Refer to the current geographies boundaries table for a list of all current geographies and recent updates.
This dataset is the definitive version of the annually released meshblock boundaries concorded to higher geographies as at 1 January 2025. This high definition version contains 57,551 meshblocks, including 16 with empty or null geometries (non-digitised meshblocks).
Statistical geographies introduced since 2018 are:
2018: statistical area 1 (SA1), statistical area 2 (SA2), urban rural (UR), urban rural indicator (IUR) as part of the Statistical Standard for Geographic Areas 2018 (SSGA18) which replaced the 1992 New Zealand Standard Areas Classification (NZSAC92),
2020: urban accessibility indicator (IUA),
2021: functional urban area (FUA), functional urban area indicator (IFUA), functional urban area type (TFUA), (these layers were not released in this years version and will be updated in 2025)
2023: statistical area 3 (SA3).
The higher geographies contained in this concordance are:
- meshblock (MB), landwater (LANDWATER),
- statistical area 1 (SA1),
- statistical area 2 (SA2),
- statistical area 3 (SA3),
- urban rural (UR), urban rural indicator (IUR),
- territorial authority (TA), territorial authority and local board (TALB),
- regional council (REGC),
- constituency (CON), Māori constituency (MCON),
- ward (WARD), Māori ward (MWARD),
- community board (CB), subdivision (TASUB).
High-definition version
This high definition (HD) version is the most detailed geometry, suitable for use in GIS for geometric analysis operations and for the computation of areas, centroids and other metrics. The HD version is aligned to the LINZ cadastre.
Macrons
Names are provided with and without tohutō/macrons. The column name for those without macrons is suffixed ‘ascii’.
Digital data
Digital boundary data became freely available on 1 July 2007.
Further information
To download geographic classifications in table formats such as CSV please use Ariā
For more information please refer to the Statistical standard for geographic areas 2023.
Contact: geography@stats.govt.nz
