Australians had their say in the Marriage Law Postal Survey, with 61.6 per cent of eligible voters, that's 7.8 million people, agreeing same-sex couples should be allowed to marry.
Following the , announced on Wednesday morning, people took to social media to celebrate.
Many expressed their joy and relief at the result.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull spoke following the result and urged MPs to push through a private member's bill to allow same-sex marriage to be legal by the end of the year.
The sentiment was echoed on social media with people urging elected leaders to vote in parliament as soon as possible.
Lead campaigners for the No vote tweeted their disappointment at the result.
Despite some early criticisms that the use of the postal system would make the survey inaccessible, an overwhelming 79.5 per cent of Australian voters participated in the survey, in what the the Australian Bureau of Statistics' chief statistician David Kalisch called an “outstanding” turnout.
Women responded in greater numbers than men, at 81.6 per cent and 77.3 per cent respectively.
Young voters also turned out in strong numbers. 78 per cent of those aged 18-19 and 72 per cent of those aged 20-24 made it to a post office with their completed forms. At the other end of the spectrum, 80 percent of Australians older than 85 voted.
Same-sex marriage will now almost certainly be legalised in Australia by the end of 2017.
