Australian forces primarily fought in the east, mostly in the SW Pacific theatre. Early in the war, before Japan expanded its war in China to include the US, Britain, the Netherlands, etc., Australian troops were sent to Palestine, to complete training before going on to help in the defence of France. This was the 6th and 7th Divisions. The 8th Division and 1st Armoured Division were to follow later. The 9th Division formed in Britain, also with the intent to defend France. Before the Australians were ready for France, France fell, and they fought in North Africa, Greece (including Crete) and Syria. When Australia went to war with Japan, the 6th and 7th Divisions went to fight Japan, while the 9th Division stayed for about another year in Africa, leaving after Second El Alamein. After this, there were still some Australian units in Africa and Europe, but no army divisions. With war with Japan imminent, the 8th Division went to defend Malaya instead, and the 1st Armoured stayed in Australia.

After the 9th Division left Africa, the Australian army divisions fought in the Pacific theatre for the rest of the war. By a quick count, 3 Australian divisions fought in Africa (and elsewhere in the Mediterranean theatre), while 6 divisions fought in the Pacific (including the 3 from Africa). Additional divisions remained in Australia, either for the defence of Australia itself, or effectively functioning as training divisions as brigades rotated through them.

Counting where the Australian army spent WW2 in division-months, an approximate count gives:

• UK: 3

• Africa and the Mediterranean: 65

• Pacific and SE Asia: 188

• Australia: 270

As noted, some of those division-months spent in Australia were explicitly for the defence of Australia against Japanese attack, part of that number belongs to the war against Japan.