MELBOURNE'S outer suburban fringe is growing at its fastest pace in decades, adding almost 1000 people a week, as greater Melbourne is swelling with almost a quarter of Australia's population growth.

New estimates by the Bureau of Statistics report that, in the past decade, the five areas experiencing the biggest growth in Australia were all outer suburbs of Melbourne.

South Morang grew from a fringe of 6667 people in 2001 to a large suburb of 38,895 by 2011. In one decade, it added the entire populations of Carlton, Fitzroy and Collingwood.

Point Cook was a close second; it began the decade with 2092 people and ended with 33,393, almost as many as South Yarra and Toorak combined. In the west, Caroline Springs added 21,400 people. In the south-west, Tarneit grew from 1427 to 22,473, while in the north, Craigieburn and Mickleham together doubled from 16,647 people to 35,807.