How many people are there in the world

World population

World population (live)

Contents

Top 5 death causes in the World

World population is expected to reach 8 billion people in 2023 according to our estimates.

More than 70% of the world population live in 20 most populous countries of the world. There are just 2 countries in the world with a population more than 1 billion people: China and India. About 36 % of the World population live just in these two countries. Despite the fact that China is curently the most populous country in the world, India’s population growths much faster. And in 2023 India is expected to become the most populous country in the world.

More than half of the world’s population identify with a religious group. The biggest groups are: Christianity (32%) and Islam (24%).

Top 20 most populous countries (14-08-2022)

This list includes 20 most populous countries in the World. Approximately 5.60 billion people live in these twenty countries, or around 70% of the world’s population.

World population 2022

Population change rates in 2022

According to our estimations, daily change rates of world population in 2022 will be the following:

Demographics of the World 2021

As of 1 January 2022, the population of the world was estimated to be 7,948,118,521. This is an increase of 1.23 % (96,954,665 people) compared to population of 7,851,163,856 the year before. In 2021 the natural increase was positive, as the number of births exceeded the number of deaths by 96,617,035.

Below are the key figures for the world population in 2021:

World population density

Since the Earth’s total area is about 510 million square kilometers, the world population density can be calculated in several ways:

Religion of the World

Source: Pew Research Center. The Global Religious Landscape .

Number of followers estimated by Countrymeters ( January 1 2022).

Global age structure

As of the beginning of 2022 according to our estimates the world had the following population age distribution:

In absolute figures (estimate):

We prepared a simplified model of the population distribution pyramid which is broken down into 3 main age groups. The groups are the same as we used above: population under 15, between 15 and 64 and population which is over 65 year old.

As we can see the World population pyramid has an expanding type. This type of pyramid is common for developing countries with declining fertility rate but still high birth and death rates.

World life expectancy

Life expectancy at birth is one of the most important demographic indicator. It shows the number of years a newborn infant would live assuming that birth and death rates will remain at the same level during the whole lifetime.

Figure: Life expectancy at birth by major areas

Global literacy

According to our estimates 4,894,412,455 persons or 86.3% of adult population (aged 15 years and above) in the world are able to read and write. Accordingly about 777,070,761 adults are illiterate.

Literacy rate for adult male population is 89.96% (2,546,850,112 persons). 284,336,024 are illiterate.
Literacy rate for adult female population is 82.65% (2,347,562,343 persons). 492,734,737 are illiterate.

Youth literacy rates are 92.81% and 90.13% for males and females accordingly. The overall youth literacy rate is 91.51%. Youth literacy rate definition covers the population between the ages of 15 to 24 years.

Source: The estimation data for section «World population literacy» is based on the latest data published by UNESCO Institute for Statistics (retrieved March 13, 2016) .

The data is given as of 1st of January of an year.

World population history

The data is given as of 1st of January of an year.

Population projection (2020-2100)

The data is given as of 1st of July of an year (medium fertility variant).

Source : United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs: Population Division

Current World Population

World Population: Past, Present, and Future

The chart above illustrates how world population has changed throughout history. View the full tabulated data.

At the dawn of agriculture, about 8000 B.C., the population of the world was approximately 5 million. Over the 8,000-year period up to 1 A.D. it grew to 200 million (some estimate 300 million or even 600, suggesting how imprecise population estimates of early historical periods can be), with a growth rate of under 0.05% per year.

A tremendous change occurred with the industrial revolution: whereas it had taken all of human history until around 1800 for world population to reach one billion, the second billion was achieved in only 130 years (1930), the third billion in 30 years (1960), the fourth billion in 15 years (1974), and the fifth billion in only 13 years (1987).

Wonder how big was the world’s population when you were born?
Check out this simple wizard or this more elaborated one to find out.

Growth Rate

Population in the world is, as of 2020, growing at a rate of around 1.05% per year (down from 1.08% in 2019, 1.10% in 2018, and 1.12% in 2017). The current average population increase is estimated at 81 million people per year.

Annual growth rate reached its peak in the late 1960s, when it was at around 2%. The rate of increase has nearly halved since then, and will continue to decline in the coming years.

World population will therefore continue to grow in the 21st century, but at a much slower rate compared to the recent past. World population has doubled (100% increase) in 40 years from 1959 (3 billion) to 1999 (6 billion). It is now estimated that it will take another nearly 40 years to increase by another 50% to become 9 billion by 2037.

The latest world population projections indicate that world population will reach 10 billion persons in the year 2057.

World Population (2020 and historical)

World Population Forecast (2020-2050)

World Population Milestones

10 Billion (2057)

The United Nations projects world population to reach 10 billion in the year 2057.

9 Billion (2037)

World population is expected to reach 9 billion in the year 2037.

