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    World Population

    Dataset: World Population Live Data Source: UN 2024 Revision

    World Population

    Current World Population

    8,272,501,663
    view all people on 1 page >

    Today

    Births today
    358,532
    Deaths today
    168,942
    Population Growth today
    189,590

    This Year

    Births this year
    9,790,267
    Deaths this year
    4,613,220
    Population Growth this year
    5,177,047

    Top 20 Largest Countries by Population (live)

    Showing top 20 countries
    # Country Population
    1 🇮🇳 India 1,471,385,853
    2 🇨🇳 China 1,414,236,637
    3 🇺🇸 United States 348,348,392
    4 🇮🇩 Indonesia 287,019,153
    5 🇵🇰 Pakistan 257,529,432
    6 🇳🇬 Nigeria 240,373,929
    7 🇧🇷 Brazil 213,283,888
    8 🇧🇩 Bangladesh 176,925,810
    9 🇷🇺 Russia 143,524,160
    10 🇪🇹 Ethiopia 137,482,924
    11 🇲🇽 Mexico 132,578,184
    12 🇯🇵 Japan 122,729,864
    13 🇪🇬 Egypt 119,434,688
    14 🇵🇭 Philippines 117,335,276
    15 🇨🇩 DR Congo 114,938,930
    16 🇻🇳 Vietnam 101,953,018
    17 🇮🇷 Iran 92,912,175
    18 🇹🇷 Turkey 87,807,889
    19 🇩🇪 Germany 83,800,712
    20 🇹🇿 Tanzania 71,718,863
    see all countries > | 1950 rank > | 2050 rank >

    World Population: Past, Present, and Future

    The chart illustrates how world population has changed throughout history

    8000 B.C.
    ~5 million
    Dawn of agriculture
    1804
    1 billion
    First billion milestone
    1927
    2 billion
    130 years later
    1960
    3 billion
    30 years later
    1974
    4 billion
    15 years later
    1987
    5 billion
    13 years later
    2026
    8.3 billion
    Current population
    2060
    10 billion
    Projected

    A tremendous change occurred with the industrial revolution: whereas it had taken all of human history until around 1800 for world population to reach one billion, the second billion was achieved in only 130 years (1930), the third billion in 30 years (1960), the fourth billion in 15 years (1974), and the fifth billion in only 13 years (1987).

    Key Facts:

    • During the 20th century alone, the population in the world has grown from 1.65 billion to 6 billion
    • In 1970, there were roughly half as many people in the world as there are now
    • Because of declining growth rates, it will now take over 200 years to double again

    World Population (2026 and historical)

    Year (July 1) Population Yearly % Change Yearly Change Median Age Fertility Rate Density (P/Km²)
    2026 8,300,678,395 0.84% 69,065,325 31.1 2.23 56
    2025 8,231,613,070 0.85% 69,640,498 30.9 2.24 55
    2024 8,161,972,572 0.87% 70,237,642 30.6 2.25 55
    2023 8,091,734,930 0.88% 70,327,738 30.4 2.25 54
    2022 8,021,407,192 0.84% 66,958,801 30.1 2.27 54
    2021 7,954,448,391 0.86% 67,447,099 29.8 2.29 53
    2020 7,887,001,292 1.09% 83,301,884 29.6 2.32 53
    2015 7,470,491,872 1.25% 89,751,945 28.3 2.54 50
    2010 7,021,732,148 1.29% 86,952,403 27.2 2.6 47
    2005 6,586,970,132 1.31% 83,053,428 26.1 2.63 44
    2000 6,171,702,993 1.39% 82,564,802 25.1 2.75 41
    1995 5,758,878,982 1.57% 86,215,174 24 2.89 39
    1990 5,327,803,110 1.82% 91,771,929 22.9 3.31 36
    1985 4,868,943,465 1.83% 84,267,446 22 3.52 33
    1980 4,447,606,236 1.79% 75,374,192 21.5 3.74 30
    1975 4,070,735,277 1.96% 75,210,297 20.7 4.08 27
    1970 3,694,683,794 2.07% 72,030,018 20.3 4.83 25
    1965 3,334,533,703 2.03% 63,812,562 20.8 5.07 22
    1960 3,015,470,894 1.93% 55,051,420 21.5 4.7 20
    1955 2,740,213,792 1.91% 49,424,189 21.8 5 18

    World Population Forecast (2030-2050)

