According to a recent inquiry report into global population growth, Perth, Australia, is the fastest-growing urban centre in the Western hemisphere. With the EU projected to have 6% fewer residents before the end of the century, research has identified the cities in higher income countries where the resident numbers are growing the fastest.
The findings come from World Depopulation, which is a global demographics analytics tool. The objectives are to draw attention to the effects of high birth rates and rapid population growth on maternal and infant mortality, communities and the environment.
The data finds that Australian urban centres lead the ranking, with 5 of its cities, including Perth, Canberra, and Brisbane, in the top 10. It is also notable that the city with the fastest population growth is Vancouver, Canada, with a community increase of 17.6%.
The only US city to make the top 10 is Fort Worth, Texas, standing out with one of the highest crude birth rates at 11.2.
The study looked at a combination of factors that influence the population increase, including the direct growth of resident numbers, which accounts for both births and net migration, fertility rates, and crude birth and mortality rates. The research calculated the natural change between deaths and births, which helped to identify the major population growth causes for each city.
Top ten cities in high income countries
| City | Country | Population | Population Growth (2021-2026) | Fertility Rate (children per woman) | Crude Birth Rate (CBR) | Crude Mortality Rate | Natural Change |
| Perth | Australia | 2,397,000 | 14.96% | 1.63 | 11.40 | 6.30 | 5.10 |
| Canberra | Australia | 476,000 | 13.60% | 1.42 | 9.80 | 5.20 | 4.60 |
| Calgary | Canada | 1,712,000 | 15.53% | 1.26 | 9.50 | 6.80 | 2.70 |
| Brisbane | Australia | 2,796,000 | 12.65% | 1.37 | 11.10 | 6.80 | 4.30 |
| Vancouver | Canada | 3,108,941 | 17.64% | 1.09 | 7.60 | 8.30 | -0.70 |
| Melbourne | Australia | 5,461,000 | 9.70% | 1.50 | 10.50 | 6.70 | 3.80 |
| Edmonton | Canada | 1,573,000 | 10.92% | 1.41 | 9.50 | 6.80 | 2.70 |
| Fort Worth | United States | 1,008,106 | 9.71% | 1.75 | 11.20 | 8.00 | 3.20 |
| Toronto | Canada | 7,106,379 | 14.58% | 1.21 | 8.40 | 8.50 | -0.10 |
| Adelaide | Australia | 1,456,000 | 8.98% | 1.35 | 10.20 | 7.20 | 3.00 |
As indicated above, Perth, Australia, is the fastest-growing Western city in the world. Its population increased by 14.9% in the last 5 years, and family formation has significantly contributed to these numbers. Perth shows the greatest natural change on the list, with 5.1 more births than deaths among the population per 1K residents. Migration also influenced population trends, as Australia grew its number of expat arrivals, and Europe lost a lot of its workforce.
Canberra ranks 2nd. Its population expanded by 13.6% between 2021 and 2026, but net migration was a significant contributor, with a rate of 9.8. The births outpace mortality significantly, with a natural change rate of 4.6, but fertility rates in Canberra are a little lower than in Perth. With this growth, the city currently has a population of 476K.
Cangary completes the top 3, with one of the fastest growth rates in the ranking, at 15.53%, adding residents even faster than Canberra or Perth. At the same time, family creation plays a lesser role in this increase, with birth rates at 9.5 children per 1K residents, and the natural change of 2.7. That means the city has a strong positive net migration (12.1), with more people coming to the city for education or work.
In fourth place is Brisbane, where families with kids largely influenced population growth. The difference between birth and mortality rates sits at a strong 4.3, similar to Canberra. Together with rising fertility rates (1.37), Brisbane increased its population by 12.65%.
Vancouver is the fifth fastest-growing city in the Western hemisphere, and it stands out as the only city in the top 5 where migration is the main contributor. Mortality in Vancouver is actually higher than birth rates, and the natural change sits at -0.7. Even with this decline, the city added 17.6% to the total population in the last 5 years, reaching 3.1 million people.
