Population and population change statistics

Data extracted: 6 July 2026

Planned article update: July 2027

Highlights

On 1 January 2026, the population of the EU was estimated at 452.0 million inhabitants, 705 756 more than the previous year.

The population increased in 2025 in 16 EU countries while it decreased in 11.

This article gives an overview of the development of the European Union (EU) population, detailing the two components of population change: natural population change and net migration. More information on migration is provided in an article on EU population diversity by citizenship and country of birth.

EU population shows increase in 2025

The population of the EU increased again in 2025, although to a limited extent, from 451.3 million on 1 January 2025 to 452.0 million on 1 January 2026 (+0.2%). The negative natural change (more deaths than births) was outnumbered by the positive net migration. The observed population growth can be largely attributed to the increased migratory movements observed in recent years.

Looking at the bigger picture, the population of the EU grew from 354.5 million in 1960 to 452.0 million on 1 January 2026, an increase of 97.5 million people (Figure 1). The rate of population growth has slowed down gradually in recent decades: for example, the EU population increased, on average, by about 0.8 million people per year during the period 2005-2025, compared with an average increase of around 3.0 million people per year during the 1960s.

Figure 1

The natural change of the EU population was positive, although decreasing, until 2011, and then negative since 2012, with more deaths than births recorded in the EU (Figure 2). The positive total change after 2011 is therefore due to net migration. While during the COVID-19 pandemic the (positive) net migration no longer compensated for the negative natural change in the EU, since 2022 the trend was reversed and, as a consequence, the EU total population has increased.

Figure 2

In 2025 as in previous years, the number of deaths (4.81 million) continued to outnumber those of live births (3.46 million) in the EU, resulting in the aforementioned negative natural change in the population. The total increase that was recorded in 2025 for the EU population was exclusively due to (positive) net migration. In short, the natural change of the EU population (-1.35 million people) was lower than the net migration (+2.05 million), resulting in an increase in population of around 0.7 million people.

Net migration in the EU increased considerably from the mid-1980s onwards and has been the main determinant of population growth since the 1990s (Figure 3). The number of live births decreased progressively between 1960 and 1995, while the number of deaths slowly increased. The gap between live births and deaths in the EU narrowed considerably from 1961 onwards, and the natural change of the population became negative in 2012, when the number of deaths surpassed the number of births. The number of deaths is expected to further increase because of the ageing population, and assuming that fertility rates remain at a relatively low level, the negative natural change could thus well continue. Should this be the case, the EU’s overall population decline or growth in the future is likely to depend largely on the contribution made by net migration.

Figure 3

Population change at national level

The population of individual EU countries on 1 January 2026 ranged from 0.6 million in Malta to 83.5 million in Germany (Table 1). Germany, France and Italy together comprised almost half (47%) of the total EU population on 1 January 2026.

While the population of the EU as a whole slightly increased during 2025 (growth rate of 1.6 per 1 000 people), the change was not evenly distributed across the EU countries: 16 countries observed an increase in their respective populations, while the population fell in 11 countries. Malta (24.1 per 1000 people), Cyprus (13.7) and Luxembourg (13.1) recorded the highest population growth rates in 2025, while Latvia (-8.3), Estonia (-6.8) and Hungary (-5.4) recorded the highest decreases (Table 2).

Population change can happen in 2 ways: either by natural change or by net migration. Eight types of population change can be identified, distinguishing growth or decline and the relative weights of natural change and net migration (see Table 3 for the full typology). Looking at the national data during 2025, 6 EU countries (Denmark, Ireland, Cyprus, Luxembourg, Malta and Sweden) showed a positive natural increase of population. A total of 21 EU countries had negative rates of natural change, with deaths outnumbering births; the largest negative rates of natural change were observed in Latvia and Bulgaria (both -7.7 per 1 000 people), followed by Lithuania (-6.9) and Romania (-5.5). All EU countries except Estonia and Latvia had positive rates of net migration in 2025, with the highest rates being observed in Malta (23.9 per 1 000 people), Spain (11.8) and Cyprus (11.3).

Among the 16 EU countries where the population increased in 2025, 6 countries (Denmark, Ireland, Cyprus, Luxembourg, Malta and Sweden) recorded both a natural increase and positive net migration contributing to their population growth. In 10 countries (Belgium, Czechia, Spain, France, Croatia, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia and Finland), positive net migration was the driver of population growth, as natural population change was negative.

Of the 11 EU countries that reported a fall in population during 2025, 9 countries (Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia) were unable to offset the negative natural change by the effect of positive net migration. Estonia and Latvia were the only countries to observe a negative natural change and negative net migration.

Source data for tables and graphs

Population and population change statistics: tables and figures

Data sources

The demographic balance provides an overview of annual demographic developments in the EU countries; statistics on population change are available in absolute figures and as crude rates. The “crude rate of population growth” is the ratio of total population growth during the year to the average population of the area in question that year. The value is expressed per 1 000 people (see Population glossary). Population change — or population growth — in a given year is the difference between the population size on 1 January of the given year and the corresponding level from 1 January of the previous year. It consists of two components: natural change and net migration. “Natural population change” is the difference between the number of live births and the number of deaths. If natural change is positive, then it is often referred to as a natural increase. “Net migration” is the difference between the number of immigrants and the number of emigrants. In the context of the annual demographic balance, Eurostat produces net migration figures by taking the difference between total population change and natural change; therefore, this concept is referred to as “net migration plus statistical adjustment”.

Eurostat collects demographic data from the National Statistical Institutes of the EU Member States and also from almost all non-EU Member States in Europe, including EFTA countries, candidate countries and potential candidates. The population figures transmitted by the countries can either be based on data from the most recent census adjusted by the components of population change (live births, deaths, immigration and emigration) produced since the last census, or based on population registers. The estimates of population produced using the demographic components since the last census should then be revised once the census results become available, to revise and rebase the population statistics series for the previous decade.

Data for Portugal are based on revised population figures for 2022–2025, transmitted to Eurostat at the end of June 2026. From 2022 onwards, the annual resident population estimates are derived from administrative sources, whereas the estimates up to and including 2021 are final figures based on previous population censuses. This methodological change should be taken into account when interpreting any developments over time, i.e. all comparisons between reference years up to 2021 and reference years from 2022 onwards.

Context

Statistics on population change and the structure of population are increasingly used to support policymaking and to enable the monitoring of demographic behaviour within political, economic, social and cultural contexts. In particular, this concerns demographic developments that focus on a likely reduction in the relative importance of the working-age population and a corresponding increase in the number of older people. These statistics may be used to support a range of different analyses, including studies relating to population ageing and its effects on the sustainability of public finance and welfare, the evaluation of fertility as a background for family policies, or the economic and social impact of demographic change. The EU has been going through a period of demographic and societal change.

More interesting insights can be found in Eurostat’s interactive publication Statistics on Demography of Europe.

Explore further

Database

Population

Thematic section

Population and Demography overview

Publications

Methodology

Population change - Demographic balance and crude rates at national level (ESMS metadata file — demo_gind_esms)
Fertility (ESMS metadata file — demo_fer_esms)
Mortality (ESMS metadata file — demo_mor_esms)
Population (ESMS metadata file — demo_pop_esms)
International migration statistics (ESMS metadata file — migr_immi_esms)

External links