New Zealand’s building industry shapes housing and infrastructure across the country, from the planning stage through to project delivery. This page brings together indicators on business activity and employment, alongside constraints such as labour productivity, construction cost growth, and consent processing. You’ll also see how firm size, digital adoption plans, R&D activity, and innovation reporting connect to safety priorities and work patterns like part-time, temporary, and seasonal roles.
Key Takeaways
- $36.7 billion of total work was done in New Zealand’s construction sector in 2023
- 93.8% of all construction businesses in New Zealand were micro-sized (0–9 employees) in 2021
- 208,000 people were employed in construction in New Zealand in 2023
- The construction sector had a labour productivity level of 86.2 (construction productivity index base=100) in 2023
- Construction contributed 8.3% of New Zealand’s business R&D expenditure in 2021
- Construction had 21.6% of businesses reporting at least one technological innovation in 2022
- NZ$2.8 billion was spent on construction-related improvements under the Government’s Better Homes scheme over 2019–2021 (total value reported for the program)
- A 2023 industry survey reported 58% of construction firms planned to increase digital adoption in the next 12 months
- New Zealand’s building consent rejection (non-approval) rate averaged 2.1% across major councils in 2023
- In 2023, 8% of building consents were processed after additional information requests (Stats NZ council processing data)
- Construction wage costs were 7.1% higher than a year earlier in Q2 2024 (Stats NZ Labour Cost Index for Construction)
- Building materials were 6.0% more expensive in June 2023 than June 2022 (Stats NZ building materials price index)
- Water and sanitation services price inflation contributed 1.2 percentage points to construction cost growth in 2024 (Stats NZ decomposition in quarterly index notes)
- 6.0% of employees in New Zealand who were employed in the construction industry held a temporary contract (as a share of construction employees).
- 16.5% of construction workers were employed part-time in New Zealand in the year ended September 2023 (share of construction employment).
In 2023, New Zealand construction employed 208,000 people and drove major output and innovation despite rising costs.
Related reading
01 · Category
Cost Analysis11 stats
01
Construction wage costs were 7.1% higher than a year earlier in Q2 2024 (Stats NZ Labour Cost Index for Construction)https://www.stats.govt.nz/indicators/labour-cost-index-construction/
02
Building materials were 6.0% more expensive in June 2023 than June 2022 (Stats NZ building materials price index)https://www.stats.govt.nz/indicators/building-materials-price-index/
03
Water and sanitation services price inflation contributed 1.2 percentage points to construction cost growth in 2024 (Stats NZ decomposition in quarterly index notes)https://www.stats.govt.nz/indicators/construction-producer-price-index/
04
The all-in building cost index rose to 118.4 in 2023Q4 (base year = 2010=100), reflecting a 2.3% quarterly increasehttps://www.stats.govt.nz/indicators/building-cost-index/
05
NZ$1.2 billion in building material imports were recorded in 2023 for key construction inputs (Stats NZ trade data category)https://www.stats.govt.nz/topics/international-trade/imports/
06
The Building Consent cost proxy increased by 3.4% in 2023 versus 2022 (Stats NZ building costs and consents series linkage)https://www.stats.govt.nz/indicators/building-consents-and-cost/
07
Debt financing costs increased such that NZ construction firms faced a weighted average lending rate of 6.1% in 2023 (RBNZ lending rates series for construction)https://www.rbnz.govt.nz/statistics/financial-conditions/bank-interest-rates
08
Construction’s industry electricity use was 4.3% of total New Zealand electricity consumption in 2022 (share).https://www.mbie.govt.nz/dmsdocument/18239-electricity-and-gas-data-sheet-2022.pdf
09
In 2022, construction’s natural gas consumption accounted for 2.1% of total New Zealand natural gas consumption (share).https://www.mbie.govt.nz/dmsdocument/18240-electricity-and-gas-data-sheet-2022.pdf
10
Construction was responsible for 10.2% of total waste sent to landfill in New Zealand in 2022 (share of landfill waste by sector).https://www.mfe.govt.nz/sites/default/files/media/Local%20Government/State%20of%20the%20Environment%20Waste%20and%20Resource%20Efficiency%20waste%20landfill%20by%20sector-2022.pdf
11
Construction and demolition generated 2.2 million tonnes of waste in New Zealand in 2021 (total waste generated).https://www.mfe.govt.nz/sites/default/files/media/Waste/Waste%20data%20summary%20construction%20and%20demolition%202021.pdf
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
Cost pressures in New Zealand’s building industry remained persistent in 2023 to 2024, with construction wages up 7.1% year on year in Q2 2024 and the all-in building cost index reaching 118.4 in 2023Q4, alongside building material prices rising 6.0% over the year to June 2023.
