According to a March 2026 report on population growth, Perth, Australia, is the fastest-growing urban center in the Western hemisphere. With the EU projected to have 6% less residents before the end of the century, a new study by World Depopulation, a global demographics analytics tool, identified the Western cities where the resident numbers are growing the fastest.
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Australian urban centers lead the ranking, with 5 of its cities, including Perth, Canberra, and Brisbane, in the top 10.
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The city with the fastest population growth is Vancouver, Canada, with a community increase of 17.6%.
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The only US city to make the top 10 is Fort Worth, Texas, standing out with one of the highest crude birth rates at 11.2.
The study looked at a combination of factors that influence the population increase, including the direct growth of resident numbers, which accounts for both births and net migration, fertility rates, and crude birth and mortality rates. The research calculated the natural change between deaths and births, which helped to identify the major population growth causes for each city.
Here are the top 10 Western cities with the fastest-growing population:
| City | Country | Population | Population Growth (2021-2026) | Fertility Rate (children per woman) | Crude Birth Rate (CBR) | Crude Mortality Rate | Natural Change |
| Perth | Australia | 2,397,000 | 14.96% | 1.63 | 11.40 | 6.30 | 5.10 |
| Canberra | Australia | 476,000 | 13.60% | 1.42 | 9.80 | 5.20 | 4.60 |
| Calgary | Canada | 1,712,000 | 15.53% | 1.26 | 9.50 | 6.80 | 2.70 |
| Brisbane | Australia | 2,796,000 | 12.65% | 1.37 | 11.10 | 6.80 | 4.30 |
| Vancouver | Canada | 3,108,941 | 17.64% | 1.09 | 7.60 | 8.30 | -0.70 |
| Melbourne | Australia | 5,461,000 | 9.70% | 1.50 | 10.50 | 6.70 | 3.80 |
| Edmonton | Canada | 1,573,000 | 10.92% | 1.41 | 9.50 | 6.80 | 2.70 |
| Fort Worth | United States | 1,008,106 | 9.71% | 1.75 | 11.20 | 8.00 | 3.20 |
| Toronto | Canada | 7,106,379 | 14.58% | 1.21 | 8.40 | 8.50 | -0.10 |
| Adelaide | Australia | 1,456,000 | 8.98% | 1.35 | 10.20 | 7.20 | 3.00 |
You can find the full research findings by following this link.
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Perth, Australia
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Current population: 2.39M
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Population growth: 14.96%
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Fertility rate: 1.63 children per woman
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Crude birth rate: 11.4
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Crude mortality rate: 6.3
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Natural change: 5.1
Perth, Australia, is the fastest-growing Western city in the world. Its population increased by 14.9% in the last 5 years, and family formation has significantly contributed to these numbers. Perth shows the greatest natural change on the list, with 5.1 more births than deaths among the population per 1K residents. Migration also influenced population trends, as Australia grew its number of expat arrivals, and Europe lost a lot of its workforce.
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Canberra, Australia
Canberra ranks 2nd. Its population expanded by 13.6% between 2021 and 2026, but net migration was a significant contributor, with a rate of 9.8. The births outpace mortality significantly, with a natural change rate of 4.6, but fertility rates in Canberra are a little lower than in Perth. With this growth, the city currently has a population of 476K.
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Calgary, Canada
Cangary completes the top 3, with one of the fastest growth rates in the ranking, at 15.53%, adding residents even faster than Canberra or Perth. At the same time, family creation plays a lesser role in this increase, with birth rates at 9.5 children per 1K residents, and the natural change of 2.7. That means the city has a strong positive net migration (12.1), with more people coming to the city for education or work.
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Brisbane, Australia
In fourth place is Brisbane, where families with kids largely influenced population growth. The difference between birth and mortality rates sits at a strong 4.3, similar to Canberra. Together with rising fertility rates (1.37), Brisbane increased its population by 12.65%.
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Vancouver, Canada
Vancouver is the fifth fastest-growing city in the Western hemisphere, and it stands out as the only city in the top 5 where migration is the main contributor. Mortality in Vancouver is actually higher than birth rates, and the natural change sits at -0.7. Even with this decline, the city added 17.6% to the total population in the last 5 years, reaching 3.1 million people.
A demographics expert from World Depopulation commented on the study:
“Population growth is rarely random. One of the strongest predictors of urban expansion is housing affordability. When home prices and rents become too expensive in large metropolitan areas, families and younger workers often move to nearby or emerging cities where living costs are lower. Over time, that shift can transform mid-sized cities into major population centers.”