In 2025, Pakistan had the highest crude birth rate among the South Asian countries, with a crude birth rate of **** live births per 1,000 of the population. Comparatively, there were **** live births for every 1,000 of the population in the Maldives in 2025.

In 2024, Niger recorded the highest crude birth rates in Africa, with 46.6 births recorded per 1,000 inhabitants. Angola, followed with 41.1 births per 1,000 population, whereas the rate in Benin and Mali stood above 40. In Niger, Uganda, Angola, and Mali, the population's median age is under 17 years old. Especially, Niger ranks as the country with the youngest population in Africa and worldwide, with a median age of 15.1 years.

In 2025, Timor-Leste had the highest crude birth rate among the Southeast Asian countries, with a crude birth rate of **** live births per 1,000 of the population. In comparison, there were ***** live births per 1,000 of the population in Thailand in 2025.

The average for 2022 based on 196 countries was 18.19 births per 1000 people. The highest value was in the Central African Republic: 45.42 births per 1000 people and the lowest value was in Hong Kong: 4.4 births per 1000 people. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Crude birth rates, age-specific fertility rates and total fertility rates (live births), 2000 to most recent year.

For most of the past two centuries, falling birth rates have been associated with societal progress. During the demographic transition, where pre-industrial societies modernize in terms of fertility and mortality, falling death rates, especially among infants and children, are the first major change. In response, as more children survive into adulthood, women have fewer children as the need to compensate for child mortality declines. This transition has happened at different times across the world and is an ongoing process, with early industrial countries being the first to transition, and Sub-Saharan African countries being the most recent to do so. Additionally, some Asian countries (particularly China through government policy) have gone through their demographic transitions at a much faster pace than those deemed more developed. Today, in countries such as Japan, Italy, and Germany, birth rates have fallen well below death rates; this is no longer considered a positive demographic trend, as it leads to natural population decline, and may create an over-aged population that could place a burden on healthcare systems.

Graph and download economic data for Crude Birth Rate for the United States (SPDYNCBRTINUSA) from 1960 to 2023 about birth, crude, rate, and USA.

Niger had the highest birth rate in the world in 2024, with a birth rate of 46.6 births per 1,000 inhabitants. Angola, Benin, Mali, and Uganda followed. Except for Afghanistan, all 20 countries with the highest birth rates in the world were located in Sub-Saharan Africa. High infant mortality The reasons behind the high birth rates in many Sub-Saharan African countries are manyfold, but a major reason is that infant mortality remains high on the continent, despite decreasing steadily over the past decades, resulting in high birth rates to counter death rates. Moreover, many nations in Sub-Saharan Africa are highly reliant on small-scale farming, meaning that more hands are of importance. Additionally, polygamy is not uncommon in the region, and having many children is often seen as a symbol of status. Fastest-growing populations As the high fertility rates coincide with decreasing death rates, countries in Sub-Saharan Africa have the highest population growth rates in the world. As a result, Africa's population is forecast to increase from 1.4 billion in 2022 to over 3.9 billion by 2100.

Eurostat’s annual data collections on demographic and migration statistics are structured as follows:

• NOWCAST: Annual data collection on provisional monthly data on live births and deaths covering at least six months of the reference year (Article 4.3 of the Commission implementing regulation (EU) No 205/2014).
• DEMOBAL (Demographic balance): Annual data collection on provisional data on population, total live births and total deaths at national level (Article 4.1 of the Commission implementing regulation (EU) No 205/2014).
• POPSTAT (Population statistics): The most in-depth annual national and regional demographic and migration data collection. The data relate to populations, births, deaths, immigrants, emigrants, marriages and divorces, and is broken down into several categories (Article 3 of Regulation (EU) No 1260/2013 and Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 862/2007).

The aim is to collect annual mandatory and voluntary demographic data from the national statistical institutes. Mandatory data are those defined by the legislation listed under ‘6.1. Institutional mandate - legal acts and other agreements’.

The completeness of the demographic data collected on a voluntary basis depends on the availability and completeness of information provided by the national statistical institutes. For more information on mandatory/voluntary data collection, see 6.1. Institutional mandate - legal acts and other agreements’.

The following statistics on live births are collected from the National Statistical Institutes:

• Live births by month of occurrence;
• Live births by mother's age, year of birth and by:
  • region (NUTS 2) of residence
  • region (NUTS 3) of residence
  • mother's country of birth
  • mother's country of citizenship
  • live-birth order
  • sex of the new-born
  • mother's legal marital status
  • employment status of the mother
  • mother's educational attainment (ISCED 2011);
• Live births by birth weight and duration of gestation;
• Legally induced abortions by mother's age and parity;
• Late fœtal deaths by mother's age.

Statistics on fertility: based on the different breakdowns of data on live births and on legally induced abortions received, Eurostat produces the following:

• Statistics available in the online table Population change - Demographic balance and crude rates at national level (demo_gind):
  • natural change of the population, crude birth rate;
• Statistics available in the online table Fertility indicators (demo_find):
  • the proportion of live births outside marriage
  • total fertility rate
  • the mean age of women at childbirth
  • the mean age of women at the birth of first / second / third / fourth and higher child
  • the median age of women at childbirth
  • the percentage of first / second / third / fourth and higher live births Fertility rates by age (demo_frate);
• Fertility rates by age and NUTS 2 region (demo_r_frate2);
• Total fertility rate by NUTS 3 region (demo_r_frate3);
• Statistics available in the online table Abortion indicators (demo_fabortind):
  • abortion rate
  • abortion ratio

In 2025, Mongolia had the highest crude birth rate among East Asian countries or regions, with a crude birth rate of **** live births per 1,000 of the population. Comparatively, South Korea had *** live births per 1,000 of the population in 2025.

