Queensland’s fastest growing city surpasses 270,000 residents
Published on 02 February 2026
Ipswich is booming after a year of explosive suburban expansion, with the city surging past yet another population milestone and showing no signs of slowing.
Ipswich Mayor Teresa Harding said that as of 1 January 2026, Ipswich officially counted 270,624 residents.
"The city isn’t just growing, it’s accelerating," Mayor Harding said.
"Ipswich has made an astonishing leap of nearly 10,000 people in just 12 months and a massive 30,000‑person jump in only four years.
“After that initial 12 months, we saw our population increase annually by approximately 8,000-9,000. We used to say Ipswich added a town the size of Beaudesert each year, now it is more like an extra Innisfail joining our wonderful residents.
“Everyone from right across the state, from Beaudesert to Innisfail, obviously wants to come live, work and play in Ipswich. In fact, it is people from right across Australia and the world, with 300 new international migrants becoming Australian citizens joining us too.
“We all know our boom suburbs: Springfield, Spring Mountain, Springfield Central and Springfield Lakes, plus Ripley and South Ripley. They make up the most dramatic population explosions in that period.
“On 1 January 2022 the larger Springfield region had 33,333 residents and now it is 38,415. Ripley and South Ripley had 10,183, but that has almost doubled in four years to 19,389.
“We love our growing city, but it comes with a price: there needs to be greater state and federal investment to help council cater for all those people, houses to accommodate them and roads and buildings.”
Infrastructure, Planning and Assets Committee Chairperson Councillor Andrew Antoniolli said council’s most recent quarterly data highlighted the city’s sustained growth.
“The boom suburbs of Spring Mountain and Springfield Lakes, Ripley and South Ripley, White Rock, Deebing Heights and Redbank Plains continue to be our fastest growing,” Cr Antoniolli said.
“Total dwellings across the region are just short of six figures, now a combined 98,313, with more than 12,000 in the Greater Springfield area alone.”
Cr Antoniolli said council was supporting the housing availability and affordability required for the entire South East Queensland region.
“We are on track to become a city of 530,000 within 20 years and that will require another 100,000 homes,” he said.
“This underlines the importance of our continued advocacy for other levels of government to partner with council in delivering improved transport infrastructure for this part of our city.
“With the Ripley Valley Priority Development Area growing by the day, we urgently need other levels of government to commit to and complete improvements to the Cunningham and Centenary highways and a public transport corridor linking Springfield Central and Ipswich Central.”
The 1 October – 31 December 2025 quarterly Planning and Regulatory Services report card released last week showed:
- 2,439 new residents
- 725 lots created
- 877 new dwellings
- 433 development applications determined
- 669 plumbing issues determined
- 456 development applications
- 677 community clinic immunisations
- 5,488 customer service requests
- 6.28km of additional pathways and bikeways created
- 6.59km of additional local roads
- 316 food licence and other health inspections
The full Planning and Regulatory Services Quarterly Report can be read here.
Population statistics:
- 1 January 2022: 240,320
- 1 January 2023: 245,472
- 1 January 2024: 253,093
- 1 January 2025: 261,795
- 1 January 2026: 270,624