New Heartbeat of Australia study

ACM has today released its latest Heartbeat of Australia report – the country’s most comprehensive annual study into how regional Australians live, connect and feel. Now in its fourth year, the Heartbeat study surveyed more than 7,300 Australians in partnership with a specialist research agency, Australian Regional Insights and the University of Canberra, offering a detailed picture of life, confidence and belonging outside the capitals. The results show that regional Australians remain more connected, more content and more community-minded than those in metropolitan areas, even amid ongoing cost-of-living
pressures.

The Heartbeat study reveals that those living in regional Australia continue to record higher satisfaction with life across key areas than city residents — 35% says they are very or completely satisfied with their relationships, compared to 31% in metro areas; 29% are very satisfied with the time they spend commuting to work (metro 24%) and 28% are satisfied with the standard of living (metro 25%).