As the world marches towards 2050, demographic shifts promise to reshape global dynamics. Population projections suggest that by 2050, the global population will reach an estimated 9.7 billion people. This growth will bring about significant changes in the distribution of the world’s population, impacting everything from economic development to resource allocation and geopolitical landscapes. Understanding these projections helps in planning for future challenges and opportunities. In this article, we will delve into the projected populations of the most and least populous countries in 2050, providing insights into how the demographic landscape is expected to evolve over the next few decades.
Top 10 Most Populous Countries in 2050
- India: 1,670,490,596
- China: 1,312,636,325
- Nigeria: 377,459,883
- United States: 375,391,963
- Pakistan: 367,808,468
- Indonesia: 317,225,213
- Brazil: 230,885,725
- DR Congo: 217,494,003
- Ethiopia: 214,812,309
- Bangladesh: 203,904,900
By 2050, India is projected to be the most populous country in the world. This shift is driven by India’s relatively high fertility rates and China’s aging population due to its long-standing one-child policy. The United States remains the third most populous country, reflecting its steady population growth through both natural increase and immigration.
Nigeria’s population is expected to soar, making it the most populous country in Africa and the sixth worldwide. This dramatic increase is due to high fertility rates and a young population. Other countries like Pakistan, Indonesia, and Ethiopia will also see significant population growth, contributing to their rising global demographic rankings. These changes will have profound implications for global economic power, resource distribution, and environmental sustainability.
Top 10 Least Populous Countries in 2050
- Vatican City: 764
- Niue: 2,096
- Tokelau: 2,430
- Falkland Islands: 3,779
- Montserrat: 3,781
- Saint Pierre and Miquelon: 5,165
- Saint Barthelemy: 10,210
- Wallis and Futuna: 11,349
- Tuvalu: 13,211
- Nauru: 14,695
The smallest countries by population in 2050 are expected to remain largely unchanged from today, dominated by tiny island nations and small territories. Vatican City, the spiritual and administrative center of the Roman Catholic Church, will continue to have the smallest population. Niue, Tokelau, and the Falkland Islands also remain among the least populous due to their limited land area and remote locations.
These countries face unique challenges, such as vulnerability to climate change, limited economic opportunities, and reliance on external aid. Despite their small populations, they play important roles in global biodiversity and cultural heritage. Addressing their specific needs and ensuring sustainable development will be crucial as the global population continues to grow.
Understanding the projected populations of the most and least populous countries in 2050 provides a glimpse into the future, highlighting the need for strategic planning and international cooperation to address the diverse challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.
| # | Country | Population 2050 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | India | 1,670,490,596 |
| 2 | China | 1,312,636,325 |
| 3 | Nigeria | 377,459,883 |
| 4 | United States | 375,391,963 |
| 5 | Pakistan | 367,808,468 |
| 6 | Indonesia | 317,225,213 |
| 7 | Brazil | 230,885,725 |
| 8 | DR Congo | 217,494,003 |
| 9 | Ethiopia | 214,812,309 |
| 10 | Bangladesh | 203,904,900 |
| 11 | Egypt | 160,339,889 |
| 12 | Philippines | 157,891,622 |
| 13 | Mexico | 143,772,364 |
| 14 | Russia | 133,133,035 |
| 15 | Tanzania | 129,931,520 |
| 16 | Vietnam | 107,012,939 |
| 17 | Japan | 103,784,357 |
| 18 | Iran | 99,007,204 |
| 19 | Turkey | 95,829,258 |
