Australian public services – trust and satisfaction

Trust in Australian public services: 2024 Annual Report was released by the Australian Government in November 2024. The report captures community feedback from around 1,000 people surveyed each month on trust and satisfaction with Australian public services in the period July 2023 to June 2024.

Measuring trust and satisfaction in public services is important as it ensures transparency in community feedback, allowing the public to have a voice in evaluating the effectiveness of services. The process supports the APS Reform priority to promote an APS that places people and businesses at the centre of policy and services.

Trust remained steady in 2023–24, with 58% of people indicating that they 'agree’ or ‘strongly agree’ with the statement ‘I can trust Australian public services’ (Figure 5).

Figure 5: Trust in Australian public services (2018–19 to 2023–24)

Line chart comparing trust & distrust in the APS over the last 6 years. The X-axis shows the years from 2018-19 to 2023-24, & the Y-axis shows survey results as a percentage from 0 to 70. The proportion of Trust in Australian public services is shown as: 55% (2018-19); 56% (2019-20); 62% (2020-21); 58% (2021-22); 58% (2022-23); 58% (2023-24). The proportion of Distrust in Australian public services is shown as: 14% (2018-19); 14% (2019-20); 11% (2020-21); 13% (2021-22); 13% (2022-23); 13% (2023-24).

Source: Australian Public Service Commission

Also in 2023–24:

  • a greater proportion of men are trusting than women, at 63% and 53% respectively
  • trust is higher for those aged 18 to 34 years (61%), and those aged 65 and over (60%), compared with those aged 35 to 64 (55%)
  • those who live in metro areas are more trusting than people who live in regional areas, at 60% and 53% respectively.

On general satisfaction with services, 68% of survey respondents stated they were satisfied or very satisfied with the services they accessed in 2023–24, which holds steady with 2022–23 results (Figure 6).

Figure 6: Satisfaction with Australian public services (2018–19 to 2023–24)

Line chart comparing proportions of satisfaction and dissatisfaction with the APS over the last 6 years. The X-axis shows the years from 2018-19 to 2023-24, and the Y-axis shows survey results as a percentage from 0 to 80. The proportion of Satisfaction in the APS is shown as: 65% (2018-19); 67% (2019-20); 72% (2020-21); 69% (2021-22); 68% (2022-23); 68% (2023-24). The proportion of Dissatisfaction in the APS is shown: 13% (2018-19); 11% (2019-20); 9% (2020-21); 10% (2021-22); 10% (2022-23); 10% (2023-24).

Source: Australian Public Service Commission

In 2023–24:

  • satisfaction levels with public services by gender widened slightly, at 70% for men and 66% for women
  • satisfaction levels were highest for those aged 65 and older (75%), compared with those aged 35 to 64 (67%) and those aged 18 to 34 (65%)
  • a lower proportion of people in regional areas were satisfied (53%), compared with those living in metro areas (60%).

Partnering with Home Affairs, the Australian Public Service Commission also produced the Trust and Satisfaction in Australian Democracy: 2023 National Survey report, engaging with over 6,000 Australians on their views on democracy in June and November 2023. Home Affairs then released Strengthening Australian democracy: A practical agenda for democratic resilience in July 2024.

The Australian Government deepened its collaboration with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) by commissioning a country study on the drivers of trust in public institutions. This study complements the recently released OECD Report: Survey on Drivers of Trust in Public Institutions 2024 Results. It is expected to provide valuable insights to inform strategies for building public trust. The country study report will be available in early 2025.

Find out more

Australian Public Service Commission (2024) Trust in Australian public services: 2024 Annual Report, APSC website, accessed 12 November 2024.

Australian Public Service Commission (2024) Trust and satisfaction in Australian democracy survey report, APS Reform website, accessed 14 August 2024.

Home Affairs (2024) Strengthening Australian democracy: A practical agenda for democratic resilience, Home Affairs website, accessed 14 August 2024.

OECD (2024) OECD Survey on Drivers of Trust in Public Institutions - 2024 Results: Building Trust in a Complex Policy Environment, OECD website, accessed 14 August 2024.

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