Patents - technology diffusion in Australia
Australia: Patents - technology diffusion was 37,316 Patents in 2023. ▼ Falling
Patents - technology diffusion in Australia, 1990–2023
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Patents.
Analysis
Australia recorded 37,316 Patents for patents - technology diffusion in 2023.
That represents a change of down 8.2% on the previous year and down 1.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, patents - technology diffusion in Australia peaked at 123,130 Patents in 2003 and was at its lowest, 24,834 Patents, in 1991.
That places Australia 6th out of 104 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 34 years of available data.
Patents - technology diffusion in Australia, year by year
| Year | Patents | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 25,508 Patents | — |
| 1991 | 24,834 Patents | -2.6% |
| 1992 | 25,368 Patents | +2.2% |
| 1993 | 28,143 Patents | +10.9% |
| 1994 | 31,687 Patents | +12.6% |
| 1995 | 35,305 Patents | +11.4% |
| 1996 | 41,906 Patents | +18.7% |
| 1997 | 50,174 Patents | +19.7% |
| 1998 | 58,732 Patents | +17.1% |
| 1999 | 67,626 Patents | +15.1% |
| 2000 | 88,742 Patents | +31.2% |
| 2001 | 103,008 Patents | +16.1% |
| 2002 | 63,031 Patents | -38.8% |
| 2003 | 123,130 Patents | +95.3% |
| 2004 | 33,189 Patents | -73.0% |
| 2005 | 34,947 Patents | +5.3% |
| 2006 | 35,013 Patents | +0.2% |
| 2007 | 33,353 Patents | -4.7% |
| 2008 | 32,776 Patents | -1.7% |
| 2009 | 33,148 Patents | +1.1% |
| 2010 | 34,191 Patents | +3.1% |
| 2011 | 34,741 Patents | +1.6% |
| 2012 | 36,046 Patents | +3.8% |
| 2013 | 38,050 Patents | +5.6% |
| 2014 | 36,447 Patents | -4.2% |
| 2015 | 36,662 Patents | +0.6% |
| 2016 | 39,880 Patents | +8.8% |
| 2017 | 40,887 Patents | +2.5% |
| 2018 | 41,681 Patents | +1.9% |
| 2019 | 42,328 Patents | +1.6% |
| 2020 | 47,424 Patents | +12.0% |
| 2021 | 50,454 Patents | +6.4% |
| 2022 | 40,670 Patents | -19.4% |
| 2023 | 37,316 Patents | -8.2% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 37,316 Patents is above the median for high income countries, which is 659 Patents, 56.6× the median. (44 countries reporting)
- Australia's 37,316 Patents is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 128 Patents, 291.5× the median. (12 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Patents - technology diffusion in Australia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | +95.3% | 63,031 Patents | 123,130 Patents |
| 2004 | -73.0% | 123,130 Patents | 33,189 Patents |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 38,928 Patents | 24,834 Patents | 67,626 Patents | 10 |
| 2000s | 58,034 Patents | 32,776 Patents | 123,130 Patents | 10 |
| 2010s | 38,091 Patents | 34,191 Patents | 42,328 Patents | 10 |
| 2020s | 43,966 Patents | 37,316 Patents | 50,454 Patents | 4 |
Countries ranked near Australia
- 3 Türkiye 1,760 Patents compare
- 3 Croatia 188 Patents compare
- 3 Japan 251,752 Patents compare
- 4 Moldova 96 Patents compare
- 4 Slovenia 162 Patents compare
- 4 Taiwan 55,572 Patents compare
- 5 Madagascar 1 Patents compare
- 5 Lithuania 80 Patents compare
- 5 Germany 52,279 Patents compare
- 6 Viet Nam 68 Patents compare
- 7 Latvia 41 Patents compare
- 7 United Kingdom 14,019 Patents compare
- 8 Estonia 32 Patents compare
- 8 France 13,659 Patents compare
- 9 Syrian Arab Republic 2 Patents compare
- 9 Israel 13,148 Patents compare
More science & technology data for Australia
- Mobile landline subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Mobile landline subscriptions, gaps filled 112.58 (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per capita 1.11 units per person (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, gaps filled 30.07 million (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per square kilometre 3.87 units per square kilometre (2023)
- Mobile landline subscriptions, annual growth rate 0.0604 % change on previous year (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, annual growth rate 1.05 % change on previous year (2024)
- Scientific and technical journal articles 54,589 (2023)
- Scientific and technical journal articles, per capita 0.002 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is patents - technology diffusion in Australia?
- Patents - technology diffusion in Australia was 37,316 Patents in 2023, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest patents - technology diffusion recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 123,130 Patents in 2003.
- What is the lowest patents - technology diffusion recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 24,834 Patents in 1991.
- How does Australia rank for patents - technology diffusion?
- Australia ranks 6th out of 104 countries with data for 2023.
- Is patents - technology diffusion rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Patents - technology diffusion. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Patent statistics and indicators are suitable for tracking innovation in environment-related technologies. They allow the assessment of countries' innovation performance as well as the design of governments' environmental and innovation policies. This dataset presents data on patent applications by patent office. For more information on the methodology, click the link below on "Database documentation" Data source(s): OECD, STI Micro-data Lab: Intellectual Property Database, http://oe.cd/ipstats Contact: ENV.Stat@oecd.org Dataset release date: April 16, 2026 Database documentation