The report that keeps your finger on Australia’s pulse.
The Essential Report
The Essential Report is run by Essential Research, part of Essential Media Communications. It is one of Australia’s leading social and political polls and tracks attitudes on everything from the economy, equality and the environment. The Essential poll gets to the heart of the issues Australians care about.
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About
Latest Essential Report
25 February 2026
Key Insights
One Nation’s Potential: One Nation’s momentum continues, with a large portion of Australians open to supporting them in future elections.
Angus Taylor’s Leadership: It’s too soon to gauge the full impact of Angus Taylor as opposition leader, though early signs are slightly positive for the Coalition.
Australia’s Growing Divide: More than half of Australians believe the country is becoming more divided, with trust in others at a concerning level.
Latest political insights
Look through a summary of the federal political questions
Client Projects
These are some examples of client projects that Essential Research have delivered recently. These projects are large scale, public facing and cover a range of issues including energy, affordable housing, childcare and more. If you are interested in conducting a similar research project, please contact us using the button below.
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Australian Housing Monitor
The Australian Housing Monitor is a large, nationally-representative survey covering public experiences and attitudes toward housing related issues. Read more
Energy Consumer Sentiment & Behaviour Surveys
The most comprehensive ongoing research studies of the attitudes and activity of residential and small business energy consumers in Australia. Read more
Queensland Household Energy Survey
Queensland’s most comprehensive survey capturing household insights and trends in energy behaviors and attitudes. Read more
The Early Learning Monitor
This research aims to understand how everyday Australians and parents think the early learning system currently works, how it impacts children into adulthood and how important this issue is to their vote. Read more
Australian Politics Podcast
In the Australian Politics podcast, Peter Lewis executive director at Essential Media along with members of Guardian Australia's political team analyse the results of the Guardian Essential Report.
