Demography of Europe – 2025 edition

Demographic statistics tell us about how the population is developing, ageing, and much more.

This publication provides possibilities to investigate EU and country level data and compare trends over several years.This makes Eurostat demographic data the most popular European statistics and an important element of many policy areas.

Before you dive in, why don’t you take a guess how the population of your country is projected to develop until 2100? Test your knowledge

Population structure

This section presents population size and density, the ratio of women to men as well as ageing.

A growing population

EU population increased by 0.4%

On 1 January 2024, there were 449 million people living in the European Union (EU) representing a 0.4% increase from the 448 million recorded on 1 January 2023. The most populous EU countries were:

• Germany (83.4 million, 19% of the EU total)
• France (68.4 million, 15%)
• Italy (58.9 million, 13%)
• Spain (48.6 million, 11%)
• Poland (36.6 million, 8%)

In total, these 5 countries accounted for 66% of the EU population. At the other end of the range, the least populous EU countries were Malta (563 000 people, corresponding to 0.1% of the EU total), Luxembourg (672 000, also 0.1%) and Cyprus (934 000, 0.2%).

The observed population growth of 1.6 million in 2023 can be largely attributed to the increased migratory movements post-COVID-19 and to the influx of displaced persons from Ukraine who received temporary protection status in EU countries, as a consequence of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.

During the 20-year period 1 January 2004 to 1 January 2024, the total population of the EU increased from 432.8 million to 449.2 million, a growth of 4%. During this period, 19 EU countries showed increases in their population and 8 recorded decreases. The largest relative increases were recorded in Luxembourg (48%) followed by Malta (41%), Ireland (33%) and Cyprus (29%). The largest relative decreases were observed in Latvia (−18%), Bulgaria (−17%), Lithuania (−15%) and Romania (−11%).

The largest absolute increases were recorded in France and Spain (both 6.1 million), while the largest absolute decreases were observed in Romania (−2.5 million), Poland (−1.6 million), and Bulgaria (−1.3 million).

Population density in the EU ranges from 18 to 1 766 people per km²

The population density in the EU was 109 persons per km² in 2023. This value varied significantly between EU countries. Malta recorded the highest population density (with 1 766 persons per km²), followed at a distance by the Netherlands (526) and Belgium (387). At the other end of the range were Finland (18 persons per km²) and Sweden (26) with the lowest population densities.

The EU population density increased from 105 persons per km² in 2003 to 109 in 2023. During this period, there was an increase in 19 of the EU countries, with the largest growths in Malta (from 1 263 to 1 766 persons per km²) and Luxembourg (from 175 to 258). Romania (95 to 81) and Bulgaria (70 to 59) had the largest decreases.

More women than men

4.4% more women than men in the EU

On 1 January 2024, there were 229 million women and 220 million men in the EU. This corresponds to a ratio of 104.4 women per 100 men, which means that there were 4.4% more women than men. There were more women than men in all EU countries, except Malta, Sweden, Luxembourg, and Slovenia. The highest ratio was found in Latvia (15.5% more women than men). 

For comparison, 20 years earlier, on 1 January 2004, there were 5.4% more women than men in the EU. During this period, the rate of women per 100 men increased in 7 EU countries and decreased in 20. The highest increase was recorded in Bulgaria (from 105.3 to 108.1 women per 100 men), while the highest decrease was in Malta (from 101.9 to 88.6 women per 100 men).

An ageing population

Share of those aged 80+ increased from 3.8% to 6.1% between 2004 and 2024

Over the period 1 January 2004 to 1 January 2024, the proportion of persons aged 80 and over grew in all EU countries. At EU level, it increased by 2.3 percentage points (pp), from 3.8% to 6.1%. The highest increases were in Greece (+3.2 pp, from 3.8% to 7.0%), Latvia (+3.2 pp, from 2.9% to 6.1%) and Portugal (also +3.2 pp, from 3.8% to 7.0%), and the lowest in Sweden (+0.5 pp, from 5.3% to 5.8%).

Over the same period, the share of persons aged 65 and over also increased in all EU countries. At EU level, the increase was 5.2 pp, from 16.4% to 21.6%.