8 Billion (2023)

World population is expected to reach 8 billion people in 2023 according to the United Nations (in 2026 according to the U.S. Census Bureau).

7.97 Billion (2022)

The current world population is 7.97 billion as of August 2022 [1] according to the most recent United Nations estimates elaborated by Worldometer. The term «World Population» refers to the human population (the total number of humans currently living) of the world.

7 Billion (2011)

6 Billion (1999)

Previous Milestones

Summary Table

World Population by Region

World Population Density (people/km 2 )

Courtesy of Junuxx at en.wikipedia [CC-BY-SA-3.0 or GFDL], via Wikimedia Commons

World Population by Religion

According to a recent study (based on the 2010 world population of 6.9 billion) by The Pew Forum, there are:

World Population by Country

How many people have ever lived on earth?

Assuming that we start counting from about 50,000 B.C., the time when modern Homo sapiens appeared on the earth (and not from 700,000 B.C. when the ancestors of Homo sapiens appeared, or several million years ago when hominids were present), taking into account that all population data are a rough estimate, and assuming a constant growth rate applied to each period up to modern times, it has been estimated that a total of approximately 106 billion people have been born since the dawn of the human species, making the population currently alive roughly 6% of all people who have ever lived on planet Earth.

Others have estimated the number of human beings who have ever lived to be anywhere from 45 billion to 125 billion, with most estimates falling into the range of 90 to 110 billion humans.

World Population clock: sources and methodology

The world population counter displayed on Worldometer takes into consideration data from two major sources: the United Nations and the U.S. Census Bureau.

The World Population Prospect: the 2019 Revision provides the most recent data available (released in June of 2019). Estimates and projected world population and country specific populations are given from 1950 through 2100 and are released every two years. Worldometer, as it is common practice, utilizes the medium fertility estimates.

Data underlying the population estimates are national and sub national census data and data on births, deaths, and migrants available from national sources and publications, as well as from questionnaires. For all countries, census and registration data are evaluated and, if necessary, adjusted for incompleteness by the Population Division as part of its preparations of the official United Nations population estimates and projections.

For most countries adjustment of the data is necessary to correct for errors, omissions, and inconsistencies in the data. Finally, since most recent data for a single country is often at least two years old, the current world population figure is necessarily a projection of past data based on assumed trends. As new data become available, assumptions and data are reevaluated and past conclusions and current figures may be modified.

For information about how these estimates and projections are made by the U.S. Census Bureau, see the Population Estimates and Projections Methodology.

Why Worldometer clocks are the most accurate

The above world population clock is based on the latest estimates released in June of 2019 by the United Nations and will show the same number wherever you are in the world and whatever time you set on your PC. Worldometer is the only website to show live counters that are based on U.N. data and that do not follow the user’s PC clock.

Obviously, the UN data is based on estimates and can’t be 100% accurate, so in all honesty nobody can possibly say with any degree of certainty on which day world population reached 7 billion (or any other exact number), let alone at what time. But once an estimate is made (based on the best data and analysis available), the world population clock should be showing the same number at any given time anywhere around the world.

Current World Population

World Population: Past, Present, and Future

The chart above illustrates how world population has changed throughout history. View the full tabulated data.

At the dawn of agriculture, about 8000 B.C., the population of the world was approximately 5 million. Over the 8,000-year period up to 1 A.D. it grew to 200 million (some estimate 300 million or even 600, suggesting how imprecise population estimates of early historical periods can be), with a growth rate of under 0.05% per year.

A tremendous change occurred with the industrial revolution: whereas it had taken all of human history until around 1800 for world population to reach one billion, the second billion was achieved in only 130 years (1930), the third billion in 30 years (1960), the fourth billion in 15 years (1974), and the fifth billion in only 13 years (1987).

Wonder how big was the world’s population when you were born?
Check out this simple wizard or this more elaborated one to find out.

Growth Rate

Population in the world is, as of 2020, growing at a rate of around 1.05% per year (down from 1.08% in 2019, 1.10% in 2018, and 1.12% in 2017). The current average population increase is estimated at 81 million people per year.

Annual growth rate reached its peak in the late 1960s, when it was at around 2%. The rate of increase has nearly halved since then, and will continue to decline in the coming years.

World population will therefore continue to grow in the 21st century, but at a much slower rate compared to the recent past. World population has doubled (100% increase) in 40 years from 1959 (3 billion) to 1999 (6 billion). It is now estimated that it will take another nearly 40 years to increase by another 50% to become 9 billion by 2037.

The latest world population projections indicate that world population will reach 10 billion persons in the year 2057.

World Population (2020 and historical)

World Population Forecast (2020-2050)

World Population Milestones

10 Billion (2057)

The United Nations projects world population to reach 10 billion in the year 2057.

