Merrilands
Merrilands is a suburb of New Plymouth, in the western North Island of New Zealand. It is located to the south-east of the city centre. The Waiwhakaiho River runs past Merrilands to the east, and Te Hēnui Stream runs past to the west.
Demographics
Merrilands covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2.Merrilands had a population of 3,039 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 114 people since the 2018 census, and an increase of 228 people since the 2013 census. There were 1,464 males, 1,563 females, and 12 people of other genders in 1,209 dwellings. 2.4% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 40.4 years. There were 570 people aged under 15 years, 537 aged 15 to 29, 1,263 aged 30 to 64, and 672 aged 65 or older.
People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 81.6% European ; 18.7% Māori; 4.4% Pasifika; 7.1% Asian; 1.2% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders ; and 2.2% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 96.8%, Māori by 3.6%, Samoan by 0.3%, and other languages by 8.6%. No language could be spoken by 2.0%. New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.6%. The percentage of people born overseas was 19.5, compared with 28.8% nationally.
Religious affiliations were 32.9% Christian, 1.1% Hindu, 1.0% Islam, 0.4% Māori religious beliefs, 0.4% Buddhist, 0.4% New Age, 0.1% Jewish, and 1.1% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 54.8%, and 8.1% of people did not answer the census question.
Of those at least 15 years old, 525 people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 1,335 had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 606 people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $37,400, compared with $41,500 nationally. 273 people earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was 1,176 full-time, 315 part-time, and 51 unemployed.