In Australia we like to do things big, and we have wonders such as the Big Pineapple, the Big Prawn and the Big Merino to show for it.

Our love of big things even carries through to our homes, and we’ve built up quite a reputation over the years for having the biggest houses in the world.

But our national pride is now at stake, as new research has revealed we’ve been knocked off the top spot by the United States.

ABS data shows that in 2015/16 the average floor area of a new detached house in Australia was 231 sq. m, while in the US in 2015 it was 249.6 sq. m (their biggest on record), according to US Census Bureau figures.

That means the average US home now has 18.6 sq. m more than ours – enough to fit in a decent sized bedroom or home office.

Although there has been a decrease in the average Australian house size in recent years, we’re still making them about 10% bigger than they were 20 years ago.

“And this is a point not picked up in discussion of home prices. Not only are homes far bigger than those built in the 1980s and before, but the standard of fitout today is far superior with quality kitchens, bathrooms, floor coverings and inclusions like airconditioners,’’ the report from CommSec said.

Comparing house size state by state we find that those in Victoria come out on top with an average size of 241.1 sq. m, followed by Queensland with 237.7 sq. m and NSW at 227.4 sq. m.

Western Australia has an average house size of 227 sq. m, Northern Territory comes in at 205.3 sq. m, South Australia at 202.4 sq. m, ACT 180.8 sq. m and Tasmania 188.1 sq. m.

In states where house sizes dropped, the ACT had the greatest increase of 7.3% followed by NSW where houses were 4.5% smaller than the year before.

In the Northern Territory they were smaller by 4.4% and in South Australia and Western Australia the difference was less than 1%.

Some states saw increases in the average house size, with Queensland up by 3.5% compared with the same time last year, Tasmania gaining 3.2% more space, and Victoria up by 3.1%. Well done, you three, for fighting so hard to protect the honour of our nation.