Key information about Japan population

• The Japan population reached 123.7 million people in Dec 2024, compared with the previously reported figure of 124.3 million people in Dec 2023
• The data reached an all-time high of 128.1 million people in Dec 2010 and a record low of 43.4 million people in Dec 1899

• In the latest reports, Japan Unemployment Rate increased to 2.5 % in Oct 2024
• Monthly earnings of the Japan population was 1,957.4 USD in Oct 2024
• Japan Labour Force Participation Rate remained the same rate at 63.5 % in Oct 2024

The statistic shows the total population in Japan from 2020 to 2024, with projections up until 2030. In 2024, the total population of Japan amounted to around 123.89 million inhabitants. See the figures for the population of South Korea for comparison. Total population in Japan From steadily low fertility rates to a growing elderly population, it is no secret that Japan’s population is shrinking. Population growth rates jump around a little, but are currently following a declining trend. The post-war baby boom generation is now in the 65-and-over age group, and the percentage of the population in that category is expected to keep growing, as is indicated by a high median age and high life expectancy. Japan already has the highest percentage of its population over 65 in the world, and the aging population puts some pressure on the Japanese government to provide welfare services for more people as rising numbers leave the workforce. However, the amount of jobs opened up for the younger generations by the older generations leaving the workforce means that unemployment is kept to a minimum. Despite a jump in unemployment after the global recession hit in 2008, rates were almost back to pre-recession rates by 2013. Another factor affecting Japan is the number of emigrants to other countries. The United States absorbs a number of emigrants worldwide, so despite a stagnating birth rate, the U.S. has seen a steady rise in population.

The share of people aged 65 years and older in Japan stood at ***** percent in 2023. In a steady upward trend, the share rose by ***** percentage points from 1960.

The total population in Japan was estimated at 123.6 million people in 2024, according to the latest census figures and projections from Trading Economics. This dataset provides - Japan Population - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

In 1800, the population of Japan was just over 30 million, a figure which would grow by just two million in the first half of the 19th century. However, with the fall of the Tokugawa shogunate and the restoration of the emperor in the Meiji Restoration of 1868, Japan would begin transforming from an isolated feudal island, to a modernized empire built on Western models. The Meiji period would see a rapid rise in the population of Japan, as industrialization and advancements in healthcare lead to a significant reduction in child mortality rates, while the creation overseas colonies would lead to a strong economic boom. However, this growth would slow beginning in 1937, as Japan entered a prolonged war with the Republic of China, which later grew into a major theater of the Second World War. The war was eventually brought to Japan's home front, with the escalation of Allied air raids on Japanese urban centers from 1944 onwards (Tokyo was the most-bombed city of the Second World War). By the war's end in 1945 and the subsequent occupation of the island by the Allied military, Japan had suffered over two and a half million military fatalities, and over one million civilian deaths.

The population figures of Japan were quick to recover, as the post-war “economic miracle” would see an unprecedented expansion of the Japanese economy, and would lead to the country becoming one of the first fully industrialized nations in East Asia. As living standards rose, the population of Japan would increase from 77 million in 1945, to over 127 million by the end of the century. However, growth would begin to slow in the late 1980s, as birth rates and migration rates fell, and Japan eventually grew to have one of the oldest populations in the world. The population would peak in 2008 at just over 128 million, but has consistently fallen each year since then, as the fertility rate of the country remains below replacement level (despite government initiatives to counter this) and the country's immigrant population remains relatively stable. The population of Japan is expected to continue its decline in the coming years, and in 2020, it is estimated that approximately 126 million people inhabit the island country.

Population density per pixel at 100 metre resolution. WorldPop provides estimates of numbers of people residing in each 100x100m grid cell for every low and middle income country. Through ingegrating cencus, survey, satellite and GIS datasets in a flexible machine-learning framework, high resolution maps of population counts and densities for 2000-2020 are produced, along with accompanying metadata. DATASET: Alpha version 2010 and 2015 estimates of numbers of people per grid square, with national totals adjusted to match UN population division estimates (http://esa.un.org/wpp/) and remaining unadjusted. REGION: Africa SPATIAL RESOLUTION: 0.000833333 decimal degrees (approx 100m at the equator) PROJECTION: Geographic, WGS84 UNITS: Estimated persons per grid square MAPPING APPROACH: Land cover based, as described in: Linard, C., Gilbert, M., Snow, R.W., Noor, A.M. and Tatem, A.J., 2012, Population distribution, settlement patterns and accessibility across Africa in 2010, PLoS ONE, 7(2): e31743. FORMAT: Geotiff (zipped using 7-zip (open access tool): www.7-zip.org) FILENAMES: Example - AGO10adjv4.tif = Angola (AGO) population count map for 2010 (10) adjusted to match UN national estimates (adj), version 4 (v4). Population maps are updated to new versions when improved census or other input data become available.