9 Billion (2037)

World population is expected to reach 9 billion in the year 2037.

8 Billion (2023)

World population is expected to reach 8 billion people in 2023 according to the United Nations (in 2026 according to the U.S. Census Bureau).

7.97 Billion (2022)

The current world population is 7.97 billion as of August 2022 [1] according to the most recent United Nations estimates elaborated by Worldometer. The term «World Population» refers to the human population (the total number of humans currently living) of the world.

7 Billion (2011)

6 Billion (1999)

Previous Milestones

Summary Table

World Population by Region

World Population Density (people/km 2 )

Courtesy of Junuxx at en.wikipedia [CC-BY-SA-3.0 or GFDL], via Wikimedia Commons

World Population by Religion

According to a recent study (based on the 2010 world population of 6.9 billion) by The Pew Forum, there are:

World Population by Country

How many people have ever lived on earth?

Assuming that we start counting from about 50,000 B.C., the time when modern Homo sapiens appeared on the earth (and not from 700,000 B.C. when the ancestors of Homo sapiens appeared, or several million years ago when hominids were present), taking into account that all population data are a rough estimate, and assuming a constant growth rate applied to each period up to modern times, it has been estimated that a total of approximately 106 billion people have been born since the dawn of the human species, making the population currently alive roughly 6% of all people who have ever lived on planet Earth.

Others have estimated the number of human beings who have ever lived to be anywhere from 45 billion to 125 billion, with most estimates falling into the range of 90 to 110 billion humans.

World Population clock: sources and methodology

The world population counter displayed on Worldometer takes into consideration data from two major sources: the United Nations and the U.S. Census Bureau.

The World Population Prospect: the 2019 Revision provides the most recent data available (released in June of 2019). Estimates and projected world population and country specific populations are given from 1950 through 2100 and are released every two years. Worldometer, as it is common practice, utilizes the medium fertility estimates.

Data underlying the population estimates are national and sub national census data and data on births, deaths, and migrants available from national sources and publications, as well as from questionnaires. For all countries, census and registration data are evaluated and, if necessary, adjusted for incompleteness by the Population Division as part of its preparations of the official United Nations population estimates and projections.

For most countries adjustment of the data is necessary to correct for errors, omissions, and inconsistencies in the data. Finally, since most recent data for a single country is often at least two years old, the current world population figure is necessarily a projection of past data based on assumed trends. As new data become available, assumptions and data are reevaluated and past conclusions and current figures may be modified.

For information about how these estimates and projections are made by the U.S. Census Bureau, see the Population Estimates and Projections Methodology.

Why Worldometer clocks are the most accurate

The above world population clock is based on the latest estimates released in June of 2019 by the United Nations and will show the same number wherever you are in the world and whatever time you set on your PC. Worldometer is the only website to show live counters that are based on U.N. data and that do not follow the user’s PC clock.

Obviously, the UN data is based on estimates and can’t be 100% accurate, so in all honesty nobody can possibly say with any degree of certainty on which day world population reached 7 billion (or any other exact number), let alone at what time. But once an estimate is made (based on the best data and analysis available), the world population clock should be showing the same number at any given time anywhere around the world.

World Population 2022

How many people are alive on earth today? Figuring out the current human population is a popular question to ask. The current US Census Bureau world population estimate in 2016 shows that there are approximately 7,346,235,000 people on earth as of August 23, 2016, which far exceeds the population of 7.2 billion from 2015.

As well as containing the latest world population estimate, this article contains information about the history of population growth, and details of the world’s largest countries and cities.

7 billion people in the world?

Although the number given above seems very precise, it is important to remember that it is just an estimate. It simply isn’t possible to be sure exactly how many people there are on the earth at any one time, and there are conflicting estimates of the global population in 2016.

The United States Census Bureau estimates there is one birth every 7 seconds and one death every 13 seconds, with a net gain of one person on earth every 11 seconds.

Map of the world if each country was the same relative size as its population:

Some, including the UN, believe that a population of 7 billion was reached in October 2011. Others, including the US Census Bureau and World Bank, believe that the total population of the world reached 7 billion in 2012, around March or April.

History of World Population Growth

Throughout most of history, the world’s population has been much smaller than it is now. Before the invention of agriculture, for example, the human population was estimated to be around 15 million people at most.

Here’s an interesting perspective on today’s world population in 2016: today’s world population (

7 billion) is approximately 6% of the estimated 110 billion who have ever lived.

The introduction of agriculture and the gradual movement of humanity into settled communities saw the global population increase gradually to around 300 million by AD 0. To give you an idea of scale, the Roman Empire, which many regard as one of the strongest empires the world has ever seen, probably contained only around 50 million people at its height; that’s less than the number of people in England today.

