Australia's mothers and babies

Antenatal care is a planned visit between a pregnant woman and a midwife or doctor to assess and improve the wellbeing of the mother and baby throughout pregnancy. Antenatal care is associated with positive maternal and child health outcomes – the likelihood of receiving effective health interventions is increased through attending antenatal care. It does not include visits where the sole purpose is to confirm the pregnancy.

Duration of pregnancy at first antenatal visit

The proportion of women receiving antenatal care in the first trimester (before 14 weeks’ gestational age) is the most widely reported indicator of antenatal care. Regular antenatal care in the first trimester promotes a healthy lifestyle and allows for any health problems to be screened for and treated, bringing benefits for both the mother and baby. Regular antenatal assessment is therefore associated with better maternal health in pregnancy, fewer interventions in late pregnancy and positive child health outcomes (RACGP 2024; WHO 2016).

Between 2013 and 2023, the proportion of women in Australia who attended antenatal care in the first trimester increased from 61% to 79%.

The Australian Pregnancy Care Guidelines (Department of Health and Aged Care 2025) recommend that a woman has her first antenatal visit within the first 10 weeks of pregnancy. In 2023, 60% of women attended antenatal care within the first 10 weeks of pregnancy.

Figure 1 presents trend data on the duration of pregnancy at the first antenatal care visit of women who gave birth, by selected maternal characteristics, between 2013 and 2023. Select the ‘Current data’ button to view 2023 data.

Some mothers were less likely to have an antenatal visit in the first trimester, including those who:

• had a parity of 3, or 4 or more (72% and 63%, respectively)
• were aged under 20 (66%)
• smoked at any time during pregnancy, during the first 20 weeks of pregnancy or after 20 weeks of pregnancy (71%, 71% and 68%, respectively)
• lived in Remote (67%) and Very remote areas (63%)
• were born in New Zealand (73%) or Vietnam (69%).

The proportion of mothers attending an antenatal care visit in the first trimester varied across Primary Health Network (PHN) areas and Statistical Area Level 3 (SA3). Figure 2 presents the number and proportion of women who gave birth who had at least one antenatal visit in the first trimester, by PHN area or SA3.

In 2023, the proportion of mothers who attended an antenatal care visit in the first trimester ranged from 58% (in South Western Sydney) to 92% (in Hunter New England and Central Coast) across PHNs, and from 37% (in Wanneroo) to 98% (in Kenmore - Brookfield - Moggill) across SA3s. 

Note that in the ACT, first antenatal visit is often the first hospital clinic visit and in many cases, earlier antenatal care provided by the woman’s general practitioner is not reported.

Number of antenatal visits

The Australian Pregnancy Care Guidelines (Department of Health and Aged Care 2025) recommend that first-time mothers (primiparous) with an uncomplicated pregnancy have 10 antenatal care visits during pregnancy, and that mothers who have previously given birth (multiparous) should have 7 visits for uncomplicated pregnancies.

Between 2018 and 2022, the proportion of first-time mothers (primiparous) who had 10 or more antenatal visits showed a year on year decrease from 61% to 56%. In 2023, the proportion increased slightly to 57%.

Between 2018 and 2023, the proportion of mothers who had previously given birth (multiparous) and who had 7 or more antenatal visits was relatively stable (between 82% and 84%).

Figure 3 presents trend data on the number of antenatal care visits of primiparous and multiparous women who gave birth, by selected maternal characteristics, between 2018 and 2023. Select the ‘Current data’ button to see data for 2023.

The proportion of women who had 5 or more antenatal care visits is a commonly reported indicator of antenatal care. Between 2013 and 2023, more than 9 in 10 mothers had at least 5 or more antenatal visits during their pregnancy (between 93% and 95%).

Figure 4 presents trend data on the number of antenatal care visits of women who gave birth, by selected maternal characteristics, between 2018 and 2023. Select the ‘Current data’ button to see data for 2023.

In 2023, the proportion of mothers who had at least 5 or more antenatal visits during their pregnancy was slightly less among women who:

• smoked at any time during pregnancy, during the first 20 weeks of pregnancy or after 20 weeks of pregnancy (88%, 88% and 86%, respectively)
• were aged under 20 (90%)
• lived in Remote (92%) and Very remote areas (91%)
• were born in New Zealand (92%).

In 2023, the proportion of mothers who had 5 or more antenatal visits decreased as the number of previous pregnancies increased (from 95% among first-time mothers to 86% among mothers who had had 4 or more previous pregnancies).

The proportion of mothers attending at least 5 or more antenatal visits varied across Primary Health Network (PHN) areas and Statistical Area Level 3 (SA3). Figure 5 presents the number and proportion of women who had 5 or more antenatal care visits, by PHN or SA3.

In 2023, a high proportion of mothers attended 5 or more antenatal visits – ranging from 87% (in Western NSW) to 98% (in Brisbane North) across PHNs, and from 73% (in Joondalup) to almost 100% (in Brisbane Inner - West) across SA3s.