New stats show Australia’s population is moving away from its biggest two cities. 

According to the latest Regional Movers Index by the Commonwealth Bank and Regional Australia Institute, population pressure in popular regional centres is driving growth inland and further away from Sydney and Melbourne. 

The December quarter report shows that thirteen regional local government areas around the country recorded a jump in net internal migration levels of more than 100 per cent through 2022, with regional Queensland and Victoria taking the largest share of movers. 

The top five highest growth regional areas of Port Pirie, Gladstone, Murray Bridge, Glen Innes, and York recorded a jump of more than 200 per cent in 2022.

The impact of capital city movers to the regions is now having a flow-on effect to other regional places, many of which have historically seen limited population growth. 

Regional Australia Institute (RAI) CEO Liz Ritchie says policy makers, industry, and regional leaders need to heed these results to ensure adequate planning and resourcing is put in place to accommodate demand both now and in the coming decades.

The Regional Movers Index is a partnership between Commonwealth Bank and the RAI that analyses the quarterly and annual trends in people moving to and from Australia's regional areas. 

Commonwealth Bank Executive General Manager for Regional and Agribusiness Banking, Paul Fowler, said that the December quarter report showed a slight drop of just 0.8 per cent in the number of people moving from cities to regional towns, well below the typical rate of around 8 per cent normally experienced over the holiday season period. 

However, regional hubs are continuing to attract thousands of metro movers, with many attracted by the opportunities that thriving regional economies present.

The top 5 most popular destinations for both metropolitan and regional movers in terms of share of total net internal migration were the Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast, Greater Geelong, Fraser Coast, and Bundaberg. 

For those already living in regional Australia and making a regional move in 2022, Queensland held the most appeal. 

Out of the Top 10 LGAs attracting the greatest level of net regional migration inflows, eight were in Queensland.

The latest dataset also revealed that regional people are leaving high amenity locations such as the Surf Coast, Byron Bay, and Noosa for other inland centres or coastal towns, with a growing number opting to move even further away from Sydney and Melbourne. 

The low growth 'business as usual' trends before 2020 have led to underinvestment in some regional areas.