As of 2023, the population density in London was by far the highest number of people per square km in the UK, at *****. Of the other regions and countries which constitute the United Kingdom, North West England was the next most densely populated area at *** people per square kilometer. Scotland, by contrast, is the most sparsely populated country or region in the United Kingdom, with only ** people per square kilometer. Countries, regions, and cities According to the official mid-year population estimate, the population of the United Kingdom was just almost **** million in 2022. Most of the population lived in England, where an estimated **** million people resided, followed by Scotland at **** million, Wales at **** million and finally Northern Ireland at just over *** million. Within England, the South East was the region with the highest population at almost **** million, followed by the London region at around *** million. In terms of urban areas, Greater London is the largest city in the United Kingdom, followed by Greater Manchester and Birmingham in the North West and West Midlands regions of England. London calling London's huge size in relation to other UK cities is also reflected by its economic performance. In 2021, London's GDP was approximately *** billion British pounds, almost a quarter of UK GDP overall. In terms of GDP per capita, Londoners had a GDP per head of ****** pounds, compared with an average of ****** for the country as a whole. Productivity, expressed as by output per hour worked, was also far higher in London than the rest of the country. In 2021, London was around **** percent more productive than the rest of the country, with South East England the only other region where productivity was higher than the national average.

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.

National and subnational mid-year population estimates for the UK and its constituent countries by administrative area, age and sex (including components of population change, median age and population density).

United Kingdom UK: Population Density: People per Square Km data was reported at 272.898 Person/sq km in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 271.134 Person/sq km for 2016. United Kingdom UK: Population Density: People per Square Km data is updated yearly, averaging 235.922 Person/sq km from Dec 1961 (Median) to 2017, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 272.898 Person/sq km in 2017 and a record low of 218.245 Person/sq km in 1961. United Kingdom UK: Population Density: People per Square Km data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United Kingdom – Table UK.World Bank.WDI: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Population density is midyear population divided by land area in square kilometers. Population is based on the de facto definition of population, which counts all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship--except for refugees not permanently settled in the country of asylum, who are generally considered part of the population of their country of origin. Land area is a country's total area, excluding area under inland water bodies, national claims to continental shelf, and exclusive economic zones. In most cases the definition of inland water bodies includes major rivers and lakes.; ; Food and Agriculture Organization and World Bank population estimates.; Weighted average;

A classification of Scotland's Data Zones (2011 Census version), identifying those classified as sparsely populated: places where it is estimated that less than 10,000 people lived within 30 minutes' travel in 2011. This definition has been used in a body of research at the James Hutton Institute on demographic change: a previous version of the SPA, calculated for Output Areas, was developed and used in population projections (Copus and Hopkins, 2018: https://www.hutton.ac.uk/sites/default/files/files/research/srp2016-21/RD3.4.1%20Note%20WP1-3%20web%20-%20published.pdf) and this version has been used in further modelling of population change (Hopkins et al., 2022: https://www.hutton.ac.uk/sites/default/files/files/research/srp2016-21/rd341prospectsdemographicrecoveryinspas.pdf).

Further details of the calculation of the Sparsely Populated Areas geography, including raw data and software used, are contained in Hopkins and Piras (2020/2022: https://www.hutton.ac.uk/sites/default/files/files/research/srp2016-21/rd341briefprojectionsandforesightintro.pdf).

The dataset contains four fields:

DataZone: standard code representing each Data Zone

LOCALAUTHORITY: the local authority/council area which the Data Zone is in

PP: the estimated number of people living within 30 minutes' travel in 2011. This was calculated for Data Zones outside large settlements (those with a population of 20,000 or more), only.

SPAFLAG: a two-fold classification showing whether Data Zones are defined as sparsely populated or not.

United Kingdom UK: Educational Attainment: At Least Bachelor's or Equivalent: Population 25+ Years: Male: % Cumulative data was reported at 28.830 % in 2014. This records an increase from the previous number of 28.166 % for 2013. United Kingdom UK: Educational Attainment: At Least Bachelor's or Equivalent: Population 25+ Years: Male: % Cumulative data is updated yearly, averaging 28.498 % from Dec 2013 (Median) to 2014, with 2 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 28.830 % in 2014 and a record low of 28.166 % in 2013. United Kingdom UK: Educational Attainment: At Least Bachelor's or Equivalent: Population 25+ Years: Male: % Cumulative data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s UK – Table UK.World Bank: Education Statistics. The percentage of population ages 25 and over that attained or completed Bachelor's or equivalent.; ; UNESCO Institute for Statistics; ;

Population estimates provide statistics on the size and age structure of the population in the UK at country, region, county, and local authority level. They are the official source of estimated population size in between censuses and inform a wide range of official statistics.Persons included are all those people who usually live in an area, regardless of nationality. Arriving international migrants are included in the usually resident population if they remain in the UK for at least a year and emigrants are excluded if they remain outside the UK for at least a year. Students and school boarders are included at their term time address.

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.

This dataset provides Census 2021 estimates that classify usual residents in England and Wales by population density (number of usual residents per square kilometre). The estimates are as at Census Day, 21 March 2021.

