In 2023, there were approximately 631,970 people living in Glasgow, with a further 523,250 people living in the Scottish capital, Edinburgh, the first and second most-populated Scottish council areas respectively. The region of Fife is also heavily populated, with approximately 373,210 people living there. The least populated areas are the islands of Scotland such as Orkney, estimated to have only 22,000 people there.

Scotland Population Count 2022 by output area. Derived from the May 2024 Census release table "UV101b - Usual resident population by sex by age and joined to the latest output area geographies". Only the all people figures have been included.Default symbology is for population density.Data was mapped by the Glasgow City Region Intelligence Hub.Census tables from https://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/documents/2022-output-area-data/Further census information available here https://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/

There were 514 settlements in Scotland in mid-2020. This is 5 fewer than in 2016, due to some settlements merging or falling below the threshold of 500 people. The population living in settlements and localities was 4,974,670. The population living outside settlements was 491,330. 91% of Scotland’s population lived in settlements and localities, which accounted for 2.3% of Scotland’s total land area. The largest settlement in Scotland was Greater Glasgow with a population of 1,028,220. Nearly 1 in 5 people living in Scotland in mid-2020 lived in Greater Glasgow. Almost all of Glasgow City’s and Dundee City’s population lived in a settlement (99.8% in both). In contrast, less than a third of Na h-Eileanan Siar’s population lived in a settlement (29.4%).

Data shows projected population for Glasgow City Council (2012 Based) for the years 2012-2037. A projection is a calculation which shows what happens if particular assumptions are made. It is important to have high quality statistics on projected population change as this can be used for policy development, planning and providing public services in different geographical areas. They are used in central and local finance allocation, informing the provision of nurseries or day care centres, informing local and national policy, housing and land use planning, health care planning among others. They are trends based and not policy based of what the government expects to happen. They are affected by many social and economic factors including policies adopted by the central and local governments. The assumptions made for the datasets are based on the trends in 2012 and this is due to change in the following years as affected by factors listed above. More information about Population Projections can be found here (c) Crown copyright. Data supplied by National Records of Scotland Website Licence: None migration-assumption-for-principal-projection-2012.json - https://dataservices.open.glasgow.gov.uk/Download/Organisation/cb95330b-d7c0-472b-b3a7-a1b520bffd18/Dataset/fd581213-acd9-4c64-a8af-ddb1313872ba/File/0d3a8cdb-7501-44fe-acdf-4424b64aba91/Version/c6ce2385-4d55-474b-be48-f5197b723355 population-projection-by-sex-and-age-group-2012-based.json - https://dataservices.open.glasgow.gov.uk/Download/Organisation/cb95330b-d7c0-472b-b3a7-a1b520bffd18/Dataset/fd581213-acd9-4c64-a8af-ddb1313872ba/File/ba3aae9d-01f1-4111-9fc6-79a463292046/Version/2d3aa181-e0d1-4cd3-ab07-6df09c2d896e projected-births-in-glasgow.json - https://dataservices.open.glasgow.gov.uk/Download/Organisation/cb95330b-d7c0-472b-b3a7-a1b520bffd18/Dataset/fd581213-acd9-4c64-a8af-ddb1313872ba/File/e6e0d838-da42-4d11-84a4-8761621817dc/Version/07d94424-6d8a-4dd0-8234-24593df050a8 projected-pop-change-in-glasgow-2012-based.json - https://dataservices.open.glasgow.gov.uk/Download/Organisation/cb95330b-d7c0-472b-b3a7-a1b520bffd18/Dataset/fd581213-acd9-4c64-a8af-ddb1313872ba/File/21d74834-681b-42ff-b25e-e5eaabc05781/Version/ae2016b2-349c-4cc7-a34d-583a49556d3d

