Global Population: Overview
Population is defined as the total number of people residing in a country or region.
The world's population is currently growing at a low single-digit annual rate. The population is expected to rise at a rate of 81 million people every year. Between 1959 and the 2000s, the world's population more than doubled. In the late 1960s, the annual population growth rate peaked. Since then, the rate of increase has practically halved, and it is predicted to continue to fall in the future years around the world.
Factors Affecting Population Growth of a Country
Population growth of a country depends on multiple factors including the economy, female fertility rates, birth rates, death rates, healthcare facilities, increasing urbanization, immigration & emigration rates, education, and other social & cultural aspects.
Most Populated Countries in the World
China, India, the United States, Indonesia, Pakistan, Brazil, Nigeria, Bangladesh, Russia, and Mexico were among the top 10 most populous countries in the world in 2021.
China had a population of 1.42 billion people in 2021, compared to 1.41 billion in 2020, according to GlobalData estimates. During 2017–2020, the population of the country grew at an average annual rate of 0.3% and the population growth rate is expected to slow down from 0.3% in 2021 to 0.1% by 2024, according to GlobalData. Most of China’s population is between the age of 15 and 64. In 2021, 16.8% of the population was below 15 years of age, 70.1% was in the working-age bracket (15–64), and 13.1% was aged above 65 years. China’s population was 51.2% male and 48.8% female in 2021.
India’s population stood at 1.34 billion in 2021, according to GlobalData. The median age in India is 28.7 years in 2020, according to GlobalData. Approximately 93.15% of India’s population was younger than 65 in 2020, while 67.12% of the population was in the working-age group of 15–64 years, meaning there is a low number of dependents on the working-population. India has a large working-age population, and it is set to expand in the coming years.
Don’t wait - discover a universe of connected data & insights with your next search. Browse over 28M data points across 22 industries.
Access more premium companies when you subscribe to Explorer