Share of those aged below 15 decreased from 16.2% to 14.6% between 2004 and 2024

Over the period from 1 January 2004 to 1 January 2024, the proportion of children and young adolescents (under the age of 15) declined in the EU by 1.6 pp, dropping from 16.2% to 14.6%. A decrease was observed in almost all EU countries, with the highest decreases in Malta (−5.9 pp) and Cyprus (−5.1 pp). Only Czechia (+0.6 pp), Estonia and Latvia (both +0.2 pp), Slovenia and Bulgaria (both +0.1 pp) recorded increases. On 1 January 2024, the share of children and young adolescents was highest in Ireland (18.9%) and lowest in Italy (12.2%).

Over the same period, the share of young people (under the age of 19) decreased in all EU countries. At EU level, the decrease was 2.4 pp, from 22.4% to 20.0%.

Median age of the population in the EU: 44.7 years

Another way of analysing the ageing of society in the EU is by looking at the median age of the population. The median age increased by 5.4 years from 39.3 years in 2004  to 44.7 years in 2024 (on 1 January). 

Among the EU countries, the highest median age on 1 January 2024 was observed in Italy (48.7 years), followed by Bulgaria and Portugal (each 47.1) and Greece (46.9), while the lowest were recorded in Ireland (39.4), Luxembourg (39.7), Malta (39.8) and Cyprus (40.6 years).

During the period 2004 to 2024, the median age increased the most in Romania (8.4 years) and Portugal (8.3 years) and the least in Sweden (1.1) and Luxembourg (1.8).

On 1 January 2024 the median age was (43.1 years) for men and (46.3 years) for women.

Population change

This section focuses on births and deaths, age of mothers, number of children and life expectancy.

Fewer births, more deaths

Live births decreasing

In 2023, the crude birth rate in the EU stood at 8.2 live births per 1,000 persons. Among the EU countries, the highest rates were found in Cyprus (10.7 live births per 1 000 persons), Ireland (10.3) and France (9.9), and the lowest in Italy (6.4), Spain (6.6) and Greece (6.8).

Comparing 2023 with 2003, there was a decrease in all EU countries except Bulgaria.

Number of deaths increasing

The  crude death rate, which is the number of deaths per 1 000 persons, was 10.8 in 2023 in the EU. The highest rates were observed in Bulgaria (15.7 deaths per 1 000 persons), Latvia (14.9) and Hungary (13.7). The lowest rates were recorded in Ireland and Luxembourg (both 6.6), Cyprus (7.0) and Malta (7.3).

In 2003, the crude death rate was 10.1 in the EU and fluctuated between 9.7 and 10.5 until 2019. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it  rose to 11.6 in 2020, reached a peak of 11.9 in 2021 and since then it slightly decreased to 10.8 in 2023. Comparing 2023 with 2003 the rate increased in 16 EU countries, decreased in 9 countries and was the same in Cyprus and Hungary.

More deaths than births since 2012

The EU’s crude rate of natural population change (difference between live births and deaths) was –2.6 in 2023. Looking back, in 2003, the crude rate of natural population change was 0.0 followed by positive rates until 2012, when it turned negative. Since 2016 it decreased continuously to reach –1.1 in 2019. With the COVID-19 pandemic, it dropped to –2.5 in 2020, –2.7 in 2021 and –2.9 in 2022. In 2023 it slightly increased to –2.6. 

In 2023, the crude rate of natural population was negative (more death than births) in 20 EU countries and it was positive in 7. The highest negative rates were observed in Latvia (−7.2), Bulgaria (−6.8), and Lithuania (−5.7), and the highest positive ones were found in Cyprus and Ireland (both +3.7), and Luxembourg (+2.8).

Older mothers

1.38 children per woman in 2023

In 2023, the total fertility rate in the EU stood at 1.38 live births per women, down from 1.44 in 2003 and below the replacement level of 2.1, at which a population is considered stable. Among the EU countries in 2023, Bulgaria (1.81 live births per woman) had the highest total fertility rate followed by France (1.66) and Hungary (1.55). The lowest rates were found in Malta (1.06), Spain (1.12) and Lithuania (1.18). 

Between 2003 and 2023, the total fertility rate decreased in 17 EU countries and increased in 10. The largest decrease was observed in Finland (from 1.72 live births per woman in 2003 to 1.32 in 2023) while the highest increase was found in Bulgaria (from 1.26 to 1.81). 

Age of women at birth of first child increasing to 29.8 years

The mean age of first-time mothers in the EU has increased by 1 year from 28.8 in 2013 (first year available) to 29.8 in 2023. The oldest first-time mothers were found in Italy (31.8 years), Ireland (31.6) and Spain (31.5), and the youngest in Bulgaria (26.9), Romania (27.1) and Slovakia (27.3). 