Graph and download economic data for Population, Total for Japan (POPTOTJPA647NWDB) from 1960 to 2024 about Japan and population.

Japan JP: Population: as % of Total: Female: Aged 15-64 data was reported at 57.810 % in 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of 58.249 % for 2016. Japan JP: Population: as % of Total: Female: Aged 15-64 data is updated yearly, averaging 67.272 % from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2017, with 58 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 69.262 % in 1969 and a record low of 57.810 % in 2017. Japan JP: Population: as % of Total: Female: Aged 15-64 data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Japan – Table JP.World Bank: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Female population between the ages 15 to 64 as a percentage of the total female population. Population is based on the de facto definition of population, which counts all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship.; ; World Bank staff estimates based on age/sex distributions of United Nations Population Division's World Population Prospects: 2017 Revision.; Weighted average; Relevance to gender indicator: Knowing how many girls, adolescents and women there are in a population helps a country in determining its provision of services.

Japan JP: Population: Growth data was reported at -0.164 % in 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of -0.115 % for 2016. Japan JP: Population: Growth data is updated yearly, averaging 0.396 % from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2017, with 58 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 2.606 % in 1961 and a record low of -0.185 % in 2011. Japan JP: Population: Growth data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Japan – Table JP.World Bank: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Annual population growth rate for year t is the exponential rate of growth of midyear population from year t-1 to t, expressed as a percentage . Population is based on the de facto definition of population, which counts all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship.; ; Derived from total population. Population source: (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects: 2017 Revision, (2) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (3) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (4) United Nations Statistical Division. Population and Vital Statistics Reprot (various years), (5) U.S. Census Bureau: International Database, and (6) Secretariat of the Pacific Community: Statistics and Demography Programme.; Weighted average;

In 2023, the annual population growth in Japan stood at -0.49 percent. Between 1961 and 2023, the figure dropped by 1.39 percentage points, though the decline followed an uneven course rather than a steady trajectory.

Graph and download economic data for Infra-Annual Labor Statistics: Working-Age Population Total: From 15 to 64 Years for Japan (LFWA64TTJPM647S) from Jan 1970 to Jul 2025 about working-age, 15 to 64 years, Japan, and population.

Population growth (annual %) in Japan was reported at --0.43565 % in 2024, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Japan - Population growth (annual %) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on September of 2025.

Population ages 60-64, male (% of male population) in Japan was reported at 6.3225 % in 2024, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Japan - Population ages 50-64, male (% of male population) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on September of 2025.

Japan Population Census: Age 45 to 49 Years data was reported at 8,662,804.000 Person in 2015. This records an increase from the previous number of 8,033,116.000 Person for 2010. Japan Population Census: Age 45 to 49 Years data is updated yearly, averaging 5,439,514.500 Person from Dec 1920 (Median) to 2015, with 20 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 10,618,366.000 Person in 1995 and a record low of 2,658,567.000 Person in 1920. Japan Population Census: Age 45 to 49 Years data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Statistical Bureau. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Japan – Table JP.G002: Population: Annual.

Population ages 65 and above (% of total population) in Japan was reported at 29.78 % in 2024, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Japan - Population ages 65 and above (% of total) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on October of 2025.

In 2023, the total population in Japan slightly decreased to just below *** million people compared to the previous year, with the female population reaching around **** million, as compared to **** million men. The oldest population in the world  Japanese society is facing severe demographic problems such as decreasing birthrates, remaining under *** million births annually recently, and a thereby aging population. The country’s average age lies at around ** years, making its population the oldest in the world. Elderly people aged 65 years and older accounted for about ** percent of the population in 2023. According to a forecast, this age group would make up approximately ** percent of the Japanese population by 2070. Challenges with the demographic shift The rapid aging of the society poses significant economic and sociopolitical challenges to the country, as the workforce will continue to shrink while increasingly more elderly will receive long-term support. Currently, close to ***** million Japanese require long-term care, leading to national benefit expenses of over ** trillion yen annually, including in-home and community-based services.

Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) in Japan was reported at 11.44 % in 2024, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Japan - Population ages 0-14 (% of total) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on October of 2025.

Population ages 15-64 (% of total population) in Japan was reported at 58.78 % in 2024, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Japan - Population ages 15-64 (% of total) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on October of 2025.

Population, male (% of total population) in Japan was reported at 48.78 % in 2024, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Japan - Population, male (% of total) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on September of 2025.

Japan: Population size, in millions: The latest value from 2024 is 123.98 million, a decline from 124.52 million in 2023. In comparison, the world average is 41.28 million, based on data from 196 countries. Historically, the average for Japan from 1960 to 2024 is 118.6 million. The minimum value, 93.22 million, was reached in 1960 while the maximum of 128.07 million was recorded in 2010.