Greater Darwin had 12,578 actively trading market sector businesses at 30 June 2025. That was 362 more than the 2024 count, a derived increase of 3.0%. The estimated resident population reached 159,284 at the same date, after growing by 2,719 people or 1.7% over the year.
This report uses Australian Bureau of Statistics Data by Region for the Greater Darwin Greater Capital City Statistical Area, code 7GDAR. It adds employment size, turnover and industry tables, a normalized CSV and an original proportional graphic with its source, geography and limits kept visible.
SEO Guys prepared the report for Darwin business owners, local organisations, journalists, researchers and market planners. Population and business data can frame a market question, but they do not prove search demand, customer intent, ranking difficulty or SEO opportunity.
Reusable local business dataset
Download the source-labelled Greater Darwin business data
Use the normalized CSV with its geography code, reference periods, source URLs, licence and evidence limits. Retain the attribution and do not present the figures as search demand.
Source-backed Greater Darwin report
Greater Darwin business structure at a glance
Greater Darwin had 12,578 actively trading market sector businesses at 30 June 2025. The count was 362 higher than the 2024 count, a derived increase of 3.0%.
Active market sector businesses
12,578
At 30 June 2025
Increase from the 2024 count
+362
Derived 3.0% increase
Estimated resident population
159,284
At 30 June 2025
Annual population growth
+1.7%
+2,719 people
Evidence limit: Business and population counts describe the Greater Darwin market. They do not prove search demand, customer intent, ranking difficulty, marketing budgets or the likely value of an SEO campaign.
Five-year business count profile
The published count increased from 10,894 in 2021 to 12,578 in 2025. That is an end-point increase of 1,684 businesses, or 15.5%, using values from the same current ABS release. It is not a business survival rate or a count of new openings.
| Year | Proportional count bar | Businesses |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 10,894 | |
| 2022 | 11,550 | |
| 2023 | 11,913 | |
| 2024 | 12,216 | |
| 2025 | 12,578 |
Business size by employee count
Non-employing businesses and businesses with one to four employees accounted for 10,667 of the Greater Darwin total, or 84.8%. These bands describe business structure, not the total workforce or the budget of an individual business.
| Employment size | Businesses | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Non-employing | 7,611 | 60.5% |
| 1 to 4 employees | 3,056 | 24.3% |
| 5 to 19 employees | 1,438 | 11.4% |
| 20 or more employees | 473 | 3.8% |
Business size by annual turnover
The largest published turnover band contained 4,774 businesses with annual turnover of $200,000 to under $2 million. Turnover does not establish profitability, available marketing budget or channel preference.
| Annual turnover range | Businesses | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $50,000 | 2,853 | 22.7% |
| $50,000 to under $200,000 | 3,723 | 29.6% |
| $200,000 to under $2 million | 4,774 | 38.0% |
| $2 million or more | 1,228 | 9.8% |
Largest industries by business count
Construction had the largest published 2025 business count. Transport, postal and warehousing increased by 31.5% between the 2021 and 2025 snapshots, while health care and social assistance increased by 37.8%. The table shows the eight largest divisions by 2025 count. The downloadable CSV preserves every published industry division used in the analysis.
| Industry | 2025 count | Share | Change from 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Construction | 2,326 | 18.5% | +7.0% |
| Rental, hiring and real estate services | 1,515 | 12.0% | +6.2% |
| Professional, scientific and technical services | 1,459 | 11.6% | +19.2% |
| Transport, postal and warehousing | 1,407 | 11.2% | +31.5% |
| Health care and social assistance | 1,025 | 8.1% | +37.8% |
| Other services | 812 | 6.5% | +21.2% |
| Administrative and support services | 730 | 5.8% | +29.9% |
| Retail trade | 613 | 4.9% | +4.1% |
Reusable source-labelled graphic
Download the Greater Darwin five-year profile
The accessible SVG uses a common zero baseline for all five annual business totals and splits the 2025 column by employment size. It keeps the source, geography, licence and evidence warning visible.
Source and attribution
Business tables use Australian Bureau of Statistics Data by Region for Greater Darwin, GCCSA code 7GDAR. Population is from ABS Regional population. SEO Guys selected, checked and explained the figures. The ABS did not produce or endorse this analysis.
Editor and publisher reuse
Reuse a source-labelled graphic
Each SVG keeps its source, geography, reference period and material limitation visible. Copy the accessible HTML or download the original file, then check the report notes before publication.
Graphic 01
editor-ready Greater Darwin five year business profile
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Copy the report title, update date, page URL and source credit as one plain-text reference.
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What changed in the Greater Darwin business base
The ABS Data by Region count increased from 12,216 actively trading market sector businesses in 2024 to 12,578 at 30 June 2025. The difference is 362 businesses. Dividing that difference by the 2024 count produces a 3.0% increase after rounding to one decimal place.
The published count increased from 10,894 in 2021 to 12,578 in 2025. That end point difference is 1,684 businesses, or 15.5%. It is not a business survival rate, a tally of new openings or evidence that every industry grew at the same pace.
Greater Darwin's estimated resident population reached 159,284 at 30 June 2025, up 2,719 people or 1.7% over the year. Natural increase contributed 1,302 people, net internal migration was negative 1,430 and net overseas migration contributed 2,847. These components describe population change, not online search behaviour.