From 2013 to 2023, there was an increase in the mean age in all EU countries. The highest increases were in Finland (2.2 years), Malta (2.0 years) and Denmark (1.9 years), while the lowest increase was in Slovenia (0.4 years). 

Share of births to mothers aged 40 and over more than doubled between 2003 and 2023

In 2023, around 3.7 million babies were born in the EU, of which 6.1% were to mothers aged 40 years and over.  Among the EU countries, the largest share of births to women aged 40 and over was found in Ireland, Spain and Greece (each 11% of all live births) and the lowest in Romania, Slovakia and Lithuania (each 4%).

In the EU, the share of births to women aged 40 and over has more than doubled from 2.6% in 2003 to 6.1% in 2023. The proportion of live births to mothers aged at least 40 increased in all EU countries during this period. The highest increase was in Greece (8.0 pp from 2.6% to 10.6%) and the lowest in the Netherlands (1.7 pp from 2.3% to 4.0%).

Women live longer

Increase in life expectancy of 3.7 years between 2003 and 2023

The population in the EU is ageing, one reason is increasing life expectancy – the population is living longer. Life expectancy at birth rose rapidly during the last century due to several factors:

• reductions in infant mortality
• rising living standards, improved lifestyles and better education
• advances in healthcare and medicine

In 2023, the life expectancy at birth in the EU was estimated at 81.4 years. Spain (84.0) and Italy (83.5) recorded the highest life expectancy at birth, and the lowest was in Latvia (75.6) followed by Bulgaria (75.8). 

Life expectancy rose by 3.7 years at EU level between 2003 and 2023. Among the EU countries, 24 countries recorded an increase. Italy and Denmark (both 11.2) had the largest increase. Latvia recorded the most important decrease with a drop of 4.7. 

Following the outbreak of the COVID-19, pandemic life expectancy fell to 80.4 years in 2020 and further to 80.1 years in 2021. It rebounded to 80.6 years in 2022 and to 81.4 years in 2023, which is 0.1 years more than the 2019 value before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Women live on average 5.3 years longer than men

In 2023, the highest life expectancies at birth for women were recorded in Spain (86.7 years) and France (85.7), and the lowest in Bulgaria (79.7) and Hungary (79.9). For men, Luxembourg and Sweden had the highest life expectancies, both at 81.7 years, followed closely by Malta (81.6), and the lowest in Latvia (70.5) and Bulgaria (72.0). 

Women live longer than men: for 2023, the EU life expectancy at birth for women was 84.0 and 78.7 for men, a difference of 5.3 years. This was the case in all EU countries, with the largest differences in Latvia (10.1; women 80.6 and men 70.5) and the smallest in the Netherlands (3.0; 83.4 and 80.4).

Compared with the situation 20 years earlier, the gender gap in life expectancy at birth was 6.4 years in the EU in 2003 (women 80.8 and men 74.4), 1.1 years more than in 2023. Comparing 2023 with 2003, the gender gap in life expectancy at birth decreased in 25 EU countries, with the biggest decreases in Luxembourg (−2.7 years; from 6.0 to 3.3) and Lithuania (−2.3; from 11.3 to 9.0). The only increases were in Bulgaria (0.7; from 7.0 and 7.7) and Romania (0.4; from 7.4 to 7.8).

Excess mortality

The highest excess mortality rates were recorded in August and October 2024

In April 2020 a new European data collection on weekly death counts was launched to measure the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. By comparing the weekly deaths with the pre-pandemic average for the same period from 2016 to 2019, the level of excess mortality can be determined. Based on these data it can be observed that there were around 578 000 excess deaths from March to December 2020, 658 000 in 2021, 515 000 in 2022, 206 000 in 2023, and 129 000 in 2024.

COVID-19 was declared by WHO as a global health emergency from 11 March 2020 to 5 May 2023. During this period, there were around 1.8 million additional deaths in the EU.

Initially, collected to measure the impact of the pandemic, others effects can now be observed (see visual below). For example, some of the mortality increase in the summers of 2022 and 2024 compared with the same months of the years 2020 and 2021 may have been due to heatwaves that affected parts of Europe.

Population diversity

This section presents immigration and emigration, non-national population and acquisition of citizenship.

Immigration and emigration

In 2023, almost 6 million international immigrants

In 2023, 5.9 million people immigrated to the EU countries. Of those, 4.9 million people came from non-EU countries and 1.1 million people previously residing in one EU country migrated to another EU country.