The population of the United Kingdom in 2023 was estimated to be approximately 68.3 million in 2023, with almost 9.48 million people living in South East England. London had the next highest population, at over 8.9 million people, followed by the North West England at 7.6 million. With the UK's population generally concentrated in England, most English regions have larger populations than the constituent countries of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, which had populations of 5.5 million, 3.16 million, and 1.92 million respectively. English counties and cities The United Kingdom is a patchwork of various regional units, within England the largest of these are the regions shown here, which show how London, along with the rest of South East England had around 18 million people living there in this year. The next significant regional units in England are the 47 metropolitan and ceremonial counties. After London, the metropolitan counties of the West Midlands, Greater Manchester, and West Yorkshire were the biggest of these counties, due to covering the large urban areas of Birmingham, Manchester, and Leeds respectively. Regional divisions in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland The smaller countries that comprise the United Kingdom each have different local subdivisions. Within Scotland these are called council areas whereas in Wales the main regional units are called unitary authorities. Scotland's largest Council Area by population is that of Glasgow City at over 622,000, while in Wales, it was the Cardiff Unitary Authority at around 372,000. Northern Ireland, on the other hand, has eleven local government districts, the largest of which is Belfast with a population of around 348,000.

Estimates of usually resident population and households on census day; 27th of March 2011. The recent census in Scotland took place on the 27th of March 2011. Its main aim is to have a view of the changes in the size and characteristics of the population in Scotland. (c) Crown copyright, 2013. Data supplied by National Records of Scotland Website Licence: None

This dataset portrays the boundaries of ‘Settlements’ in Scotland as at 2001 Census.

There is widespread interest in statistics for the built-up areas in Scotland as most of the population lives in a built-up environment. When the former two-tier local government structure of regions and districts came into being in May 1975, the small local authorities known as large and small burghs were lost. However, Census users stated that there was a need to know the population (and characteristics) of built-up areas.

There are 2 datasets which are designed to show the boundaries of ‘urban areas’ in Scotland: ‘Localities’ and ‘Settlements’. While “Settlements’ can go a long way in defining the towns and cities in Scotland, some are very extensive and have grouped together some very large populations. For example the settlement of ‘Greater Glasgow’ has a large population but no breakdown was given of the settlement into any constituent towns or cities such as Airdrie or Paisley. Accordingly, since 2001, the larger ‘Settlements’ have been divided into ‘Localities’ using as a basis the areas so designated in the 1991 Census report ‘Key statistics for ‘localities’ in Scotland (ISBN 0-11-495736-3)’.

For the 2001 Census, NRS had developed a new process to identify ‘Settlements’ which were defined as:

‘A collection of contiguous high population density postcodes whose total population was 500 or more, bounded by low density postcodes (or water).’

Death rates for all causes (per 100,000 population) for Glasgow City and Scotland for males, females and all persons for all ages or under 75 years. The rates are age-standardised using the 1976 European Standard Population (ESP1976), in order to show trends in mortality after taking account of changes in the distribution by age of the Scottish population. See Age-standardised death rates using the European Standard Population for explanation of the difference in age-standardised death rates when 1976 ESP is used compared to those calculated using the age of the population of Scotland. Data extracted 2014-04-08 from the General Register Office for Scotland Licence: None

Death rates for all causes (per 1,000 population) for Glasgow and Scotland from 1991 to 2012. The Glasgow death rates are given for the crude death rate or as standardised using the age/sex- specific rates for Scotland. They were calculated using the 'rebased' mid-year population estimates for 2002 to 2011. More information about this is available from Births and Deaths Rates: breaks in series circa 2011 Data extracted 2014-04-09 from the General Register Office for Scotland Licence: None

This section provides annual mid-year population estimates for the 73 Scottish Parliamentary Constituencies (SPCs). The constituency boundaries and names correspond to those defined for the 2021 Scottish Parliament elections. The population estimates are available for each year from 2001 onwards broken down by sex and single year of age. Parliamentary constituency boundaries may change from one election to the next. A constituency in the 2021 elections may have a different boundary from one with the same name in earlier elections. These estimates show how the populations in 2021 SPCs have changed over time. Populations for SPCs are based on data zone population estimates where each data zone has been assigned to a particular SPC on a ‘best-fit’ basis. Where a data zone crosses the boundary of two (or more) SPCs it was assigned to the constituency containing the location of the population-weighted centroid of the data zone. More information on data zone population estimates is available on the Small Area Population Estimates section of this website. Work carried out using 2011 Census data suggested that SPC population estimates based on 2011 Data Zones were within 2.5 per cent of the ‘true’ (that is Postcode based) population for 71 out of the 73 Scottish Parliamentary Constituencies. The estimates for the remaining two SPCs (Glasgow Maryhill and Springburn and Glasgow Kelvin) have been adjusted to account for a boundary problem. The Evaluation of Non Standard Geography Population Estimates report on this website gives further information on the data used in the process.

