As of 2023, ******* was the largest country in the European Union in terms of population. The central European country comprised almost one-fifth of the total population of the EU in that year, with ****** in second place with ***** percent, and ***** in third at ***** percent. While there are ** member states of the European Union in total, approximately two-thirds of the population of the bloc is made up by the * largest countries: Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Poland, Romania, and the Netherlands. Of the remaining ** member states, no country makes up more than * percent of the EU's total population, with the smallest country, Malta, comprising just **** percent of the total.

In 2024, Italy and Portugal were the European countries with the largest share of elderly population, with ** percent of the total population aged 65 years and older. Bulgaria, Finland, and Greece were the countries with the next highest shares of elderly people in their population, while the European Union on average had **** percent of the population being elderly. Iceland, Ireland, and Luxembourg had around ** percent of their population being elderly, while Türkiye and Azerbaijan had around ** percent.

The average for 2023 based on 47 countries was 51.06 percent. The highest value was in Moldova: 53.98 percent and the lowest value was in Malta: 48.11 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

The average for 2023 based on 47 countries was 0.22 percent. The highest value was in Russia: 1.8 percent and the lowest value was in Andorra: 0 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

The population of Europe was estimated to be 745 million in 2024, an increase of around 4 million when compared with 2012. Over 35 years between 1950 and 1985, the population of Europe grew by approximately 157.8 million. But 35 years after 1985 it was estimated to have only increased by around 38.7 million. Since the 1960s, population growth in Europe has fallen quite significantly and was even negative during the mid-1990s. While population growth has increased slightly since the low of -0.07 percent in 1998, the growth rate for 2020 was just 0.04 percent. Which European country has the biggest population? As of 2024, the population of Russia was estimated to be approximately 144.8 million and was by far Europe's largest country in terms of population, with Turkey being the second-largest at over 87 million. While these two countries both have territory in Europe, however, they are both only partially in Europe, with the majority of their landmasses being in Asia. In terms of countries wholly located on the European continent, Germany had the highest population at 84.5 million, and was followed by the United Kingdom and France at 69.1 million and 66.5 million respectively. Characteristics of Europe's population There are approximately 384.6 million females in Europe, compared with 359.5 million males, a difference of around 25 million. In 1950, however, the male population has grown faster than the female one, with the male population growing by 104.7 million, and the female one by 93.6 million. As of 2024, the single year of age with the highest population was 37, at 10.6 million, while in the same year there were estimated to be around 136 thousand people aged 100 or over.

Sweden - Population as a % of EU population was 2.30% in December of 2024, according to the EUROSTAT. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for Sweden - Population as a % of EU population - last updated from the EUROSTAT on August of 2025. Historically, Sweden - Population as a % of EU population reached a record high of 2.40% in December of 2023 and a record low of 2.10% in December of 2011.

This statistic shows the total population of the European Union from 2010 to 2023. The population is based on data from the most recent census adjusted by the components of population change produced since the last census, or based on population registers. At the beginning of 2023, the total population of the European Union amounted to approximately 448.38 million inhabitants. See figures for the total population by continent here. The global population The global population is rapidly increasing. Between 1990 and 2015, the global population has increased by around 2 billion people, and it is estimated to have increased by another 1 billion people by 2030. Asia is the continent in the world with the largest population, followed by Africa and Europe. Asia has the two most populous nations in the world: China and India. In 2014, the combined population in China and India amounted to more than 2.6 billion people. The total population in Europe is around 741 million people. As of 2014, about 10.2 percent of the global population lived in Europe. Europe is the continent with the second highest life expectancy at birth in the world. Born in 2013, the average European was estimated to live for around 78 years. Stable economies as well as developing and emerging markets in Europe provide for good living conditions for foreign nationals; seven of the top twenty countries in the world with the largest gross domestic product in 2024 are located in Europe.

The average for 2023 based on 47 countries was 26.9 percent. The highest value was in Liechtenstein: 85.38 percent and the lowest value was in Gibraltar: 0 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Share of population in a certain age group compared to the total population.

European Population Connected to Wastewater Treatment Share by Country (Thousand Units (Persons)), 2023 Discover more data with ReportLinker!

