Welfare & Services Spending
Where major welfare and services money goes — total outlays, how many people each program supports, and the demographics of who receives it. Select a program to explore.
Program administrative data · Last updated: 30 June 2025
Largest welfare program
$168.5bn
Social Security & Welfare (Centrelink) — supporting 5,400,000 recipients
Total program spend
$244bn
Latest financial year
Recipients supported
28,861,000
May overlap across programs
Programs tracked
3
Major welfare & services
Largest program
$168.5bn
Social Security & Welfare (Centrelink)
Total annual spend
$44.3bn
Recipients
661,000
Spend per recipient
$67k
Quarterly spending
Program outlays by quarter
Recipients by age
Age band
Recipients by state
State or territory
By country of birth
Top reported countries
Recipient counts can overlap across programs — a person may receive support from more than one. Demographic breakdowns describe recipients of the selected program only and are reported as counts, not shares of the total population.