increased by 12.8 percent
- the total number of families increased by 13.9 percent.
The relatively high increase in the number of families with adult children may reflect increased cost-of-living pressures.
| Families | 2013 Census | 2023 Census |
| Total families | 1136397 | 1294503 |
| Families with children | 671091 | 757017 |
| Families with dependent children | 526269 | 569250 |
| Families with adult children | 205416 | 261543 |
Pacific peoples families have more dependent children
The average number of dependent children in all families with children decreased slightly from 1.5 children in 2013 to 1.4 children in 2023. In the census, a dependent child is defined as a child in a family who is aged under 15 years or aged 15 to 17 years and not employed full-time.
When looking at families with children by ethnic group, the average number of dependent children in 2023 was:
- 1.6 for Pacific peoples families
- 1.5 for Māori families
- 1.4 for European families
- 1.3 for Asian families.
In terms of the number of dependent children per family with children:
- European families were more likely than families of other ethnic groups to have no dependent children
- Asian families were more likely than families of other ethnic groups to have one or two dependent children
- Pacific peoples families were more likely than families of other ethnic groups to have three or more dependent children.
| Number of dependent children | European | Māori | Pacific peoples | Asian |
| 0 | 24.8 | 21 | 22.1 | 22.2 |
| 1 | 31.3 | 33.2 | 31.5 | 39.2 |
| 2 | 30.3 | 26.7 | 23.5 | 30.4 |
| 3 | 10.4 | 12.5 | 13.1 | 6.7 |
| 4+ | 3.2 | 6.6 | 9.8 | 1.6 |
Decrease in proportion of families with children under five years of age
For families with dependent children, the percentage of families with children under five years of age decreased from 40.6 percent in 2013 to 37.0 percent in 2023.
In particular, the percentage of families where the youngest child was aged under one year decreased from 10.3 percent of families with dependent children in 2013 to 8.6 percent in 2023.
| Age of youngest dependent child (years) | 2013 Census | 2023 Census |
| <1 | 10.3 | 8.6 |
| 1 | 9.5 | 9 |
| 2 | 8 | 7.2 |
| 3 | 6.8 | 6.4 |
| 4 | 6.1 | 5.8 |
| 5 | 5.7 | 5.7 |
| 6 | 5.2 | 5.4 |
| 7 | 4.8 | 5.1 |
| 8 | 4.7 | 5.2 |
| 9 | 4.6 | 5 |
| 10 | 4.5 | 5.1 |
| 11 | 4.6 | 5 |
| 12 | 4.7 | 5 |
| 13 | 4.7 | 4.9 |
| 14 | 4.5 | 4.8 |
| 15 | 4.1 | 4.4 |
| 16 | 3.9 | 4.1 |
| 17 | 3.5 | 3.4 |
Increase in proportion of male sole parents
There were approximately 138,000 sole parents with dependent children in 2023. Of these, 17.8 percent were male, compared with 15.8 percent in 2013.
As the age of the youngest dependent child increased, so did the proportion of male sole parents.
In 2023, for one-parent families with dependent children:
- where there was a child aged under one year, just 8.9 percent of parents were male
- where the youngest dependent child was aged 13 to 17 years, 22 to 23 percent of parents were male.
| Age of youngest dependent child (years) | Female sole parent | Male sole parent | Sole parent of another gender |
| <1 | 90.9 | 8.9 | 0.3 |
| 1 | 89.7 | 10.1 | 0.3 |
| 2 | 88.3 | 11.5 | 0.2 |
| 3 | 87 | 12.7 | 0.2 |
| 4 | 84.7 | 15.1 | 0.2 |
| 5 | 83 | 16.5 | 0.5 |
| 6 | 82 | 17.9 | 0.2 |
| 7 | 82.1 | 17.5 | 0.4 |
| 8 | 81.8 | 18 | 0.2 |
| 9 | 80.6 | 19.2 | 0.2 |
| 10 | 79.7 | 20 | 0.3 |
| 11 | 79.4 | 20.4 | 0.2 |
| 12 | 78.6 | 21.1 | 0.3 |
| 13 | 77.6 | 22.2 | 0.3 |
| 14 | 76.8 | 22.9 | 0.2 |
| 15 | 76.5 | 23.2 | 0.3 |
| 16 | 77.2 | 22.6 | 0.3 |
| 17 | 76.5 | 23.2 | 0.3 |
Compared with female sole parents or sole parents of another gender, male sole parents with dependent children were:
- more likely to be employed full-time
- less likely to be employed part-time, unemployed, or not in the labour force.
This reflects female sole parents being more likely to have younger dependent children, particularly children of pre-school age.
| Work and labour force status | Female sole parent | Male sole parent | Sole parent of another gender |
| Employed full-time | 43.6 | 65.7 | 41.9 |
| Employed part-time | 17.1 | 6.6 | 16.1 |
| Unemployed | 7.3 | 5.4 | 5.6 |
| Not in the labour force | 32 | 22.3 | 36.3 |
More data
Place and ethnic group summaries tool allows users to view and compare simple graphs and tables of data for local communities and New Zealand's ethnic groups. Additional housing, families and households data is available via this tool.
Aotearoa Data Explorer - 2023 Census provides access to search and customise 2023 Census data tables and compare data against previous censuses.
Aotearoa Data Explorer user guide contains video tutorials and a user guide.
2023 Census product and release finder has a downloadable tool that contains details of all the tables published in this release, as well as other 2023 Census releases.
After downloading and opening the tool, select the 'Product and release finder' tab then click on the 'Product' filter and select 'Aotearoa Data Explorer' from the drop-down list.
2023 Census Totals by topic tables are now available in geospatial formats:
Definitions and metadata
Families and households in the 2023 Census: Data sources, methodology, and data quality describes the data sources and methodology used to produce 2023 Census family and household information and summarises our assessment of the quality of this data.
Producing family and household data by ethnicity and Māori descent in the 2023 Census provides information on the methodology for outputting census families and households data by ethnic group.
Using a combined census model for the 2023 Census provides information about the methodology used for the 2023 Census.
Data quality in the 2023 Census provides information about the composition and quality of the 2023 Census dataset.
2023 Census of Population and Dwellings - Information by concepts (published) - DataInfo+ provides information about the variables and their quality.
Technical enquiries
Geoff Sullivan
04 931 4600
[email protected]
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