Measuring what matters

Measuring What Matters is Australia’s first national wellbeing framework, released in July 2023. The framework consists of a statement and dashboard of 50 indicators to measure progress towards a more healthy, secure, sustainable, cohesive and prosperous Australia (Figure 12).

The Measuring What Matters indicators complement traditional economic measures such as gross domestic product, employment, inflation and wages. They contribute broader information about how Australians are faring over time.
 

Source: The Commonwealth of Australia

The Australian Bureau of Statistics released an update to the Measuring What Matters dashboard in August 2024. Insights from the data displayed on this dashboard will be used to inform and support government policymaking, ensuring better alignment with national economic and social goals.

To improve the timeliness of Measuring What Matters data, the 2024–25 Budget committed $14.8 million in funding over 5 years for the Australian Bureau of Statistics to deliver the General Social Survey annually.

More frequent data will strengthen the capacity of the Measuring What Matters framework to identify opportunities to improve wellbeing and inform policy change. A greater sample size will allow for further disaggregation of data by cohorts, ensuring overarching wellbeing is representative for all segments of the Australian population.

A Measuring What Matters Statement will be released every 3 years. The next one is due in 2026, timed to align with the first results from the new annual General Social Survey.

Find out more

Australian Government (2023) Measuring What Matters , The Treasury website, accessed 3 September 2024.

Australian Bureau of Statistics (2024) Measuring What Matters , ABS website, accessed 3 September 2024.