Chronic kidney disease: Australian facts

Kidney transplantation is the preferred type of kidney replacement therapy (KRT), as it lowers long-term mortality risk and costs, and increases quality of life (Liem et al. 2008). Following transplantation, care directed towards preventing chronic kidney disease (CKD) is required (KHA 2021).

Successful kidney transplants where recipients are still living with their transplant, regardless of how many years ago they received it, are referred to on this web page as ‘functioning kidney transplants’.

A total of 1,064 kidney transplant operations were performed in Australia in 2024, with 9 in 10 of these being the first kidney transplant. Of all transplanted kidneys in 2024, 811 (76%) were from deceased donors and 253 (24%) were from living donors (ANZDATA 2025). 

Transplanted kidneys can be donated by either deceased or living donors. The number of donated kidneys available for transplantation is insufficient to meet demand. At the end of 2024, 1,500 Australians were on the kidney transplant waiting list (ANZOD 2025).

Variation by age and sex

In 2024, 14,000 people with kidney failure were living with a functioning kidney transplant (8,600 males and 5,400 females) (AIHW analysis of ANZDATA 2024).

The highest number of people with a functioning kidney transplant were in the 55–64 age group (2,300 men and 1,400 women) (Figure 1). This was followed by the 65–74 age group (2,000 men and 1,300 women) and the 45–54 age group (1,700 men and 1,100 women).

The number of males with a functioning kidney transplant exceeded the number of females in all age groups.

Trends over time

The number of people with a functioning kidney transplant in 2024 was 1.4 times as high as a decade ago, increasing from 9,700 people in 2013 to 14,000 in 2024 (AIHW analysis of ANZDATA 2024).