FILIPINO COMMUNITY
Connecting with New Zealand’s Filipino community.
Practical audience insight for organisations wanting to communicate with Filipino communities across Aotearoa.
AUDIENCE SNAPSHOT
Filipino New Zealanders at a glance.
A quick starting point for planning. Ethnicity is self-identified and people can belong to more than one ethnic group.
NEW ZEALAND
108,297
people identify as Filipino
GROWTH
49.1%
increase from 2018 to 2023
AUCKLAND SHARE
44.5%
of New Zealand’s Filipino population
ASIAN POPULATION
12.6%
of New Zealand’s Asian population
AUDIENCE INTELLIGENCE
What the numbers tell us.
Useful Census indicators add context to the audience profile. They are a planning starting point rather than a substitute for cultural understanding and community knowledge.
108,297
people
identify as Filipino
49.1%
growth
increase from 2018 to 2023
44.5%
live in Auckland
of New Zealand's Filipino population
12.6%
of Asian population
one of New Zealand's largest Asian communities
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR MARKETERS
The Filipino population grew rapidly between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses and is distributed more widely beyond Auckland than several other large Asian communities. Campaigns should consider migration experience, family and community networks, language and the channels people use to stay connected.
POPULATION CHANGEHow has this community changed?+49.1%2018 → 2023
CENSUS COMPARISON
Filipino population growth, 2018–2023.
New Zealand’s Filipino population increased by 35,685 people between the last two Censuses — from 72,612 in 2018 to 108,297 in 2023.
This is not a static niche audience. The Filipino community grew by almost half between the two Censuses, increasing its scale and commercial relevance. For organisations planning future campaigns, the growth trend supports treating Filipino audiences as an increasingly important market while still considering location, life stage, language and community media behaviour.
Source: Stats NZ, 2018 and 2023 Censuses. Ethnicity is self-identified and people may belong to more than one ethnic group. Counts use fixed random rounding.
PLANNING A CAMPAIGN?
Need to reach Filipino audiences?
We can help with audience, messaging and specialist media planning.
Source: Stats NZ, 2023 Census. Counts use the census usually resident population and fixed random rounding.
UNDERSTANDING THE AUDIENCE
One label does not describe every Filipino New Zealander.
Effective engagement starts by recognising diversity within Filipino communities in Aotearoa. Cultural background, language, religion, age, migration history and whether someone was born in New Zealand can all influence how people connect with organisations and media.
Campaign planning should therefore begin with the specific audience you need to reach rather than assuming one message, image or channel will represent everyone.
CAMPAIGN CONSIDERATIONS
What to think about before you communicate.
01
Culture & community
Understand who the campaign is for, the communities involved and the cultural context around the subject before deciding how to communicate.
02
Language
English may be appropriate for many campaigns, but language choices should follow the audience and purpose. Translation alone is not a substitute for culturally relevant communication.
03
Representation
Use people, imagery and stories that feel credible to the audience. Community input can help avoid generic or tokenistic representation.
04
Trust & connection
Consider trusted community organisations, specialist media and existing relationships alongside mainstream and digital channels.
MEDIA & REACH
Reach matters. Relevance matters more.
The right mix may include specialist community media, digital channels, community organisations and mainstream platforms. Niche Media helps define the audience and approach; BECNZ helps identify the specialist media options.
BECNZ
Specialist media discovery
Find publishers, platforms and community channels relevant to the audience you need to reach.
CAMPAIGN OPPORTUNITIES
Timing and context can make the difference.
Community events, cultural dates, partnerships and local activity can create useful opportunities for engagement. The strongest campaigns use these moments because they are relevant, not simply because they appear on a calendar.
ASK NICHE
Turn Filipino audience insight into a practical campaign brief
Use Ask Niche to build a stronger starting point for your campaign — from audience and messaging considerations through to location, media and support needs.
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