Length of stay

Length of stay is the number of days between admission to hospital, and when that episode of hospital care ends. The Average length of stay (ALOS) is calculated as the total number of patient days reported for the hospital (or group of hospitals), divided by the number of hospitalisations. 

Explore the data

In the data visualisation below, you can view the ALOS for selected medical procedures, by state and territory, and by type of hospital (peer group).

In 2024–25:

• over 6 in 10 hospitalisations (64%) were same-day hospitalisations, and 36% were overnight hospitalisations (where the patient stayed in hospital for one or more days). Private hospitals had a higher proportion of same-day hospitalisations (75%) than public hospitals (56%)
• the ALOS for all hospitalisations (same-day and overnight) was 2.7 days
• the ALOS for overnight hospitalisations (that is, excluding same-day hospitalisations) was 5.7 days (5.9 days for public hospitals and 5.1 days for private hospitals)
• there were notable differences (more than 1 day) in the ALOS between public and private hospitals for 7 of the 20 selected diagnosis groups – the AR-DRGs. For example, the ALOS for Chronic obstructive airways disease, minor complexity was 2.7 days for public hospitals and 5.8 for private hospitals.

Between 2020–21 and 2024–25:

• the overall ALOS for all hospitalisations remained consistent at around 2.7 days
• the ALOS for overnight hospitalisations in public hospitals increased on average by 1.9% per year (5.5 to 5.9 days), and private hospitals remained stable at 5.1 days.

Significant changes in ALOS over time may be related to changes in admission practices, changes in the types of treatments provided and clinical practices.