    Year (July 1) Population Yearly % Change Yearly Change Median Age Fertility Rate Density (P/Km²)
    2030 8,569,124,911 0.81% 67,502,368 32 2.2 58
    2035 8,885,210,181 0.73% 63,217,054 33 2.15 60
    2040 9,177,190,203 0.65% 58,396,004 34 2.13 62
    2045 9,439,639,668 0.57% 52,489,893 35 2.12 63
    2050 9,664,378,587 0.47% 44,947,784 36.1 2.1 65

    Growth Rate

    Population in the world is growing at a rate of around 0.84% per year in 2026 (down from 0.85% in 2025, and 0.97% in 2020). The current population increase is estimated at around 69 million people per year.

    Annual growth rate reached its peak in the mid 1960s, when it was at around 2%. The rate of increase has nearly halved since then, and will continue to decline in the coming years.

    Peak Growth Rate
    2.25%
    (1964)
    Current Growth Rate
    0.84%
    (2026)
    People Added Per Year
    69M
    (2026)

    World Population Milestones

    10 Billion
    2060
    The United Nations projects world population will reach 10 billion in the year 2060.
    9 Billion
    2037
    World population is expected to reach 9 billion in the year 2037.
    8.3 Billion
    Current
    The current world population as of Tuesday, January 27, 2026 according to the most recent United Nations estimates.
    8 Billion
    2022
    World population reached 8 billion people in the first half of 2022.
    7 Billion
    2010
    World population reached 7 Billion in the first half of 2010.
    6 Billion
    1998
    The 6 billion figure was reached in the first half of 1998.

    Previous Milestones

    5 Billion: 1986
    4 Billion: 1974
    3 Billion: 1960
    2 Billion: 1930
    1 Billion: 1804

    1 - 1804 (1803 years): 0.2 to 1 billion

    1804 - 2022 (218 years): from 1 billion to 8 billion

    World Population by Region

    # Region Population (2026) Yearly Change Net Change Density (P/Km²) Land Area (Km²) Migrants (net) Fert. Rate Median Age Urban Pop % World Share
    1 Asia 4,863,327,397 0.58% 28,007,337 157 31,033,131 −2,050,678 1.87 32.8 54.1% 58.59%
    2 Africa 1,584,985,259 2.27% 35,117,680 53 29,648,481 −440,156 3.89 19.5 45.6% 19.09%
    3 Europe 743,482,361 −0.12% −916,471 34 22,134,900 1,299,979 1.41 43.1 76.2% 8.96%
    4 Latin America and the Caribbean 672,135,561 0.64% 4,247,009 33 20,139,378 −411,795 1.77 32.1 85.9% 8.10%
    5 Northern America 389,628,823 0.54% 2,100,420 21 18,651,660 1,468,984 1.59 38.9 82.8% 4.69%
    6 Oceania 47,118,993 1.09% 509,349 6 8,486,460 133,748 2.12 33.6 66.3% 0.57%

    World Population by Religion

    According to a study (based on the 2010 world population of 6.9 billion) by The Pew Forum

    ✝️
    Christians
    2,173,180,000
    31% of world population
    50% Catholic, 37% Protestant, 12% Orthodox, 1% other
    ☪️
    Muslims
    1,598,510,000
    23% of world population
    87-90% Sunnis, 10-13% Shia
    🚫
    No Religion
    1,126,500,000
    16% of world population
    Atheists, agnostics and unaffiliated
    🕉️
    Hindus
    1,033,080,000
    15% of world population
    94% live in India
    ☸️
    Buddhists
    487,540,000
    7% of world population
    Half live in China
    🌿
    Folk Religionists
    405,120,000
    6% of world population
    Faiths associated with ethnic groups
    🌟
    Other Religions
    58,110,000
    1% of world population
    Baha'i, Taoism, Jainism, Sikhism, etc.
    ✡️
    Jews
    13,850,000
    0.2% of world population
    41% in US, 41% in Israel

    Sources and Methods

    Primary Source

    World Population Prospects: The 2024 Revision - United Nations Population Division

    Additional Sources

    • The World at Six Billion, World Population, Year 0 to near stabilization - United Nations Population Division
    • U.S. Census Bureau International Database (IDB)
    • The Pew Forum (Religious composition data)

    Methodology

    Elaboration of data by United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. World Population Prospects: The 2024 Revision (Medium-fertility variant).

     

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