Editing Wellington (section)

==Wellington metropolitan area==
The wider [[metropolitan area]] for Wellington encompasses areas administered by four [[local government in New Zealand|local authorities]]: [[Wellington City Council|Wellington City]] itself, on the peninsula between Cook Strait and [[Wellington Harbour]]; [[Porirua|Porirua City]] on [[Porirua Harbour]] to the north, notable for its large [[Māori people|Māori]] and [[Pasifika New Zealanders|Pasifika]] communities; and [[Lower Hutt|Lower Hutt City]] and [[Upper Hutt|Upper Hutt City]], largely suburban areas to the northeast, together known as the [[Hutt Valley]]. Depending on the source, the Wellington metro area may include [[Waikanae]], [[Paraparaumu]] and [[Paekākāriki]] on the Kāpiti Coast, and/or [[Featherston, New Zealand|Featherston]] and [[Greytown, New Zealand|Greytown]] in the [[Wairarapa]].

[[File:Wellington Urban Area.png|thumb|left|The Wellington urban area (pink) is administered by four local authorities.]]

[[File:WellingtonRegionPopulationDensity.png|thumb|Population density in Wellington region (2008) based on census data]]

The urban areas of the four local authorities have a combined population of {{Decimals|({{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Porirua|y}}|R}} + {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Upper Hutt|y}}|R}} + {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Lower Hutt|y}}|R}} + {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Wellington|y}}|R}})|0}} residents as of {{NZ population data 2018|||y}}.<ref name="NZ_population_data_2018" />

The four cities comprising the Wellington metropolitan area have a total population of {{formatnum:{{#expr: {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Porirua city|y}}|R}} + {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Upper Hutt city|y}}|R}} + {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Lower Hutt city|y}}|R}} + {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Wellington city|y}}|R}} }}}} {{NZ population data 2018|||y|y|(|),}} with the urban area containing {{Decimals|({{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Porirua|y}}|R}} + {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Upper Hutt|y}}|R}} + {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Lower Hutt|y}}|R}} + {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Wellington|y}}|R}}) / ({{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Porirua city|y}}|R}} + {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Upper Hutt city|y}}|R}} + {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Lower Hutt city|y}}|R}} + {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Wellington city|y}}|R}})*100|1}}% of that population. The remaining areas are largely mountainous and sparsely farmed or parkland and are outside the urban area boundary. More than most cities, life is dominated by its central business district (CBD). Approximately 62,000 people work in the CBD, only 4,000 fewer than work in Auckland's CBD, despite that city having four times the population.

The [[Waikanae]]-[[Paraparaumu]]-[[Paekākāriki]] combined urban area in the Kāpiti Coast district is sometimes included in the Wellington metro area{{By whom|date=February 2021}} due to its exurban nature and strong transport links with Wellington. If included as part of the Wellington metro, Waikanae-Paraparaumu-Paekākāriki would add {{formatnum:{{#expr: {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Paraparaumu|y}}|R}} + {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Waikanae|y}}|R}} + {{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2018|Paekakariki|y}}|R}} }}}} to the population (as of {{NZ population data 2018|||y|}}).{{NZ population data 2018||||y}}

[[Featherston, New Zealand|Featherston]] and [[Greytown, New Zealand|Greytown]] in the Wairarapa are rarely considered part of the Wellington metropolitan area, being physically separated from the rest of the metropolitan area by the [[Remutaka Range]]. However, both have significant proportions of their employed population working in Wellington city and the Hutt Valley (36.1% and 17.1% in 2006 respectively)<ref>{{Cite web|last=Goodyear|first=Rosemary|date=July 2008|title=Workforces on the move: An examination of commuting patterns to the cities of Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch|url=https://www.nzae.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/nr1215390093.pdf}}</ref> and are considered part of the Wellington functional urban area by Statistics New Zealand.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Functional urban areas – methodology and classification {{!}} Stats NZ|url=https://www.stats.govt.nz/methods/functional-urban-areas-methodology-and-classification|access-date=23 June 2021|publisher=Statistics New Zealand}}</ref>

The four urban areas combined had a usual resident population of 401,850 at the [[2018 New Zealand census]], an increase of 26,307 people (7.0%) since the [[2013 New Zealand census|2013 census]], and an increase of 42,726 people (11.9%) since the [[2006 New Zealand census|2006 census]]. There were 196,911 males and 204,936 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.961 males per female. Of the total population, 74,892 people (18.6%) were aged up to 15 years, 93,966 (23.4%) were 15 to 29, 185,052 (46.1%) were 30 to 64, and 47,952 (11.9%) were 65 or older.<ref name=":02">{{Cite web|title=Age and sex by ethnic group (grouped total response), for census usually resident population counts, 2006, 2013, and 2018 Censuses (urban rural areas)|url=http://nzdotstat.stats.govt.nz/wbos/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=TABLECODE8318|access-date=13 September 2020|website=nzdotstat.stats.govt.nz}}</ref>