| 20 | Uganda | 87,622,081 |
| 21 | Kenya | 85,211,739 |
| 22 | Sudan | 84,494,269 |
| 23 | Germany | 78,932,228 |
| 24 | Iraq | 74,515,140 |
| 25 | Afghanistan | 74,075,234 |
| 26 | South Africa | 73,529,753 |
| 27 | Angola | 72,328,068 |
| 28 | United Kingdom | 71,684,966 |
| 29 | Thailand | 67,880,083 |
| 30 | Niger | 67,043,296 |
| 31 | France | 65,827,072 |
| 32 | Mozambique | 63,044,497 |
| 33 | Algeria | 60,001,113 |
| 34 | Myanmar | 59,929,399 |
| 35 | Colombia | 56,987,651 |
| 36 | Yemen | 55,296,331 |
| 37 | Italy | 52,250,484 |
| 38 | Ghana | 52,231,785 |
| 39 | Argentina | 51,621,175 |
| 40 | Madagascar | 51,592,965 |
| 41 | Ivory Coast | 51,358,243 |
| 42 | Cameroon | 51,279,560 |
| 43 | Saudi Arabia | 48,374,543 |
| 44 | Mali | 47,439,802 |
| 45 | Canada | 45,890,819 |
| 46 | South Korea | 45,770,874 |
| 47 | Uzbekistan | 45,593,149 |
| 48 | Morocco | 45,044,990 |
| 49 | Spain | 44,219,565 |
| 50 | Peru | 42,022,554 |
| 51 | Malaysia | 41,032,433 |
| 52 | Burkina Faso | 40,541,548 |
| 53 | Syria | 38,306,374 |
| 54 | Zambia | 37,460,435 |
| 55 | Nepal | 37,401,365 |
| 56 | Malawi | 37,159,300 |
| 57 | Somalia | 36,462,830 |
| 58 | Chad | 36,452,035 |
| 59 | Venezuela | 35,937,404 |
| 60 | Poland | 34,932,339 |
| 61 | Ukraine | 32,867,719 |
| 62 | Senegal | 32,562,869 |
| 63 | Australia | 32,192,919 |
| 64 | Zimbabwe | 26,438,589 |
| 65 | North Korea | 25,807,197 |
| 66 | Kazakhstan | 25,609,978 |
| 67 | Benin | 25,264,035 |
| 68 | Guatemala | 24,600,727 |
| 69 | Burundi | 24,208,671 |
| 70 | Guinea | 23,711,700 |
| 71 | Rwanda | 23,030,046 |
| 72 | Taiwan | 22,445,526 |
| 73 | Ecuador | 22,269,779 |
| 74 | Sri Lanka | 21,814,985 |
| 75 | Chile | 20,675,378 |
| 76 | Cambodia | 20,258,435 |
| 77 | Netherlands | 17,897,025 |
| 78 | South Sudan | 17,460,846 |
| 79 | Romania | 17,457,213 |
| 80 | Bolivia | 16,609,854 |
| 81 | Togo | 15,478,883 |
| 82 | Tajikistan | 15,200,989 |
| 83 | Haiti | 15,087,520 |
| 84 | Jordan | 15,005,941 |
| 85 | Papua New Guinea | 14,910,369 |
| 86 | Tunisia | 14,315,779 |
| 87 | Honduras | 14,258,514 |
| 88 | Sierra Leone | 13,595,023 |
| 89 | Dominican Republic | 13,180,541 |
| 90 | Israel | 12,991,790 |
| 91 | Belgium | 12,090,657 |
| 92 | Sweden | 11,902,033 |
| 93 | Central African Republic | 11,533,423 |
| 94 | United Arab Emirates | 11,449,471 |
| 95 | Azerbaijan | 10,867,296 |
| 96 | Czech Republic | 10,577,126 |
| 97 | Congo | 10,378,912 |
| 98 | Cuba | 10,028,085 |
| 99 | Laos | 9,775,552 |
| 100 | Switzerland | 9,753,753 |
| 101 | Kyrgyzstan | 9,426,858 |
| 102 | Portugal | 9,261,305 |
| 103 | Greece | 9,144,951 |
| 104 | Nicaragua | 9,094,641 |
| 105 | Austria | 8,924,190 |
| 106 | Mauritania | 8,914,673 |
| 107 | Liberia | 8,890,700 |
| 108 | Palestine | 8,861,747 |
| 109 | Hungary | 8,817,396 |
| 110 | Paraguay | 8,591,486 |
| 111 | Libya | 8,539,976 |
| 112 | Belarus | 8,409,632 |
| 113 | Turkmenistan | 8,263,833 |
| 114 | Hong Kong | 6,975,391 |
| 115 | El Salvador | 6,636,854 |
| 116 | Denmark | 6,445,109 |
| 117 | Norway | 6,367,559 |
| 118 | Singapore | 6,337,235 |
| 119 | Oman | 6,328,978 |
| 120 | Eritrea | 5,964,021 |
| 121 | New Zealand | 5,949,002 |
| 122 | Serbia | 5,777,806 |
| 123 | Panama | 5,736,121 |
| 124 | Ireland | 5,724,686 |
| 125 | Costa Rica | 5,702,525 |
| 126 | Finland | 5,460,917 |
| 127 | Bulgaria | 5,187,392 |
| 128 | Slovakia | 5,186,967 |
| 129 | Kuwait | 5,155,414 |
| 130 | Lebanon | 4,937,579 |
| 131 | Gambia | 4,673,743 |
| 132 | Mongolia | 4,518,856 |
| 133 | Namibia | 3,779,918 |
| 134 | Gabon | 3,757,053 |
| 135 | Botswana | 3,679,340 |
| 136 | Guinea Bissau | 3,445,289 |
| 137 | Georgia | 3,384,660 |
| 138 | Qatar | 3,358,454 |
| 139 | Uruguay | 3,337,143 |
| 140 | Croatia | 3,333,425 |
| 141 | Moldova | 2,997,532 |
| 142 | Lesotho | 2,898,369 |
| 143 | Equatorial Guinea | 2,790,533 |