European Union - Share of total population considering their dwelling as too dark: Females was 6.70% in December of 2024, according to the EUROSTAT. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for European Union - Share of total population considering their dwelling as too dark: Females - last updated from the EUROSTAT on July of 2025. Historically, European Union - Share of total population considering their dwelling as too dark: Females reached a record high of 6.80% in December of 2021 and a record low of 4.90% in December of 2019.

European Union - Share of total population having neither a bath, nor a shower in their dwelling: Females was 1.60% in December of 2021, according to the EUROSTAT. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for European Union - Share of total population having neither a bath, nor a shower in their dwelling: Females - last updated from the EUROSTAT on July of 2025. Historically, European Union - Share of total population having neither a bath, nor a shower in their dwelling: Females reached a record high of 3.20% in December of 2010 and a record low of 1.60% in December of 2021.

Globally, about 25 percent of the population is under 15 years of age and 10 percent is over 65 years of age. Africa has the youngest population worldwide. In Sub-Saharan Africa, more than 40 percent of the population is below 15 years, and only three percent are above 65, indicating the low life expectancy in several of the countries. In Europe, on the other hand, a higher share of the population is above 65 years than the population under 15 years. Fertility rates The high share of children and youth in Africa is connected to the high fertility rates on the continent. For instance, South Sudan and Niger have the highest population growth rates globally. However, about 50 percent of the world’s population live in countries with low fertility, where women have less than 2.1 children. Some countries in Europe, like Latvia and Lithuania, have experienced a population decline of one percent, and in the Cook Islands, it is even above two percent. In Europe, the majority of the population was previously working-aged adults with few dependents, but this trend is expected to reverse soon, and it is predicted that by 2050, the older population will outnumber the young in many developed countries. Growing global population As of 2025, there are 8.1 billion people living on the planet, and this is expected to reach more than nine billion before 2040. Moreover, the global population is expected to reach 10 billions around 2060, before slowing and then even falling slightly by 2100. As the population growth rates indicate, a significant share of the population increase will happen in Africa.

The average for 2023 based on 47 countries was 73.11 percent. The highest value was in Gibraltar: 100 percent and the lowest value was in Liechtenstein: 14.62 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

The average for 2023 based on 27 countries was 74.4 percent. The highest value was in Belgium: 98.19 percent and the lowest value was in Slovakia: 54.03 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

The Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), is a longitudinal micro-data infrastructure created in response to a communication by the European Commission (2000) to the Council and the European Parliament, which identified population ageing and its social and economic challenges to growth and prosperity to be among the most pressing challenges of the 21st century in Europe. SHARE has also become one of the most prestigious social science infrastructures and was in 2011 the first to be appointed a European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC) by the European Council.The overarching objective of SHARE is to better understand the interactions between bio-medical factors, the socio-economic environment and policy interventions in the ageing European populations. SHARE aims to achieve this objective by providing a research infrastructure for fundamental science as well as a tool for policy evaluation and design. Initiated in 2002, SHARE is scheduled to launch, all in all, 10 data collection waves. At present eight waves have been fulfilled and seven waves are available to the research community.

Please also cite the following publications in addition to the SHARE acknowledgement:

Malter, F. and A. Börsch-Supan (Eds.) (2017). SHARE Wave 6: Panel innovations and collecting Dried Blood Spots. Munich: Munich Center for the Economics of Aging (MEA). Börsch-Supan, A., Brandt, M., Hunkler, C., Kneip, T., Korbmacher, J., Malter, F., Schaan, B., Stuck, S. and Zuber, S. (2013). Data Resource Profile: The Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). International Journal of Epidemiology DOI: 10.1093/ije/dyt088.

The average for 2023 based on 27 countries was 0.21 percent. The highest value was in Germany: 1.06 percent and the lowest value was in Luxembourg: 0.01 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

The average for 2023 based on 27 countries was 25.6 percent. The highest value was in Slovakia: 45.97 percent and the lowest value was in Belgium: 1.81 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Graph and download economic data for Population Growth for the European Union (SPPOPGROWEUU) from 1961 to 2024 about EU, Europe, population, and rate.

The average for 2021 based on 38 countries was 91.69 percent. The highest value was in Denmark: 100 percent and the lowest value was in Albania: 44.17 percent. The indicator is available from 2011 to 2021. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.