New Zealand data questions answered
The 15 questions people search most about New Zealand's official figures, each answered from the body that publishes them, with a link to check the latest number yourself.
What is the inflation rate in New Zealand?
New Zealand's consumers price index (CPI) rose 4.1% in the 12 months to the June 2026 quarter, and 1.5% in the quarter itself, according to Stats NZ's Consumers price index: June 2026 quarter. Tradeable prices, which are driven by imports and world prices, rose 4.9%, and non-tradeable prices 3.4%. Excluding food, household energy and vehicle fuels, prices rose 2.5%.
The CPI is quarterly; Stats NZ publishes monthly selected price indexes, such as food and fuel, in between. The Reserve Bank's inflation target refers to the CPI. Stats NZ says the September 2026 quarter CPI will be released on 22 October 2026.
What is the unemployment rate in New Zealand?
New Zealand's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 5.6% in the June 2026 quarter, up from 5.4% in the March quarter, according to Stats NZ's Labour market statistics: June 2026 quarter, released on 5 August 2026. About 171,000 people were unemployed, the underutilisation rate rose to 13.8% and the employment rate was unchanged at 66.7%.
The figures come from the quarterly Household Labour Force Survey. Underutilisation adds people who want more hours or could work but are not actively looking, so it is broader than unemployment. Quarterly changes of a few tenths of a point can be within sampling error.
What is New Zealand's GDP growth?
New Zealand's gross domestic product rose 0.2% in the June 2026 quarter, after a 0.9% rise in the March quarter, according to Stats NZ's Gross domestic product: June 2026 quarter, released on 17 September 2026. GDP was 1.7% higher over the year ended June 2026 than in the previous year, and GDP per capita rose 0.1% in the quarter.
Quarterly figures are seasonally adjusted chain-volume measures, which remove the effect of price changes, and are expressed as a change on the previous quarter rather than annualised. Stats NZ revises earlier quarters as more data arrives. It says the September 2026 quarter release is due on 17 December 2026.
What is the population of New Zealand?
New Zealand's estimated resident population was 5,357,300 at 30 June 2026, according to Stats NZ's provisional National population estimates, published on 18 August 2026. The population grew by 36,400 (0.7%) over the year: natural increase of 18,700, which Stats NZ says was the lowest since the early 1940s, and net migration of 17,600.
The estimates start from the 2023 Census and are updated with births, deaths and migration. Provisional figures are revised as migration data firms up. Stats NZ says estimates at 30 September 2026 will be released on 17 November 2026.
What is the average salary in New Zealand?
Median weekly earnings from wages and salaries in New Zealand were $1,419 in the June 2026 quarter, up $38 (2.8%) on a year earlier, and median hourly earnings were $35.96, according to Stats NZ's Labour market statistics (income): June 2026 quarter. The Quarterly Employment Survey put average weekly earnings for full-time-equivalent employees at $1,730, according to Stats NZ's Labour market statistics: June 2026 quarter.
The median is the middle earner among people with wage or salary income, including part-time workers; the average from the employer survey is a mean and is higher. All figures are before tax. The income release is annual and covers the June quarter only.
What is the minimum wage in New Zealand?
The adult minimum wage in New Zealand is $23.95 an hour from 1 April 2026, or $958 for a 40-hour week, according to Employment New Zealand, part of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment. The starting-out and training minimum wages are $19.16 an hour.
The rates are set by the government and the current ones took effect on 1 April 2026. The starting-out and training rates apply only to eligible younger workers and trainees; Employment New Zealand's page sets out who qualifies. Employers must pay at least the minimum for every hour worked.
What are the income tax rates in New Zealand?
From 1 April 2025, New Zealand's personal income tax rates are 10.5% on income up to $15,600, 17.5% from $15,601 to $53,500, 30% from $53,501 to $78,100, 33% from $78,101 to $180,000 and 39% above $180,000, according to Inland Revenue.
The rates are progressive, so each rate applies only to the part of income within its band. Inland Revenue lists composite rates for the 2024–25 year, when thresholds changed part-way through. Secondary tax rates apply to second jobs, so take-home pay depends on more than these rates.
What is net migration to New Zealand?
New Zealand had an annual net migration gain of 20,500 in the year to August 2026, up from 9,200 a year earlier, according to Stats NZ's provisional International migration: August 2026. Migrant arrivals were 134,600, up 6%, and departures 114,100, down 3%. Stats NZ notes that net migration peaked at a gain of 133,700 in the October 2023 year.