| 144 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 2,739,014 |
| 145 | Puerto Rico | 2,727,624 |
| 146 | Armenia | 2,573,465 |
| 147 | Jamaica | 2,493,823 |
| 148 | Albania | 2,456,472 |
| 149 | Lithuania | 2,187,550 |
| 150 | Slovenia | 2,003,258 |
| 151 | North Macedonia | 1,909,309 |
| 152 | Bahrain | 1,809,237 |
| 153 | Timor Leste | 1,806,869 |
| 154 | Eswatini | 1,655,121 |
| 155 | Djibouti | 1,502,575 |
| 156 | Trinidad and Tobago | 1,485,139 |
| 157 | Latvia | 1,433,728 |
| 158 | Cyprus | 1,391,785 |
| 159 | Comoros | 1,246,207 |
| 160 | Mauritius | 1,226,235 |
| 161 | Solomon Islands | 1,225,407 |
| 162 | Estonia | 1,171,695 |
| 163 | Reunion | 1,127,252 |
| 164 | Fiji | 1,094,174 |
| 165 | Macao | 881,666 |
| 166 | Guyana | 878,746 |
| 167 | Bhutan | 874,294 |
| 168 | Western Sahara | 851,067 |
| 169 | Luxembourg | 781,910 |
| 170 | Cabo Verde | 727,457 |
| 171 | Suriname | 725,519 |
| 172 | Mayotte | 664,141 |
| 173 | Montenegro | 586,385 |
| 174 | Vanuatu | 578,567 |
| 175 | Maldives | 569,909 |
| 176 | Belize | 538,838 |
| 177 | French Guiana | 532,459 |
| 178 | Malta | 522,737 |
| 179 | Brunei | 498,373 |
| 180 | Bahamas | 450,625 |
| 181 | Iceland | 408,783 |
| 182 | Guadeloupe | 388,861 |
| 183 | Sao Tome and Principe | 366,663 |
| 184 | New Caledonia | 353,191 |
| 185 | French Polynesia | 346,933 |
| 186 | Martinique | 330,121 |
| 187 | Samoa | 320,016 |
| 188 | Barbados | 267,788 |
| 189 | Curacao | 204,084 |
| 190 | Guam | 195,673 |
| 191 | Kiribati | 188,570 |
| 192 | Saint Lucia | 177,856 |
| 193 | Grenada | 136,253 |
| 194 | Micronesia | 135,457 |
| 195 | Jersey | 135,441 |
| 196 | Tonga | 131,225 |
| 197 | Seychelles | 116,644 |
| 198 | St Vincent and Grenadines | 101,691 |
| 199 | Antigua and Barbuda | 99,030 |
| 200 | Aruba | 94,185 |
| 201 | Isle of Man | 86,680 |
| 202 | Andorra | 80,504 |
| 203 | Cayman Islands | 77,633 |
| 204 | United States Virgin Islands | 77,519 |
| 205 | Dominica | 74,167 |
| 206 | Guernsey | 66,496 |
| 207 | Faeroe Islands | 59,444 |
| 208 | Bermuda | 56,041 |
| 209 | Greenland | 53,997 |
| 210 | Turks and Caicos | 52,865 |
| 211 | Marshall Islands | 51,211 |
| 212 | Northern Mariana Islands | 50,050 |
| 213 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 46,882 |
| 214 | Liechtenstein | 42,287 |
| 215 | Sint Maarten | 38,947 |
| 216 | Monaco | 37,664 |
| 217 | Saint Martin | 35,453 |
| 218 | British Virgin Islands | 34,768 |
| 219 | American Samoa | 33,557 |
| 220 | San Marino | 32,044 |
| 221 | Gibraltar | 31,356 |
| 222 | Cook Islands | 17,674 |
| 223 | Palau | 16,689 |
| 224 | Anguilla | 15,294 |
| 225 | Nauru | 14,695 |
| 226 | Tuvalu | 13,211 |
| 227 | Wallis and Futuna | 11,349 |
| 228 | Saint Barthelemy | 10,210 |
| 229 | Saint Pierre and Miquelon | 5,165 |
| 230 | Montserrat | 3,781 |
| 231 | Falkland Islands | 3,779 |
| 232 | Tokelau | 2,430 |
| 233 | Niue | 2,096 |
| 234 | Vatican City | 764 |
Disclaimer: The population projections in this article are based on current data and assumptions, and are subject to change due to unforeseen factors such as economic shifts, natural disasters, policy changes, and healthcare advancements. Actual figures may vary. Use these projections as a guide, not an absolute prediction.
Related Articles
- Global Population Projections by Country – Year 2100
- Global Population Projections by Country – Year 2030
Frequently asked Questions
- How much will the global population increase by 2050?
- The global population is projected to increase to about 9.7 billion by 2050.
- What is the estimated population of the United States in 2050?
- The United States is projected to have a population of around 379 million by 2050.
- What is the projected population of India in 2050?
- India’s population is projected to be approximately 1.64 billion by 2050.