Northern Territory: population, jobs, health, schools, living costs and state government finances

Northern Territory is a territory of Australia, number 8 of 8 by population. The Australian Bureau of Statistics estimates the resident population of the Northern Territory at 264,556 people on 30 June 2025, which is 1.0% of Australia (the smallest of 8 states and territories by population).

In depth

• Economy, jobs and prices in Northern Territory: The economy of the Northern Territory produced gross state product of $34,605 million in 2024-25 at current prices, 1.2% of Australian gross domestic product ($2,778,897 million), the smallest of 8 among states and territories.
• Health in Northern Territory: Boys born in the Northern Territory can expect to live 77.0 years and girls 80.7 years (life expectancy at birth, 2022-2024), compared with 81.1 and 85.1 years for Australia; for males the Northern Territory ranks the lowest of 8, for females the lowest of 8.
• Education in Northern Territory: The Northern Territory had 194 schools in 2025 (150 government, 18 Catholic and 26 independent) with 40,005 students enrolled, -0.1% on 2024.
• Poverty and living standards in Northern Territory: The 2021 Census estimated 13,157 people were homeless in the Northern Territory, a rate of 504 per 10,000 people (the highest of 8 states and territories).
• Government budget and revenue in Northern Territory: The Northern Territory government raised $8,067 million in revenue and spent $8,992 million in 2024-25 (general government sector), a net operating balance of -$924 million.

How territorys are governed in Australia

States (6) and self-governing territories (2). Elected parliaments; premier or chief minister from the majority. Create, merge and supervise local councils through their own Local Government Acts.

Every tier of government in Australia

Other territories of Australia

• New South Wales 8,592,524
• Victoria 7,073,859
• Queensland 5,669,764
• Western Australia 3,044,382
• South Australia 1,902,665
• Tasmania 576,261
• Australian Capital Territory 484,630

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Sources

• Australian Bureau of Statistics: Census of Population and Housing 2021, state and territory results (via ABS Data by region): health conditions, education, housing costs, homelessness, disadvantage, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 7f6d87de31d5…)
• Australian Bureau of Statistics: Government Finance Statistics, Australia, 2024-25: state general government operating statement, balance sheet and expenses by purpose, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a22f46e52d4e…)
• Australian Bureau of Statistics: Australian National Accounts: State Accounts, 2024-25, Table 1: Gross state product, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 193fa6f8752b…)
• Australian Bureau of Statistics: Life expectancy 2022-2024: life tables by state and territory of usual residence, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 b8ed69c08132…)
• Australian Bureau of Statistics: Labour Force, Australia, September 2026: trend and seasonally adjusted state and territory series, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 72befbbd1b24…)
• Australian Bureau of Statistics: Schools, 2025: Table 90a key information by state, Table 53a student-teacher ratios, Table 64a retention rates, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 c3ecf57c8e83…)

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