At the 2011 Census, there were people in Gosford local government area, making the area the twelfth most populous local government area in New South Wales, and the twenty–fourth most populous local government area in Australia. Of these 48.2% were male and 51.8% were female. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 2.2% of the population. The median age of people in the City of Gosford was 42 years; significantly higher than the national median of 37 years. Children aged 0 – 14 years made up 18.7% of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 19.2% of the population, compared to 14.0% being the national median of people aged over 65 years. Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 48.6% were married and 13.8% were either divorced or separated. With a higher proportion of elderly residents than the national median, the data reflects the colloquial term for the area as "God's Waiting Room".