In 2023, the largest numbers of persons immigrating were recorded in:

• Germany (1 271 000 persons, 21% of all immigrants into EU countries)
• Spain (1 250 000, 21%)
• Italy (440 000, 7%)
• France (418 000, 7%)

Immigrants entering these 4 countries made up of 56% of all immigrants entering the EU in 2023. Slovakia (5 900, 0.1% of all immigrants into EU countries), Latvia (18 700, 0.3%) and Estonia (26 400, 0.4%) recorded the smallest numbers of immigrants.

In many EU countries, a large majority of immigrants are non-nationals

Immigrants are either non-nationals or nationals who have the citizenship of the country to which they move. In 2023, at least 60% of immigrants were non-nationals in 25 among the 27 EU countries. The largest shares were observed in Czechia (98%), Cyprus and Malta (both 95%). On the other hand, in Romania, 67% of immigrants in 2023 held a national citizenship, followed by Slovakia (64%).

EU citizens

Almost 14 million EU citizens living in another EU country

EU citizens have the freedom to move and reside in the different EU countries. The largest group of EU citizens residing in other EU countries as non-nationals on 1 January 2024 was Romanian citizens (3.1 million or 22% of the 13.9 million EU citizens living in another EU country as non-nationals), followed by Italian and Polish citizens (both 1.5 million or 11%).

Looking at the period 1 January 2019 to 1 January 2024, the number of EU citizens living in another EU country has increased for 16 EU citizenships and decreased for 11. The largest relative increase during this period can be observed for Irish (+35%), Maltese (+34%), and Spanish (+20%) citizens whereas decreases were recorded for Cypriots (-55%), Finnish (−16%) and Danish (−11%) citizens.

Syrians, Moroccans and Albanians largest groups acquiring citizenship across EU countries

In 2023, EU countries granted citizenship to over 1.1 million people. Syrians (108 000 or 10.2%), Moroccans (106 000 or 10.1%) and Albanians (44 000 or 4.2%) were the top 3 recipients of EU country citizenship.

Looking at the period from 2016 to 2023, the total number of citizenships granted to non-nationals in the EU was lowest in 2018 (677 000) and highest in 2023 (1 100 000), a 6% increase compared with 2022 (990 000).

In terms of original citizenships, the largest groups acquiring citizenship of an EU country were:

• from 2016 to 2019 Moroccans and Albanians, ahead of Turks until 2018 and of Britons in 2019
• from 2020 to 2022 Moroccans and Syrians, ahead of Albanians
• in 2023 Syrians and Moroccans ahead of Albanians

In 2021 and 2022 Ukrainians were the 5th largest group acquiring EU citizenship. 

Share of children born to foreign-born mothers increasing

Another way of looking at population diversity is through the share of children born to foreign-born mothers. In 2023 in the EU, 23% of children were born to mothers who were not born in their country of residence, an increase of 5 pp from 18% in 2013. In 2023, the highest share was recorded in Luxembourg (67%) followed by Cyprus (41%) and Malta (36%), while the lowest were in Bulgaria and Slovakia (both 3%) and Romania (4%).

Comparing 2023 with 2013, 25 EU countries showed an increase in the share of live births to foreign-born mothers. Malta recorded the highest increase (25 pp, from 11% in 2013 to 36% in 2023) followed by Portugal (from 16% to 29%). Decreases were recorded in Croatia (from 15% to 11%) and Italy (from 23% to 22%).

Marital status

This section focuses on marriage and divorce rates, age at first marriage and live births outside marriage.

Fewer marriages

Number of marriages going down

Some 1.8 million marriages took place in the EU in 2023 or 4.0 marriages for every 1 000 persons (the crude marriage rate) . Among the EU countries, the lowest marriage rates were observed in Slovenia (3.0 marriages per 1 000 persons) and Italy (3.1), and the highest in Romania (5.8) and Latvia (5.6).

During the period 2003 to 2023 in the EU, the crude marriage rate, peaked at 5.0 marriages per 1 000 persons in 2007. After that it stayed at 4.1 marriages per 1 000 persons or above until 2019. Due to the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, the crude marriage rate recorded its lowest values since 1964 (the first available year) 3.2 in 2020 and 3.9 in 2021. In 2022, it rebounded to 4.2, before slightly declining to 4.0 in 2023.

Older when getting married

In 2023, the oldest mean age at first marriage for women was observed in Spain (36.9) and for men in Sweden (37.0), and the youngest for women in Romania (28.3) and for men in Poland (30.8).

