Historical dataset showing total population for North America by year from 1950 to 2025.

The Gridded Population of the World, Version 4 (GPWv4): Population Density, Revision 11 consists of estimates of human population density (number of persons per square kilometer) based on counts consistent with national censuses and population registers. A proportional allocation gridding algorithm, utilizing approximately 13.5 million national and sub-national administrative units, was used to assign population counts to 30 arc-second grid cells. The population density rasters were created by dividing the population count raster for a given target year by the land area raster. The data files were produced as global rasters at 30 arc-second (~1 km at the equator) resolution. To enable faster global processing, and in support of research communities, the 30 arc-second count data were aggregated to 2.5 arc-minute, 15 arc-minute, 30 arc-minute and 1-degree resolutions to produce density rasters at these resolutions.Source: Center for International Earth Science Information Network - CIESIN - Columbia University. 2018. Gridded Population of the World, Version 4 (GPWv4): Population Density, Revision 11. Palisades, New York: NASA Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center (SEDAC). Available at https://doi.org/10.7927/H49C6VHW. (October 2022)Files Download

In the past four centuries, the population of the Thirteen Colonies and United States of America has grown from a recorded 350 people around the Jamestown colony in Virginia in 1610, to an estimated 346 million in 2025. While the fertility rate has now dropped well below replacement level, and the population is on track to go into a natural decline in the 2040s, projected high net immigration rates mean the population will continue growing well into the next century, crossing the 400 million mark in the 2070s. Indigenous population Early population figures for the Thirteen Colonies and United States come with certain caveats. Official records excluded the indigenous population, and they generally remained excluded until the late 1800s. In 1500, in the first decade of European colonization of the Americas, the native population living within the modern U.S. borders was believed to be around 1.9 million people. The spread of Old World diseases, such as smallpox, measles, and influenza, to biologically defenseless populations in the New World then wreaked havoc across the continent, often wiping out large portions of the population in areas that had not yet made contact with Europeans. By the time of Jamestown's founding in 1607, it is believed the native population within current U.S. borders had dropped by almost 60 percent. As the U.S. expanded, indigenous populations were largely still excluded from population figures as they were driven westward, however taxpaying Natives were included in the census from 1870 to 1890, before all were included thereafter. It should be noted that estimates for indigenous populations in the Americas vary significantly by source and time period. Migration and expansion fuels population growth The arrival of European settlers and African slaves was the key driver of population growth in North America in the 17th century. Settlers from Britain were the dominant group in the Thirteen Colonies, before settlers from elsewhere in Europe, particularly Germany and Ireland, made a large impact in the mid-19th century. By the end of the 19th century, improvements in transport technology and increasing economic opportunities saw migration to the United States increase further, particularly from southern and Eastern Europe, and in the first decade of the 1900s the number of migrants to the U.S. exceeded one million people in some years. It is also estimated that almost 400,000 African slaves were transported directly across the Atlantic to mainland North America between 1500 and 1866 (although the importation of slaves was abolished in 1808). Blacks made up a much larger share of the population before slavery's abolition. Twentieth and twenty-first century The U.S. population has grown steadily since 1900, reaching one hundred million in the 1910s, two hundred million in the 1960s, and three hundred million in 2007. Since WWII, the U.S. has established itself as the world's foremost superpower, with the world's largest economy, and most powerful military. This growth in prosperity has been accompanied by increases in living standards, particularly through medical advances, infrastructure improvements, clean water accessibility. These have all contributed to higher infant and child survival rates, as well as an increase in life expectancy (doubling from roughly 40 to 80 years in the past 150 years), which have also played a large part in population growth. As fertility rates decline and increases in life expectancy slows, migration remains the largest factor in population growth. Since the 1960s, Latin America has now become the most common origin for migrants in the U.S., while immigration rates from Asia have also increased significantly. It remains to be seen how immigration restrictions of the current administration affect long-term population projections for the United States.

Historical dataset showing North America population density by year from 1961 to 2022.

Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) in North America was reported at 17.71 % in 2022, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. North America - Population ages 0-14 (% of total) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

Population ages 15-64, female (% of female population) in North America was reported at 64.1 % in 2022, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. North America - Population ages 15-64, female (% of total) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

The average for 2024 based on 24 countries was 63.16 percent. The highest value was in Bermuda: 100 percent and the lowest value was in Saint Lucia: 19.31 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2024. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Population ages 60-64, female (% of female population) in North America was reported at 6.4837 % in 2022, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. North America - Population ages 50-64, female (% of female population) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

Historical dataset showing North America population growth rate by year from 1961 to 2023.

The average for 2023 based on 24 countries was 0.31 percent. The highest value was in the USA: 4.2 percent and the lowest value was in Antigua and Barbuda: 0 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

The earliest point where scientists can make reasonable estimates for the population of global regions is around 10,000 years before the Common Era (or 12,000 years ago). Estimates suggest that Asia has consistently been the most populated continent, and the least populated continent has generally been Oceania (although it was more heavily populated than areas such as North America in very early years). Population growth was very slow, but an increase can be observed between most of the given time periods. There were, however, dips in population due to pandemics, the most notable of these being the impact of plague in Eurasia in the 14th century, and the impact of European contact with the indigenous populations of the Americas after 1492, where it took almost four centuries for the population of Latin America to return to its pre-1500 level. The world's population first reached one billion people in 1803, which also coincided with a spike in population growth, due to the onset of the demographic transition. This wave of growth first spread across the most industrially developed countries in the 19th century, and the correlation between demographic development and industrial or economic maturity continued until today, with Africa being the final major region to begin its transition in the late-1900s.

The average for 2023 based on 24 countries was 50.82 percent. The highest value was in Puerto Rico: 52.88 percent and the lowest value was in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: 49.01 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 24 countries was 11.27 percent. The highest value was in Puerto Rico: 24.24 percent and the lowest value was in Honduras: 4.29 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Historical dataset showing North America urban population by year from 1960 to 2023.

The map shows the distribution of the population by census subdivision who identified themselves in the 2006 Census as North American Indian. According to the 2006 Census, 698 025 people identified themselves as North American Indian also referred to as 'First Nations people'.

Urban population growth (annual %) in North America was reported at 0.76908 % in 2022, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. North America - Urban population growth (annual %) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on September of 2025.

Contained within the 4th Edition (1974) of the Atlas of Canada is a map that shows the distribution of population for 1961 by census division. Supplementary charts show the percentages of rural population, urban population in places with populations of 5000 or more and urban populations that are between 1000 to 5000 people. A supplementary text listing urban complexes and centres with populations of 5000 or more accompanies this map.

The average for 2023 based on 13 countries was 56567 refugees. The highest value was in the USA: 409202 refugees and the lowest value was in Barbados: 5 refugees. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Population ages 80 and above, male (% of male population) in North America was reported at 3.2728 % in 2022, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. North America - Population ages 80 and above, male (% of male population) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on September of 2025.

The North America Population Health Management Market size is valued at USD 35 billion, driven by market trends, player analysis, and industry challenges. Explore insights on market dynamics and segmentation.