Definition:The crude birth rate is the annual number of live births per 1,000 population.Method of measurementThe crude birth rate is generally computed as a ratio. The numerator is the number of live births observed in a population during a reference period and the denominator is the number of person-years lived by the population during the same period. It is expressed as births per 1,000 population. Method of estimation:Data are taken from the most recent UN Population Division's "World Population Prospects". Other possible data sources:Population censusHousehold surveysPreferred data sources:Civil registration with complete coverageExpected frequency of data dissemination:Biennial (Two years)Data collected March 5, 2021 from: https://www.who.int/data/maternal-newborn-child-adolescent-ageing/indicator-explorer-new/mca/crude-birth-rate-(births-per-1000-population)

The number of live births per 1,000 population in the world decreased over the past 30 years. In 1990, the crude birth rate was at **, whereas it had dropped below **** by 2022. In 2023, Niger was the country with the highest global birth rate.

Crude birth rates, age-specific fertility rates and total fertility rates (live births), 2000 to most recent year.

Egypt: The number of crude births per 1000 people, per year: The latest value from 2023 is 21 births per 1000 people, a decline from 21.09 births per 1000 people in 2022. In comparison, the world average is 17.86 births per 1000 people, based on data from 196 countries. Historically, the average for Egypt from 1960 to 2023 is 33.68 births per 1000 people. The minimum value, 21 births per 1000 people, was reached in 2023 while the maximum of 47.47 births per 1000 people was recorded in 1960.

Mexico: The number of crude births per 1000 people, per year: The latest value from 2023 is 15.71 births per 1000 people, a decline from 16.04 births per 1000 people in 2022. In comparison, the world average is 17.86 births per 1000 people, based on data from 196 countries. Historically, the average for Mexico from 1960 to 2023 is 30.32 births per 1000 people. The minimum value, 15.71 births per 1000 people, was reached in 2023 while the maximum of 46.86 births per 1000 people was recorded in 1960.

State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) Crude Birth Rate: per 1000 Population: Gaza Strip data was reported at 34.400 NA in 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 34.700 NA for 2017. State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) Crude Birth Rate: per 1000 Population: Gaza Strip data is updated yearly, averaging 37.250 NA from Dec 1997 (Median) to 2018, with 18 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 45.400 NA in 1997 and a record low of 34.400 NA in 2018. State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) Crude Birth Rate: per 1000 Population: Gaza Strip data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under Global Database’s State of Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) – Table PS.G002: Vital Statistics.

Italy IT: Birth Rate: Crude: per 1000 People data was reported at 7.800 Ratio in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 8.000 Ratio for 2015. Italy IT: Birth Rate: Crude: per 1000 People data is updated yearly, averaging 10.000 Ratio from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2016, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 19.700 Ratio in 1964 and a record low of 7.800 Ratio in 2016. Italy IT: Birth Rate: Crude: per 1000 People data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Italy – Table IT.World Bank.WDI: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Crude birth rate indicates the number of live births occurring during the year, per 1,000 population estimated at midyear. Subtracting the crude death rate from the crude birth rate provides the rate of natural increase, which is equal to the rate of population change in the absence of migration.; ; (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 Japan, the crude birth rate in 1800 was 29.6 live births per thousand people, meaning that approximately three percent of the population had been born in that year. From 1800 to 1865, Japan's crude birth rate rose gradually to around 34 births per thousand people, before dropping relatively sharply to 25 over the next ten years. This was a time of great social and economic reform in Japan, as the country became increasingly urbanized and industrialized. Japan's crude birth rate reached it's highest recorded point in the early 1920s, where the number was almost 35 births per thousand people, and since then it has been decreasing gradually. There were two times in the twentieth century where Japan's crude birth rate increased, after the Second World War, and during the period of economic prosperity in the 1960s and 70s. Since 1975, Japan's crude birth rate has gradually decreased to it's lowest recorded rate ever, and is expected to be at just 7.5 births per thousand people in 2020, making it the second lowest in the world (behind Monaco).

Afghanistan: The number of crude births per 1000 people, per year: The latest value from 2023 is 35.44 births per 1000 people, a decline from 36.04 births per 1000 people in 2022. In comparison, the world average is 17.86 births per 1000 people, based on data from 196 countries. Historically, the average for Afghanistan from 1960 to 2023 is 47.83 births per 1000 people. The minimum value, 35.44 births per 1000 people, was reached in 2023 while the maximum of 55.19 births per 1000 people was recorded in 1981.

Kyrgyzstan: The number of crude births per 1000 people, per year: The latest value from 2023 is 20.6 births per 1000 people, a decline from 21.5 births per 1000 people in 2022. In comparison, the world average is 17.86 births per 1000 people, based on data from 196 countries. Historically, the average for Kyrgyzstan from 1960 to 2023 is 28.89 births per 1000 people. The minimum value, 19.8 births per 1000 people, was reached in 2000 while the maximum of 41.55 births per 1000 people was recorded in 1960.