Comparing 2023 to 2003, the mean age at first marriage has increased in all 19 EU countries for which data is available. The biggest increases of 8 years for women were observed in Spain (from 28.9 to 36.9) and almost 7 years for men in Portugal from (28.1 to 35.0). 

41% of births in the EU are outside marriage

The proportion of live births outside marriage in the EU stood at 41.1% in 2023. At least half of all live births were outside marriage in 8 EU countries. The highest shares were observed in Bulgaria (59.7%), Portugal (59.5%), and France (58.5%), and the lowest in Greece (9.7%) followed by Hungary (24.4%) and Croatia (26.1%).

The proportion of live births outside marriage in the EU increased gradually from 35.3% in 2003 to a peak of 42.2% in 2016, and has since fluctuated, reaching 40.0% in 2023. Comparing 2023 (or the latest year available) with 2003, the share of births outside marriage increased in 23 EU countries and decreased in 4. The largest increase was observed in Portugal (+32.6 pp, from 26.9% to 59.5%), and the highest decrease in Hungary (−7.9 pp, from 32.3% to 24.4%).

Divorce rate fluctuating

In 2023, the crude divorce rate was 1.6 in the EU, with the highest rates observed in Latvia (2.8 divorces per 1 000 persons) and Lithuania (2.5), and the lowest ones in Slovenia (1.0) and Croatia (1.1). 

Looking at the period from 2003 to 2023, the crude divorce rate, in the EU fluctuated. In 2003, there were 1.8 divorces per 1 000 persons. This number rose to a peak of 2.1 in 2006 and ranged between 1.8 and 1.9 from 2009 to 2019. The rate fell to 1.6 in 2020, rose slightly to 1.7 in 2021 and declined again to 1.6 in 2022 and 2023. 

When comparing 2023 with 2003, the highest decrease was in Czechia (from 3.8 to 1.8) and the largest increase was in Latvia (from 2.1 to 2.8). A high increase was also observed in Malta (from 0.1 in 2011 to 0.9 in 2022).

About this publication

Demography of Europe is an interactive publication released by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. 

Information on data

Data in the visualisations are linked directly to the online database up to the reference period(s) – months in 1 visualisation, year(s) in all others – indicated in each visualisation. The visualisations present data on the latest available reference period (2024 or 2023), often also on several earlier reference periods (for example: all years 2003-2023; or 2004, 2014 and 2024).

The population stocks are to 1 January of any given calendar year (e.g. 1 January 2024). Live births, deaths, immigration, emigration, acquisition of citizenship, marriages and divorces are flows and refer to a whole year.

Population density is the ratio of the (annual average) population of a country to the (land) area of the country.

The accompanying text was finalised by mid-May 2025 and reflects the data situation at that moment in time. If data on the latest year was missing from some country, it could sometimes be replaced by a previous year’s data when the accompanying text was written.

The release and update dates for all statistical indicators are published on the Eurostat release calendar.

For more information

• Thematic section on demography, population stock and balance
• Thematic section on international migration, citizenship
• Database on population and demography
• Database on international migration and citizenship
• Statistics Explained articles on population and demography
• Statistics Explained articles on population at regional level
• Statistics Explained articles on migration and asylum
• Statistics 4 beginners article on population statistics
• Statistics Explained glossary on population

Contact

If you have questions on the data, please contact Eurostat user support.

Copyright and re-use policy

This publication should not be considered as representative of the European Commission’s official position.

© European Union, 2025

The reuse policy of European Commission documents is implemented based on Commission Decision 2011/833/EU of 12 December 2011 on the reuse of Commission documents (OJ L 330, 14.12.2011, p. 39).

Except otherwise noted, the reuse of this document is authorised under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC-BY 4.0) licence. This means that reuse is allowed provided appropriate credit is given and any changes are indicated.

For any use or reproduction of elements that are not owned by the European Union, permission may need to be sought directly from the respective rightholders. The European Union does not own the copyright in relation to the photographs:

Cover: © Aliaksandr / stock.adobe.com
Population structure: © fizkes / stock.adobe.com
Population change: © Jasmin Merdan / stock.adobe.com
Population diversity: © Marius Karp / stock.adobe.com
Marital status: © Roman Motizov / stock.adobe.com

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Identifiers

Catalogue number: KS-01-24-025-EN-Q
ISBN 978-92-68-23025-1
ISSN 2600-3368
doi:10.2785/5077379