Business count
12,578 actively trading market sector businesses at 30 June 2025 for Greater Darwin, GCCSA code 7GDAR.
Annual business change
A derived increase of 362 businesses, or 3.0%, compared with the 2024 count of 12,216.
Five year business change
A derived increase of 1,684 businesses, or 15.5%, compared with the 2021 count of 10,894.
Population
An estimated resident population of 159,284 at 30 June 2025, up 2,719 people or 1.7% over the year.
Read the business structure without overstating it
Non-employing businesses accounted for 7,611 of the Greater Darwin total. Another 3,056 employed one to four people. Together, those two groups represented 10,667 businesses, or 84.8% of the published count after rounding.
Construction was the largest industry division by business count at 2,326. Rental, hiring and real estate services followed at 1,515, then professional, scientific and technical services at 1,459. Transport, postal and warehousing reached 1,407, a derived increase of 31.5% from its 2021 count.
The largest turnover band contained 4,774 businesses with annual turnover of $200,000 to under $2 million. These categories can support a broad market brief, but they cannot reveal an individual firm's budget, profitability or likelihood of buying SEO services.
- Use business size data to question whether one offer and sales process can serve every buyer.
- Treat industry counts as a starting point for research rather than a keyword or outreach list.
- Keep Greater Darwin separate from the City of Darwin local government area and the Northern Territory total.
- Keep the reference year beside every count and label derived changes as calculations.
- Validate a market idea with customers, search results and first-party data before acting on it.
Use the report to improve a Darwin market brief
The report can help a Darwin organisation describe the broad business base, compare company size bands and identify an industry question worth investigating. A business association might use the employment table to plan education. A journalist might use the five year business profile as a lead that still needs interviews and reporting.
For SEO planning, combine the statistics with Search Console evidence, keyword research, customer records, current result pages, conversion rates and genuine service capacity. Population and business data do not prove search demand. A growing category can still have weak intent, poor commercial fit or no realistic ranking path for a particular website.
- Write the commercial question before selecting a statistic.
- Choose the exact Darwin audience and service area the business can genuinely support.
- Map each search intent to one useful destination rather than repeating city wording across the site.
- Add first-hand expertise, customer questions and responsible local sources.
- Measure qualified enquiries and customer outcomes alongside impressions, rankings and clicks.
Methodology, geography and limitations
The business data comes from the ABS Data by Region release updated on 26 May 2026. The report uses the published Greater Darwin GCCSA record, code 7GDAR, and the 2021 to 2025 time series values included in the official CSV. The current Data by Region release uses ASGS Edition 3 geography.
Counts of Australian businesses cover actively trading businesses in the Australian market sector. They are based on the ABS Business Register and administrative data. The measure is not a count of every ABN, shopfront, website or physical operating location.
Greater Capital City Statistical Areas are designed to represent the functional area of a capital city, including populations that regularly socialise, shop or work within it. Greater Darwin is not the City of Darwin local government area or the whole Northern Territory.
A multi-location business is assigned to one geography to avoid double counting. ABS regional data can also be revised, randomly adjusted for confidentiality or produced through geographic correspondences. Time periods, definitions and coverage differ between collections, so published totals should not be combined without checking their scope.
How to cite, reuse and update this report
When quoting an unchanged official figure, cite the Australian Bureau of Statistics source directly. When using the selection, derived calculations or explanations prepared here, link this report as the analysis and keep the primary source beside the claim.
A practical citation is: SEO Guys, Darwin Business Statistics and Growth Report 2026, based on Australian Bureau of Statistics data, followed by this page URL and your access date. Do not imply that the ABS produced, reviewed or endorsed the SEO Guys analysis.
The normalized CSV and original SVG are offered under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0. Retain the stated ABS attribution, SEO Guys credit, source URL, geography, period and evidence warning. ABS logos, branding, microdata and third-party material are not included.
Review the report when the ABS publishes a new Data by Region release or materially revises the current figures. The updated date at the top of the page identifies the latest SEO Guys review.
Sources and further reading
Primary and authoritative sources used to support the factual guidance in this resource.
- Source 01ABS Data by Region, Greater Darwin, opens in a new tabOfficial Greater Darwin profile and downloads for population, business, industry and other regional measures.
- Source 02ABS Data by Region Greater Darwin CSV, opens in a new tabOfficial machine-readable time series used for the 2021 to 2025 business counts, employment size, turnover and industry tables.
- Source 03ABS Data by Region methodology, 2011 to 2025, opens in a new tabOfficial release dates, geographic coverage, business definitions, source methods, revisions, correspondence and confidentiality cautions.
- Source 04ABS Regional population, 2024 to 2025, opens in a new tabOfficial estimated resident population, annual change and population components for Greater Darwin, released 31 March 2026.
- Source 05ABS Greater Capital City Statistical Areas, opens in a new tabOfficial definition and design criteria for the functional capital city geography used in this report.
- Source 06ABS website copyright and Creative Commons terms, opens in a new tabOfficial CC BY 4.0 terms, attribution requirements and excluded ABS or third-party material.
- Source 07ABS guidance on citing sources, opens in a new tabOfficial guidance for identifying the ABS as author and recording release details when citing statistics.