This dataset portrays the boundaries of ‘Settlements’ in Scotland. There is widespread interest in statistics for the built-up areas in Scotland as most of the population lives in a built-up environment. When the former two-tier local government structure of regions and districts came into being in May 1975, the small local authorities known as large and small burghs were lost. However, Census users stated that there was a need to know the population (and characteristics) of built-up areas. There are 2 datasets which are designed to show the boundaries of ‘urban areas’ in Scotland: ‘Localities’ and ‘Settlements’. While “Settlements’ can go a long way in defining the towns and cities in Scotland, some are very extensive and have grouped together some very large populations. For example the settlement of ‘Greater Glasgow’ has a large population but no breakdown was given of the settlement into any constituent towns or cities such as Airdrie or Paisley. Accordingly, since 2001, the larger ‘Settlements’ have been divided into ‘Localities’ using as a basis the areas so designated in the 1991 Census report ‘Key statistics for ‘localities’ in Scotland (ISBN 0-11-495736-3)’. For the 2001 Census, NRS had developed a new process to identify ‘Settlements’ which were defined as: ‘A collection of contiguous high population density postcodes whose total population was 500 or more, bounded by low density postcodes (or water).’ After 2001, Geography Branch NRS, created a Settlement boundary dataset for the years 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2010. The current dataset, created in 2010, will be superseded by 2012 Settlements which will be created from the 2012 small area population estimates which in turn are based on the 2011 Census data.

Sensitivity analysis of RR of journey stages being made by active means. (XLSX 13 kb)

London was by far the largest urban agglomeration in the United Kingdom in 2025, with an estimated population of *** million people, more than three times as large as Manchester, the UK’s second-biggest urban agglomeration. The agglomerations of Birmingham and Leeds / Bradford had the third and fourth-largest populations, respectively, while the biggest city in Scotland, Glasgow, was the fifth largest. Largest cities in Europe Two cities in Europe had larger urban areas than London, with Istanbul having a population of around **** million and the Russian capital Moscow having a population of over **** million. The city of Paris, located just over 200 miles away from London, was the second-largest city in Europe, with a population of more than **** million people. Paris was followed by London in terms of population size, and then by the Spanish cities of Madrid and Barcelona, at *** million and *** million people, respectively. The Italian capital, Rome, was the next largest city at *** million, followed by Berlin at *** million. London’s population growth Throughout the 1980s, the population of London fluctuated from a high of **** million people in 1981 to a low of **** million inhabitants in 1988. During the 1990s, the population of London increased once again, growing from ****million at the start of the decade to **** million by 1999. London's population has continued to grow since the turn of the century, and despite declining between 2019 and 2021, it reached *** million people in 2023 and is forecast to reach almost *** million by 2047.

In 2023, the population of the United Kingdom reached 68.3 million, compared with 67.6 million in 2022. The UK population has more than doubled since 1871 when just under 31.5 million lived in the UK and has grown by around 8.2 million since the start of the twenty-first century. For most of the twentieth century, the UK population steadily increased, with two noticeable drops in population occurring during World War One (1914-1918) and in World War Two (1939-1945). Demographic trends in postwar Britain After World War Two, Britain and many other countries in the Western world experienced a 'baby boom,' with a postwar peak of 1.02 million live births in 1947. Although the number of births fell between 1948 and 1955, they increased again between the mid-1950s and mid-1960s, with more than one million people born in 1964. Since 1964, however, the UK birth rate has fallen from 18.8 births per 1,000 people to a low of just 10.2 in 2020. As a result, the UK population has gotten significantly older, with the country's median age increasing from 37.9 years in 2001 to 40.7 years in 2022. What are the most populated areas of the UK? The vast majority of people in the UK live in England, which had a population of 57.7 million people in 2023. By comparison, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland had populations of 5.44 million, 3.13 million, and 1.9 million, respectively. Within England, South East England had the largest population, at over 9.38 million, followed by the UK's vast capital city of London, at 8.8 million. London is far larger than any other UK city in terms of urban agglomeration, with just four other cities; Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, and Glasgow, boasting populations that exceed one million people.

