Sydney is home to one of the fastest-growing populations in Australia. By 2046, it will be home to more than 6.6 million people.
The Sydney Plan is a strategic land use plan that sets out how the NSW Government will manage this growth over the next 20 years.
Covering 33 local government areas, the plan provides a guide for councils, government agencies, and industry to plan for Sydney's future, ensuring that communities have access to housing, infrastructure, jobs, sustainability and vibrant places to live and work.
The plan informs:
- state and local strategic planning and assessment processes
- infrastructure planning and prioritisation
- public and private investment decisions.
The Sydney Plan replaces the Greater Sydney Region Plan: A Metropolis of Three Cities (2018) and 5 district plans that applied in Sydney, establishing a single strategic planning framework for the Sydney Region.
View the final Sydney Plan
The Sydney Plan (PDF, 25.5 MB) guides how the NSW Government will manage growth over the next 20 years.
Technical appendices
The Sydney Plan includes technical appendices as further guidance and supporting information for councils, government agencies and industry. They form part of the statutory strategic plan.
View technical appendices:
- Appendix A - Using the technical appendices (PDF, 676 KB)
- Appendix B – Actions summary and guidance (PDF, 5.2 MB)
- Appendix C – Infrastructure opportunities plan (PDF, 1.6 MB)
- Appendix D – Housing and employment guidance (PDF, 28.6 MB)
- Appendix E – Sydney’s Industrial Lands (PDF, 3.1 MB) including the industrial lands spatial viewer
- Appendix F – State-led or assessed rezonings list (PDF, 921 KB)
- Appendix G – Open space toolkit and action plan (PDF, 5.5 MB)
- Appendix H – Blue-green grid framework (PDF, 2.3 MB)
- Appendix I – Urban growth area policy and guidance (PDF, 3.0 MB)
The Sydney Plan may be updated periodically to reflect changes to strategic planning priorities and the NSW State Land Use Plan. Future updates and amendments will be recorded as new versions are published.
The Sydney Plan current version, V1.0 released and commenced on 13 August 2026. For changes to the technical appendices, refer to technical appendix A.
What the plan will deliver
The Sydney Plan applies the 7 state priorities (Aboriginal Outcomes, Housed, Prosperous, Connected, Resilient, Liveable, Coordinated) set out in the NSW State Land Use Plan.
The plan addresses these priorities with specific targeted policy directions and responses for both the NSW Government and local councils.
These responses include:
- increase housing supply, diversity and choice
- secure the supply of affordable housing
- equitably grow a range of jobs
- grow housing and jobs in well-located centres
- create a more vibrant Sydney
- secure an ongoing pipeline of productive industrial lands
- grow and connect public open space
- protect and enhance Sydney’s natural assets
- minimise the impact of natural hazards on communities
- sequence planned greenfield precincts
- manage land uses beyond the urban growth area
- align infrastructure to planned growth.
The Sydney Plan also implements at a region scale the relevant policies set out in the NSW State Land Use Plan technical appendices, including the Appendix E – NSW Centres Framework (PDF, 4.1 MB), Appendix F – Statewide Policy for Industrial Lands (PDF, 11.5 MB) and Appendix C – Feasible Housing Capacity Policy (PDF, 2.8 MB)
How the plan will be implemented
Councils, government agencies and industry will use the Sydney Plan to inform planning and investment decisions.
Councils should incorporate the plan's directions into their future local strategic planning and Local Environmental Plans, so that they can deliver the priorities for their local areas.
The NSW Government will implement the plan through:
- planning policies and programs
- planning instrument updates
- research and evidence-based planning
- state-led rezonings where required.
Planning processes will continue to recognise Aboriginal people's connection to Country and support Aboriginal cultural, social and economic outcomes.
Tracking progress
Progress on the Sydney Plan will be monitored and reported annually to assess outcomes and inform future updates. Reporting will track housing supply, employment land, local planning implementation and delivery activities across councils and government agencies.
Monitoring tools will include an indicators tracker, an annual actions tracker and a spatial viewer that provides transparency on implementation across the Sydney region. The Plan will be reviewed and updated over time in response to new evidence, changing priorities and implementation outcomes.
Public exhibition
The Sydney Plan was informed by public exhibition of the draft Sydney Plan, between 10 December 2025 and 27 February 2026. Visit the NSW Planning Portal to view the exhibited documents and the submissions we received in response to the draft plan.
Read the public exhibition outcomes report (PDF, 5.9 MB) to learn more about the feedback and how it informed the final plan.
Frequently asked questions
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More information
If you have any questions about The Sydney Plan, email [email protected]