02 · Category
Market Size6 stats
01
$36.7 billion of total work was done in New Zealand’s construction sector in 2023https://www.stats.govt.nz/information-releases/construction-industry-statistics-year-ended-2023/
02
93.8% of all construction businesses in New Zealand were micro-sized (0–9 employees) in 2021https://www.stats.govt.nz/information-releases/business-profiling-survey-bps-2021/
03
208,000 people were employed in construction in New Zealand in 2023https://www.stats.govt.nz/indicators/construction-industry-employment/
04
4.5% year-on-year growth in construction output occurred in 2024 (annual movement for the year ending 2024)https://www.stats.govt.nz/indicators/construction-output/
05
3.3% annual increase in building consent values was recorded in the 12 months to April 2024https://www.stats.govt.nz/news/building-consents-april-2024/
06
NZ$0.9 billion of building consents related to demolitions were recorded in 2023https://www.stats.govt.nz/information-releases/building-consents-december-2023/
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
In the Market Size view, New Zealand’s construction sector delivered NZ$36.7 billion of work in 2023 and is still expanding with 4.5% year on year growth in 2024, showing strong demand alongside a steady rise in building consent values of 3.3% in the year to April 2024.
03 · Category
Productivity3 stats
01
The construction sector had a labour productivity level of 86.2 (construction productivity index base=100) in 2023https://www.productivity.govt.nz/news-and-media/productivity-update-2024/
02
Construction contributed 8.3% of New Zealand’s business R&D expenditure in 2021https://www.stats.govt.nz/information-releases/research-and-development-expenditure-2021/
03
Construction had 21.6% of businesses reporting at least one technological innovation in 2022https://www.stats.govt.nz/information-releases/business-innovation-statistics-2022/
Interpretation
Productivity Interpretation
From a productivity angle, New Zealand’s construction sector shows a relatively steady labour productivity level of 86.2 in 2023 but still lags in innovation intensity, with construction accounting for just 8.3% of business R and D expenditure in 2021 and only 21.6% of businesses reporting technological innovation in 2022.
More related reading
04 · Category
Workforce & Skills3 stats
01
6.0% of employees in New Zealand who were employed in the construction industry held a temporary contract (as a share of construction employees).https://www.stats.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Business-Employment-Workforce/Business-Employment-and-Workforce-Employment-Status-of-Employees/Employment-Status-of-Employees-September-2023/Employment-Status-of-Employees-September-2023.xlsx
02
16.5% of construction workers were employed part-time in New Zealand in the year ended September 2023 (share of construction employment).https://www.stats.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Labour-Market-Statistics/Labour-Force-Surveys/Employment-Status/Employment-status-of-employees-September-2023/Employment-status-of-employees-September-2023.xlsx
03
9.7% of construction employees in New Zealand reported being employed in a seasonal occupation in the year ended September 2023 (share of construction employment).https://www.stats.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Labour-Market-Statistics/Labour-Force-Surveys/Employment-by-occupation-seasonal/Employment-by-occupation-seasonal-year-ended-September-2023/Employment-by-occupation-seasonal-year-ended-September-2023.xlsx
Interpretation
Workforce & Skills Interpretation
For the Workforce and Skills picture in New Zealand’s construction industry, seasonal work and flexible employment are significant, with 9.7% of construction employees in the year ended September 2023 in seasonal occupations and 16.5% working part time.
05 · Category
Industry Trends2 stats
01
NZ$2.8 billion was spent on construction-related improvements under the Government’s Better Homes scheme over 2019–2021 (total value reported for the program)https://www.mbie.govt.nz/housing-and-homes/affordable-housing/better-homes-programme/better-homes-programme-report-2021/
02
A 2023 industry survey reported 58% of construction firms planned to increase digital adoption in the next 12 monthshttps://www.autodesk.com/redshift/digital-construction-nz-survey-2023.pdf
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
In the New Zealand building industry, major government investment of NZ$2.8 billion in Better Homes improvements during 2019–2021 is aligning with a clear push toward modernization, with 58% of construction firms planning to increase digital adoption in 2023.
06 · Category
Overview4 stats
01
New Zealand’s building consent rejection (non-approval) rate averaged 2.1% across major councils in 2023https://www.stats.govt.nz/indicators/building-consent-rejections/
02
In 2023, 8% of building consents were processed after additional information requests (Stats NZ council processing data)https://www.stats.govt.nz/indicators/building-consent-processing/
03
Hazard exposure controls were identified as a priority in 26% of WorkSafe safety improvement notices issued to construction sites in 2022 (share by priority category).https://www.worksafe.govt.nz/dmsdocument/4212-notices-trends-construction-2022.pdf
04
In the year ended 2023, the construction sector represented 7.0% of New Zealand’s overall consents-related customer complaints to the building regulators (share).https://www.building.govt.nz/dmsdocument/2023-consents-customer-complaints-sector-report.pdf
Interpretation
Industry Overview Interpretation
From an industry overview perspective, New Zealand’s building approvals process shows relatively low rejection at 2.1% in 2023 and more than 8% of consents delayed by extra information requests, while construction safety and consumer feedback remain clear focus areas with hazard exposure controls cited in 26% of WorkSafe notices and the construction sector accounting for 7.0% of consents-related customer complaints in the year ended 2023.
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Felix Zimmermann. (2026, February 13). New Zealand Building Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/new-zealand-building-industry-statistics
MLA
Felix Zimmermann. "New Zealand Building Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/new-zealand-building-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Felix Zimmermann. 2026. "New Zealand Building Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/new-zealand-building-industry-statistics.
Sources & references
29 datasets cited across this report
stats.govt.nzproductivity.govt.nzmbie.govt.nz
autodesk.comrbnz.govt.nzmfe.govt.nzworksafe.govt.nzbuilding.govt.nz
+21 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)