This project dataset investigated pain medication prescribing patterns in adults with intellectual disabilities compared to a general population cohort. It was used to examine the impact of multimorbidity, polypharmacy and clinical/demographic factors on prescribing. It was also used to assess whether pain medication prescribing is associated with health outcomes like hospitalization and mortality. The cohort consists of over 10,700 adults with intellectual disabilities. The aim of the dataset was to increase understanding of pain medication use and its implications considering multimorbidity and polypharmacy.

This DECC dataset accompanies the gas and electricity consumption datasets at the intermediate geography areas in Scotland. The details of population size, geographical size (in hectares) and number of households of the intermediate geography areas allow users to gain an appreciation of the composition of the individual areas. The Intermediate Geography Code and Name; the mid year Population estimates; Area (hectares) and number of dwellings were obtained by DECC from Scottish Neighbourhood Statistics 2011 data. DECC provide a methodology and guidance chapter and an accompanying factsheet Data extracted 2014-03-08 from Socio-economic data for MLSOA, IGZ and LLSOA electricity and gas estimates Licence: None

There were 355 drug-related deaths in the Greater Glasgow and Clyde NHS board area in 2023, the highest figure in Scotland in this year. Although it should be noted that the Greater Glasgow and Clyde area is the NHS board with the highest population in Scotland. Additionally, there were over a hundred drug-related deaths in the Lothian and Lanarkshire health boards.

In 2023, almost nine million people lived in Greater London, making it the most populated ceremonial county in England. The West Midlands Metropolitan County, which contains the large city of Birmingham, was the second-largest county at 2.98 million inhabitants, followed by Greater Manchester and then West Yorkshire with populations of 2.95 million and 2.4 million, respectively. Kent, Essex, and Hampshire were the three next-largest counties in terms of population, each with around 1.89 million people. A patchwork of regions England is just one of the four countries that compose the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, with England, Scotland and Wales making up Great Britain. England is therefore not to be confused with Great Britain or the United Kingdom as a whole. Within England, the next subdivisions are the nine regions of England, containing various smaller units such as unitary authorities, metropolitan counties and non-metropolitan districts. The counties in this statistic, however, are based on the ceremonial counties of England as defined by the Lieutenancies Act of 1997. Regions of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland Like England, the other countries of the United Kingdom have their own regional subdivisions, although with some different terminology. Scotland’s subdivisions are council areas, while Wales has unitary authorities, and Northern Ireland has local government districts. As of 2022, the most-populated Scottish council area was Glasgow City, with over 622,000 inhabitants. In Wales, Cardiff had the largest population among its unitary authorities, and in Northern Ireland, Belfast was the local government area with the most people living there.

According a walking and cycling survey in 2021, the majority of the population in Scottish cities reported to have walked *** to ***** times a week during the past seven days for the purpose of transport. Edinburgh and Glasgow had the highest share of residents who walked more than ** times a week at a share of ** and ** percent, respectively, whereas Inverness had the highest share of residents that didn't walk at all in the previous seven days for the purpose of traveling at a rate of ** percent.

This section provides annual mid-year population estimates for the 59 UK Parliamentary Constituencies (UKPCs) in Scotland. The constituency boundaries and names correspond to those defined for the 2005 UK Parliament elections. The population estimates are available for each year from 2001 onwards for 2011 Data Zones, broken down by sex and single year of age. Parliamentary constituency boundaries may change from one election to the next. A constituency in the 2005 elections may have a different boundary from one with the same name in earlier elections. These estimates show how the populations in 2005 UKPCs have changed over time. Populations for UKPCs are based on data zone population estimates where each data zone has been assigned to a particular UKPC. Where a data zone crosses the boundary of two (or more) UKPCs it was assigned to the constituency containing the location of the population-weighted centroid of the data zone. Work carried out using 2011 Census data suggested that UKPC population estimates based on 2011 Data Zones were within 2.5 per cent of the ‘true’ (that is Postcode based) population for 57 out of the 59 UK Parliamentary Constituencies. The estimates for the remaining two UKPCs (Glasgow North West and Glasgow North) have been adjusted to account for a boundary problem. The Evaluation of Non Standard Geography Population Estimates report on this website, gives further information on the data used in the quality assurance process. Maximum file size is 2 MB.