A migrant is someone who arrives or leaves for 12 months or more, so Stats NZ can only confirm this after a year; recent months are provisional estimates with margins of error, shown in the release. Stats NZ says the September 2026 figures will be released on 12 November 2026.
What is the birth rate in New Zealand?
56,268 live births were registered in New Zealand in the year ended June 2026, down from 58,365 a year earlier and the lowest since 2003, according to Stats NZ's Births and deaths: year ended June 2026. The total fertility rate fell to 1.51 births per woman, from 1.57. Registered deaths rose to 38,037.
The total fertility rate is the average number of children a woman would have at current age-specific rates; about 2.1 is the level usually cited for a population to replace itself without migration. Counts are by registration date. Stats NZ says figures for the year ended September 2026 are due on 17 November 2026.
What is life expectancy in New Zealand?
Life expectancy at birth in New Zealand was 82.0 years in 2024, according to the World Bank World Development Indicators, which compile national vital statistics. Stats NZ publishes New Zealand's own period life tables, with separate figures for males and females and for Māori and non-Māori.
Life expectancy at birth summarises death rates in one period and is not a forecast for any individual. National figures can differ between sources depending on the years and methods used. Deaths registered in the year ended June 2026 were 38,037, according to Stats NZ's births and deaths release.
What did the 2023 Census count in New Zealand?
The 2023 Census, held on 7 March 2023, counted 4,993,923 people usually living in New Zealand, according to Stats NZ's 2023 Census population, dwelling, and housing highlights. Stats NZ's census page links to all 2023 Census releases and earlier censuses, including 2018.
The census count is lower than the estimated resident population for the same date, because estimates adjust for people the census missed and for residents temporarily overseas. Stats NZ's estimate for 30 June 2026 is 5,357,300. Census data by area is available in Aotearoa Data Explorer.
What is the Official Cash Rate in New Zealand?
The Official Cash Rate (OCR) is set by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand's Monetary Policy Committee and published on the Reserve Bank website, with each Monetary Policy Statement or Review. The Reserve Bank's site blocks automated readers, so we could not read today's rate from it; open the OCR page in a browser for the current level and the date of the next decision.
The OCR steers short-term interest rates, including floating mortgage rates, and decisions are announced on pre-set dates. For context, Stats NZ's CPI shows annual inflation of 4.1% in the June 2026 quarter.
How many people are on a benefit in New Zealand?
413,691 people were receiving a main benefit in New Zealand at the end of June 2026, up 7,563 (1.9%) on June 2025, according to the Ministry of Social Development's Benefit Fact Sheets snapshot for the June 2026 quarter. That was 12.8% of the working-age population, up 0.2 percentage points.
Main benefits include Jobseeker Support, Sole Parent Support and the Supported Living Payment. The count excludes New Zealand Superannuation and supplementary help such as the Accommodation Supplement, which many people in work receive. MSD publishes the fact sheets quarterly with Excel tables by benefit and region on its benefit statistics page.
How much have food prices risen in New Zealand?
Food prices in New Zealand rose 1.9% in the 12 months to August 2026, and 0.3% in the month, according to Stats NZ's Selected price indexes: August 2026, released on 18 September 2026. Meat, poultry and fish rose 3.4% over the year, restaurant meals and ready-to-eat food 3.2%, and fruit and vegetables fell 1.6%.
The food price index is part of the monthly selected price indexes, which feed into the quarterly CPI. Fruit and vegetable prices can swing with the seasons and the weather. Stats NZ says the September 2026 figures will be released on 16 October 2026.
How much have petrol prices risen in New Zealand?
Petrol prices in New Zealand were 17.9% higher in August 2026 than a year earlier, and rose 2.0% in the month, according to Stats NZ's Selected price indexes: August 2026. Diesel was up 45.8% over the year, and international air transport 21.5%. Electricity prices rose 9.0% and gas 11.0%.
Fuel prices feed into the quarterly CPI, which rose 4.1% in the year to the June 2026 quarter; excluding food, household energy and vehicle fuels, the CPI rose 2.5%. The next monthly update is due on 16 October 2026.
Source guides
- Stats NZ (Tatauranga Aotearoa)
- Reserve Bank of New Zealand (Te Pūtea Matua)
- New Zealand Parliament and New Zealand Legislation
Questions were chosen from the searches people make most about this country's figures, and each answer was written from the official page it links to, read on 14 October 2026. These answers give no verdict on any claim. To report an error, send a correction request.