COVID-19 data and statistics

*Combined total of PCR positive test results and rapid antigen test (RAT) positive result registrations.

**Rapid antigen tests (RATs) are reported by individuals using the ServiceNSW website or app.

*Active COVID-19 cases are defined as people who have tested positive for COVID-19 in the previous 14 days. This has been updated from the previous definition of 28 days following an expert panel review recommendation. Cases who are in hospital are considered active. Active cases include PCR results and positive rapid antigen test (RAT) registrations.
**As per the national surveillance definition, deaths are reported as COVID-19 deaths if a person died with COVID-19, not necessarily because COVID-19 was the cause of death. Deaths are only excluded if there is a clear alternative cause of death that is unrelated to COVID-19 (e.g. trauma).
COVID-19 related deaths are notified to NSW Health from a range of sources and not all deaths reported by NSW Health occurred in the week in which they are reported, as there is sometimes a delay between a death occurring and it being notified to NSW Health.

From 20 January 2022 onwards, total case numbers and active case numbers on this map will include PCR results and positive rapid antigen test (RAT) registrations 

The shaded areas in the map show the home address postcodes for:

• confirmed COVID-19 cases and
• the number of PCR tests carried out.

The postcodes highlighted on the map do not necessarily indicate where the virus was contracted or where the person currently resides.

Use the 'search by postcode and suburb' field on the map to explore home address postcodes for:

• confirmed COVID-19 cases: recent (past 14 days) or total number of cases
• COVID-19 tests: recent (past 14 days) or total number of PCR tests.

Note: The definition of a confirmed case is a person who tests positive to a validated specific SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid test or has the virus identified by electron microscopy or viral culture, at a reference laboratory.

Data reported to 4pm daily and published before noon the following day. Case counts reported for a particular notification date may vary over time due to ongoing investigations and case review.

NSW Health

• reports cases as active for 14 days from symptom onset. This change means a significant number of older cases have been removed from the total, which now more accurately represents the number of active cases in the community
• considers cases are active for 14 days after their symptom onset date. Cases who have been hospitalised are considered active until they discharged
• reports the total number of tests, including all tests regardless of prior COVID-19 diagnosis. This is in line with the way other jurisdictions report COVID-19 testing across Australia.

Postcodes

The postcode of people tested is based on the address they reported at the time of the test. Cases and tests carried out without a valid address are not shown.

Cases and tests

Information on the total number of cases and tests carried out is displayed by selecting the ‘Total’ radio button.

Information on active cases or tests carried out recently (i.e. in the last 14 days) is displayed by selecting the ‘Recent’ radio button.

This figure only shows active cases that acquired their infection locally, it does not include cases that are acquired overseas, interstate or that are under initial investigation.

The heatmap excludes 189 cases in crew members who tested positive while on board a ship docked in NSW at the time of diagnosis.

The map does not include COVID-19 cases where the location is unknown.

When no date of symptom onset is available (it is either under investigation by public health staff or the person tested positive without showing symptoms), the date of the positive test is used. Infections are not always acquired in the place of residence as people often travel outside their area for many reasons (e.g. work, school and shopping).

The heatmap reports on the number of tests notified instead of the number of people tested. Only locally-acquired active cases are included on the map.

Confirmed COVID-19 cases and number of people tested – NSW Ministry of Health, Population Data – Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Other information about COVID-19, including rules and restrictions is available on the NSW Government COVID-19 website.

To provide feedback or make an inquiry about the Heatmap, please contact datansw@customerservice.nsw.gov.au.launch

*Cases refer to those identified via PCR tests and Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) registrations.

**As per the national surveillance definition, deaths are reported as COVID-19 deaths if a person diedwith COVID-19, not necessarily because COVID-19 was the cause of death.eaths are onlyexcluded if there is a clear alternative cause of death that is unrelated to COVID-19 (e.g. trauma).

• This graph shows the percentage of people in NSW aged 16 and over who have received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine.
• Estimated population coverage uses population estimates at 30 June 2021 based on the Australian Bureau of Statistics estimated resident population and population projections based on data from the NSW Department of Planning and Environment. Vaccination Data Source: Australian Immunisation Register (AIR) – Services Australia.
• The data in this graph is refreshed twice a week on Tuesday and Friday.

The map shows the percentage of people aged 15 and over vaccinated against COVID-19 by Local Government Area (LGA) and aged 16 and over vaccinated against COVID-19 by postcode.

Firstdose refers to people who have received at least 1 dose of an eligible vaccine. Second dose refers to people who have received 2 doses of an eligible vaccine.

Eligible population figures used in the map are based on the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) population estimates in 5-year age groupings (for example, 0-4, 5-9, 10-14, 15-19), and not broken down into single years. As such, a reference population of 15+ is used. All figures will be slight underestimates of the percentage of 16+ year olds who have been vaccinated. LGA population estimates are taken from the ABS regional population by age and sex, 2019.

LGAs range in population size between <100 to >1 million people. LGAs often have varying age and other demographic profiles affecting their coverage rates. LGA population estimates are taken from the latest ABS LGA by age release. 

The process of geocoding addresses in very remote areas can lead to artificially low vaccine dose count records in those areas, as addresses cannot be ‘pinpointed’ to a specific client location, and therefore LGA. As a result, vaccine rates in these areas are not shown. As such, the LGAs of Bogan, Bourke, Brewarrina, Carrathool, Central Darling, Cobar, Coonamble, Unincorporated NSW and Walgett are not shown. For vaccine rates relevant to these areas, please consult the weekly SA4 data release publicly available on the Department of Health websitelaunch. SA4 data is generally of larger population regions, so undercounting of doses has less impact on overall coverage rates.

NSW Health and the NSW Department of Customer Service publish information on the COVID-19 vaccination rate for each postcode in NSW. To better align our data with the national results produced by the Australian Government, a minor change has been made to the way individuals are allocated to a postcode.

Percentage of the population vaccinated by residential address by postcode is sourced from the NSW Ministry of Health.

Percentage of the population vaccinated by residential address by LGA is sourced from the Department of Health websitelaunch.

Vaccine data is sourced from the Australian Immunisation Register (AIR) – Services Australia.

LGA population aged 15+ and postcode population aged 16+ is sourced from the ABS Estimated Resident Population 2019 including individuals aged 15 and over.

Other information about COVID-19, including rules and restrictions, is available on the NSW Government COVID-19 website.

To provide feedback or make an inquiry about the heatmap, please contact datansw@customerservice.nsw.gov.aulaunch.