Area type

Census 2021 statistics are published for a number of different geographies. These can be large, for example the whole of England, or small, for example an output area (OA), the lowest level of geography for which statistics are produced.

For higher levels of geography, more detailed statistics can be produced. When a lower level of geography is used, such as output areas (which have a minimum of 100 persons), the statistics produced have less detail. This is to protect the confidentiality of people and ensure that individuals or their characteristics cannot be identified.

Lower Tier Local Authorities

Lower tier local authorities provide a range of local services. In England there are 309 lower tier local authorities. These are made up of non-metropolitan districts (181), unitary authorities (59), metropolitan districts (36) and London boroughs (33, including City of London). In Wales there are 22 local authorities made up of 22 unitary authorities. Of these local authority types, only non-metropolitan districts are not additionally classified as upper tier local authorities.

According to the 2021 Census, there were 30.4 million (51.0%) women and girls and 29.2 million (49.0%) men and boys in England and Wales.

United Kingdom UK: Educational Attainment: At Least Master's or Equivalent: Population 25+ Years: Male: % Cumulative data was reported at 8.660 % in 2014. This records a decrease from the previous number of 8.690 % for 2013. United Kingdom UK: Educational Attainment: At Least Master's or Equivalent: Population 25+ Years: Male: % Cumulative data is updated yearly, averaging 8.675 % from Dec 2013 (Median) to 2014, with 2 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 8.690 % in 2013 and a record low of 8.660 % in 2014. United Kingdom UK: Educational Attainment: At Least Master's or Equivalent: Population 25+ Years: Male: % Cumulative data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s UK – Table UK.World Bank: Education Statistics. The percentage of population ages 25 and over that attained or completed Master's or equivalent.; ; UNESCO Institute for Statistics; ;

United Kingdom UK: People Using At Least Basic Sanitation Services: % of Population data was reported at 99.113 % in 2015. This records a decrease from the previous number of 99.114 % for 2014. United Kingdom UK: People Using At Least Basic Sanitation Services: % of Population data is updated yearly, averaging 99.121 % from Dec 2000 (Median) to 2015, with 16 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 99.130 % in 2000 and a record low of 99.113 % in 2015. United Kingdom UK: People Using At Least Basic Sanitation Services: % of Population data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United Kingdom – Table UK.World Bank.WDI: Health Statistics. The percentage of people using at least basic sanitation services, that is, improved sanitation facilities that are not shared with other households. This indicator encompasses both people using basic sanitation services as well as those using safely managed sanitation services. Improved sanitation facilities include flush/pour flush to piped sewer systems, septic tanks or pit latrines; ventilated improved pit latrines, compositing toilets or pit latrines with slabs.; ; WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (washdata.org).; Weighted average;

United Kingdom UK: Urban Population Living in Areas Where Elevation is Below 5 meters: % of Total Population data was reported at 4.203 % in 2010. This records an increase from the previous number of 4.196 % for 2000. United Kingdom UK: Urban Population Living in Areas Where Elevation is Below 5 meters: % of Total Population data is updated yearly, averaging 4.203 % from Dec 1990 (Median) to 2010, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 4.206 % in 1990 and a record low of 4.196 % in 2000. United Kingdom UK: Urban Population Living in Areas Where Elevation is Below 5 meters: % of Total Population data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United Kingdom – Table UK.World Bank.WDI: Land Use, Protected Areas and National Wealth. Urban population below 5m is the percentage of the total population, living in areas where the elevation is 5 meters or less.; ; Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN)/Columbia University. 2013. Urban-Rural Population and Land Area Estimates Version 2. Palisades, NY: NASA Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center (SEDAC). http://sedac.ciesin.columbia.edu/data/set/lecz-urban-rural-population-land-area-estimates-v2.; Weighted average;

Long term population projections by sex and single year of age for York Local Authority area.

These unrounded estimates are published based on ONS estimates designed to enable and encourage further calculations and analysis. However, the estimates should not be taken to be accurate to the level of detail provided. More information on the accuracy of the estimates is available in the Quality and Methodology document

The estimates are produced using a variety of data sources and statistical models, including some statistical disclosure control methods, and small estimates should not be taken to refer to particular individuals. The estimated resident population of an area includes all those people who usually live there, regardless of nationality. Arriving international migrants are included in the usually resident population if they remain in the UK for at least a year. Emigrants are excluded if they remain outside the UK for at least a year. This is consistent with the United Nations definition of a long-term migrant. Armed forces stationed outside of the UK are excluded. Students are taken to be usually resident at their term time address.

The population estimates reflect boundaries in place as of the reference year.

Please note that “age” 999 comprises data for ages 90 and above.

Source and Licence:

Adapted from data from the Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v.1.0.

Mid-year (30 June) estimates of the usual resident population for health geographies in England and Wales.

This graph presents the population density of the ten leading business cities in the United Kingdom (UK) in 2014. London has a significant lead in the ranking as there are 1078 more people per km² than in Bristol. Leeds, at *** people per km², is the least densely populated city on the list.

