More people identifying with Māori ethnicity – news story
18 November 2025
Around 932,000 people, or 18 percent of the population living in Aotearoa New Zealand, identified with Māori ethnicity as at 30 June 2025, according to estimates released by Stats NZ today.
This is roughly double the Māori ethnic population of 468,000 in June 1991, when Māori comprised 13 percent of New Zealand’s population.
The latest projections indicate that the Māori ethnic population is likely to increase to between 1.02 million and 1.09 million in 2033, and to between 1.20 million and 1.41 million in 2048 (National ethnic population projections: 2023(base)–2048).
“People of Māori ethnicity are projected to make up around 20 percent of New Zealand’s population in 2048,” population and housing spokesperson Sean Broughton said.
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