It wasn’t until the early 19th century that the world population reached its first big milestone: 1 billion people. Then, as the industrial revolution took hold and living standards improved, the rate of population growth increased considerably. Over the next hundred years, the population of the world doubled, reaching 2 billion in the late 1920s.

The 20th century, however, is where population growth really took off, and over the past 100 years, the planet’s population has more than tripled in size. This massive increase in human population is largely due to improvements in diet, sanitation and medicine, especially compulsory vaccination against many diseases.

Here’s a timeline of the world population growth:

How much larger can the world population get?

What happens next isn’t quite so clear.

Most people agree that population increases will continue, but there are arguments about the rate of increase, and even a few people who believe population decreases are likely. You can see some example trends in this graph.

The United Nations has gradually been revising its predictions downwards, and now believes that the world population in 2050 will be around 9 billion (illustrated by the yellow line on the chart). It believes that, as the world grows steadily richer and the average family size decreases, growth will steadily slow and eventually stop.

However, others believe that poverty, inequality and continued urbanization will encourage steadily increasing growth, particularly in countries in Africa and parts of Asia, where growth is already much higher than the global average.

A few scientists even believe that populations will decrease. Some believe that gradual increases in living standards will result in similar patterns to those in Western Europe, where birth rates are declining rapidly. Others believe that the current world population is unsustainable, and predict that humanity will simply not be able to produce enough food and oil to feed itself and sustain our industrial economy.

Largest Countries in the World 2016

More than half of the world’s current population lives in just ten countries.

The largest country in the world today is, of course, China, which is one of only two countries with a population of more than a billion people. To give you an indication of scale, with 1.36 billion people, China today has four times as many people as the United States of America.

Here’s a list of the ten largest countries in the world today:

Smallest Countries in the World

By contrast, the total population of the world’s smallest countries is only just under 300,000. The smallest country in the world in 2016 is Vatican City, the small enclave within the Italian city of Rome that is ruled by the Pope and home to just over 800 people.

Largest Cities in the World

More than a hundred million people live in the world’s ten largest cities. Here’s a list of the largest cities in the world by population, most of which are in Asia:

This list sorts cities by the population in the city proper. The list looks very different when cities are listed by metropolitan population, in which case it breaks down as follows: Tokyo (36.9 million), Shanghai (34 million), Jakarta (30 million), Seoul (25.5 million), Guangzhou (25 million), Beijing (24.9 million), Shenzhen (23.3 million), Delhi (21.7 million), Mexico City (21.3 million), and Lagos (21 million).

More information about the 2016 world population

This is just a basic introduction to the world population in 2016. For more information, check out any of the links or videos in the article, or feel free to explore the rest of our site!

2022 World Population by Country

The current US Census Bureau world population estimate in June 2019 shows that the current global population is 7,577,130,400 people on earth, which far exceeds the world population of 7.2 billion from 2015. Our own estimate based on UN data shows the world’s population surpassing 7.7 billion.

China is the most populous country in the world with a population exceeding 1.4 billion. It is one of just two countries with a population of more than 1 billion, with India being the second. As of 2018, India has a population of over 1.355 billion people, and its population growth is expected to continue through at least 2050. By the year 2030, the country of India is expected to become the most populous country in the world. This is because India’s population will grow, while China is projected to see a loss in population.

The next 11 countries that are the most populous in the world each have populations exceeding 100 million. These include the United States, Indonesia, Brazil, Pakistan, Nigeria, Bangladesh, Russia, Mexico, Japan, Ethiopia, and the Philippines. Of these nations, all are expected to continue to grow except Russia and Japan, which will see their populations drop by 2030 before falling again significantly by 2050.

Many other nations have populations of at least one million, while there are also countries that have just thousands. The smallest population in the world can be found in Vatican City, where only 801 people reside.

This population growth will be significantly impacted by nine specific countries which are situated to contribute to the population growth more quickly than other nations. These nations include the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania, and the United States of America. Particularly of interest, India is on track to overtake China’s position as the most populous country by the year 2030. Additionally, multiple nations within Africa are expected to double their populations before fertility rates begin to slow entirely.

Population aging has a massive impact on the ability of the population to maintain what is called a support ratio. One key finding from 2017 is that the majority of the world is going to face considerable growth in the 60 plus age bracket. This will put enormous strain on the younger age groups as the elderly population is becoming so vast without the number of births to maintain a healthy support ratio.

Although the number given above seems very precise, it is important to remember that it is just an estimate. It simply isn’t possible to be sure exactly how many people there are on the earth at any one time, and there are conflicting estimates of the global population in 2016.

Some, including the UN, believe that a population of 7 billion was reached in October 2011. Others, including the US Census Bureau and World Bank, believe that the total population of the world reached 7 billion in 2012, around March or April.

World Population Clock