For further detailed information about methodology, users should consult the Labour Force Survey User Guide, included with the APS documentation. For variable and value labelling and coding frames that are not included either in the data or in the current APS documentation, users are advised to consult the latest versions of the LFS User Guides, which are available from the ONS Labour Force Survey - User Guidance webpages.

Occupation data for 2021 and 2022
The ONS has identified an issue with the collection of some occupational data in 2021 and 2022 data files in a number of their surveys. While they estimate any impacts will be small overall, this will affect the accuracy of the breakdowns of some detailed (four-digit Standard Occupational Classification (SOC)) occupations, and data derived from them. None of ONS' headline statistics, other than those directly sourced from occupational data, are affected and you can continue to rely on their accuracy. The affected datasets have now been updated. Further information can be found in the ONS article published on 11 July 2023: Revision of miscoded occupational data in the ONS Labour Force Survey, UK: January 2021 to September 2022

APS Well-Being Datasets
From 2012-2015, the ONS published separate APS datasets aimed at providing initial estimates of subjective well-being, based on the Integrated Household Survey. In 2015 these were discontinued. A separate set of well-being variables and a corresponding weighting variable have been added to the April-March APS person datasets from A11M12 onwards. Further information on the transition can be found in the Personal well-being in the UK: 2015 to 2016 article on the ONS website.

APS disability variables
Over time, there have been some updates to disability variables in the APS. An article explaining the quality assurance investigations on these variables that have been conducted so far is available on the ONS Methodology webpage.

• age: single year of age, year and month of birth, age completed full-time education and age obtained highest qualification, age of oldest dependent child and age of youngest dependent child
• family unit and household: including a number of variables concerning the number of dependent children in the family according to their ages, relationship to head of household and relationship to head of family
• nationality and country of origin
• geography: including county, unitary/local authority, place of work, Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics 2 (NUTS2) and NUTS3 regions, and whether lives and works in same local authority district
• health: including main health problem, and current and past health problems
• education and apprenticeship: including numbers and subjects of various qualifications and variables concerning apprenticeships
• industry: including industry, industry class and industry group for main, second and last job, and industry made redundant from
• occupation: including 4-digit Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) for main, second and last job and job made redundant from
• system variables: including week number when interview took place and number of households at address

The Secure Access data have more restrictive access conditions than those made available under the standard EUL. Prospective users will need to gain ONS Accredited Researcher status, complete an extra application form and demonstrate to the data owners exactly why they need access to the additional variables. Users are strongly advised to first obtain the standard EUL version of the data to see if they are sufficient for their research requirements.

APS Geographies now Census 2021

Users should note that the APS person A24M25 microdata no longer contains any of the historic Census 2011 geographies (e.g. LAUA) and NUTS geographies. These are no longer supported by ONS geography. The Census 2021 equivalents are now included instead. Information on all these geographies can be found in LFS User Guide volume 6.

All cities with a population > 1000 or seats of adm div (ca 80.000)Sources and ContributionsSources : GeoNames is aggregating over hundred different data sources. Ambassadors : GeoNames Ambassadors help in many countries. Wiki : A wiki allows to view the data and quickly fix error and add missing places. Donations and Sponsoring : Costs for running GeoNames are covered by donations and sponsoring.Enrichment:add country name

United Kingdom UK: Educational Attainment: At Least Completed Lower Secondary: Population 25+ Years: Female: % Cumulative data was reported at 99.795 % in 2014. This records a decrease from the previous number of 99.797 % for 2013. United Kingdom UK: Educational Attainment: At Least Completed Lower Secondary: Population 25+ Years: Female: % Cumulative data is updated yearly, averaging 99.776 % from Dec 2009 (Median) to 2014, with 6 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 99.818 % in 2011 and a record low of 99.693 % in 2009. United Kingdom UK: Educational Attainment: At Least Completed Lower Secondary: Population 25+ Years: Female: % Cumulative data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s UK – Table UK.World Bank: Education Statistics. The percentage of population ages 25 and over that attained or completed lower secondary education.; ; UNESCO Institute for Statistics; ;

United Kingdom UK: People Using At Least Basic Drinking Water Services: Rural: % of Rural Population data was reported at 100.000 % in 2015. This stayed constant from the previous number of 100.000 % for 2014. United Kingdom UK: People Using At Least Basic Drinking Water Services: Rural: % of Rural Population data is updated yearly, averaging 100.000 % from Dec 2000 (Median) to 2015, with 16 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 100.000 % in 2015 and a record low of 100.000 % in 2015. United Kingdom UK: People Using At Least Basic Drinking Water Services: Rural: % of Rural Population data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United Kingdom – Table UK.World Bank.WDI: Health Statistics. The percentage of people using at least basic water services. This indicator encompasses both people using basic water services as well as those using safely managed water services. Basic drinking water services is defined as drinking water from an improved source, provided collection time is not more than 30 minutes for a round trip. Improved water sources include piped water, boreholes or tubewells, protected dug wells, protected springs, and packaged or delivered water.; ; WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (washdata.org).; Weighted average;