Australians have fled New South Wales for warmer areas in Queensland and Western Australia.

An Australian state has lost thousands of residents in recent months, with people apparently moving to find a warmer climate, new data suggests.

New South Wales residents are leaving their home state to live elsewhere in droves, according to new population data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The nation’s most populous state had the most people leaving. NSW net interstate migration saw a population loss of 37,914 in the year ending 30 September 2022.

Victoria also witnessed a large exodus of residents, with 15,569 fewer people within state borders during the same period.

Queensland appeared to recapture much of the population of the other states, with 46,623 people migrating to the Sunshine State.

There was also an influx of people from the east moving to Western Australia, with 11,658 people arriving from the interstate.

Victoria also saw a loss of residents, with 15,569 fewer people within state borders over the same period (Pictured Melbourne)

Australia’s population grew by 1.6 percent, similar to its growth in the years before the Covid-19 pandemic, according to ABS’s head of demography, Beidar Cho.

“Our population as of September 30, 2022 was 26.1 million people, after we recorded an increase of 418,500 people over the year,” Ms. Cho said.

“Immigrant arrivals have returned to similar levels to pre-pandemic levels, but departures remain lower, mainly because there are fewer newly arrived temporary immigrants, such as international students leaving.”

The natural increase of the population was 114,800, registering 302,900 births and 188,000 deaths.

The number of deaths in Australia rose 10.8 percent, mainly due to Covid-19, according to ABS.

Most of those who left New South Wales and Victoria apparently fled to Queensland, with 46,623 people migrating to the Sunshine State (Pacific Highway on the Gold Coast pictured)

Australia’s population grew by 1.6 percent, similar to its growth in the years before the Covid-19 pandemic, according to ABS Head of Demography Beidar Cho (file image)

There were 536,900 immigrant arrivals abroad and 233,200 departures, resulting in Australia’s population growth of 303,700 people from overseas migration.

Melbourne may have suffered a major mass exodus brought on by the pandemic, but figures released earlier this year showed it will become Australia’s biggest city in a decade.

Melbourne’s population growth was hit harder than any other major city during the pandemic, falling from 1.8% in 2018-10 to -1.6% in 2020-21.

However, the city’s population growth is expected to change, with Victoria expected to exceed 7.9 million people by mid-2032.

Predictions indicate that by 2031, six million people will live in Melbourne, before rising to 6.1 million the following year.

That figure will exceed that of Sydney; however, NSW will remain the most populous state. The state will grow from 8.1 million people on June 30, 2021 to 9.1 million by 2032-33.