Central Hawke's Bay District had a population of 14,142 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 1,425 people (11.2%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 1,185 people (9.1%) since the 2006 census. There were 5,418 households. There were 7,014 males and 7,125 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.98 males per female. The median age was 44.2 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 2,943 people (20.8%) aged under 15 years, 1,974 (14.0%) aged 15 to 29, 6,426 (45.4%) aged 30 to 64, and 2,796 (19.8%) aged 65 or older.