World Population Clock: 7.5 Billion People (2016)

World Population: Past, Present, and Future

(move and expand the bar at the bottom of the chart to navigate through time)

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 less than 30 years (1959), the fourth billion in 15 years (1974), and the fifth billion in only 13 years (1987).

During the 20th century alone, the population in the world has grown from 1.65 billion to 6 billion.
In 1970, there were roughly half as many people in the world as there are now.
Because of declining growth rates, it will now take over 200 years to double again.

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.

Sources:

Historical Estimates of World Population - US Census Bureau
The World at Six Billion, World Population, Year 0 to near stabilization [Pdf file] - United Nations Population Division

Growth Rate

Yearly Population Growth Rate (%)

Population in the world is currently (2016) growing at a rate of around 1.13% per year. The current average population change is estimated at around 80 million per year.

Annual growth rate reached its peak in the late 1960s, when it was at 2% and above. The rate of increase has therefore almost halved since its peak of 2.19 percent, which was reached in 1963.

The annual growth rate is currently declining and is projected to continue to decline in the coming years. Currently, it is estimated that it will become less than 1% by 2020 and less than 0.5% by 2050.

This means that world population will continue to grow in the 21st century, but at a 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 a further 39 years to increase by another 50%, to become 9 billion by 2038.

The latest United Nations projections indicate that world population will reach 10 billion persons in the year 2056 (six years earlier than previously estimated).

World Population (2016 and historical)

View the population data for all years

Year	Population	Yearly % Change	Yearly Change	Median Age	Fertility Rate	Density (P/Km²)	Urban Pop %	Urban Population
2016	7,432,663,275	1.13 %	83,191,176	29.9	2.5	57	54.3 %	4,034,193,153
2015	7,349,472,099	1.18 %	83,949,411	30	2.51	57	53.8 %	3,957,285,013
2010	6,929,725,043	1.23 %	82,017,839	29	2.56	53	51.5 %	3,571,272,167
2005	6,519,635,850	1.25 %	78,602,746	27	2.62	50	49.1 %	3,199,013,076
2000	6,126,622,121	1.33 %	78,299,807	26	2.74	47	46.6 %	2,856,131,072
1995	5,735,123,084	1.55 %	85,091,077	25	3.04	44	44.8 %	2,568,062,984
1990	5,309,667,699	1.82 %	91,425,426	24	3.45	41	43 %	2,285,030,904
1985	4,852,540,569	1.79 %	82,581,621	23	3.59	37	41.3 %	2,003,049,795
1980	4,439,632,465	1.8 %	75,646,647	23	3.87	34	39.4 %	1,749,539,272
1975	4,061,399,228	1.98 %	75,782,307	22	4.48	31	37.8 %	1,534,721,238
1970	3,682,487,691	2.08 %	71,998,514	22	4.92	28	36.7 %	1,350,280,789
1965	3,322,495,121	1.94 %	60,830,259	23	4.96	21	N.A.	N.A.
1960	3,018,343,828	1.82 %	52,005,861	23	4.9	23	33.8 %	1,019,494,911
1955	2,758,314,525	1.78 %	46,633,043	23	4.96	21	N.A.	N.A.

Source: Worldometers (www.Worldometers.info)

Elaboration of data by United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. World Population Prospects: The 2015 Revision. (Medium-fertility variant).

World Population Forecast

Year	Population	Yearly % Change	Yearly Change	Median Age	Fertility Rate	Density (P/Km²)	Urban Pop %	Urban Population
2020	7,758,156,792	1.09 %	81,736,939	31	2.47	60	55.9 %	4,338,014,924
2025	8,141,661,007	0.97 %	76,700,843	32	2.43	63	57.8 %	4,705,773,576
2030	8,500,766,052	0.87 %	71,821,009	33	2.38	65	59.5 %	5,058,158,460
2035	8,838,907,877	0.78 %	67,628,365	34	2.35	68	61 %	5,394,234,712
2040	9,157,233,976	0.71 %	63,665,220	35	2.31	70	62.4 %	5,715,413,029
2045	9,453,891,780	0.64 %	59,331,561	35	2.28	73	63.8 %	6,030,924,065
2050	9,725,147,994	0.57 %	54,251,243	36	2.25	75	65.2 %	6,338,611,492

Source: Worldometers (www.Worldometers.info)

Elaboration of data by United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. World Population Prospects: The 2015 Revision. (Medium-fertility variant).

World Population Milestones

10 Billion (2056)

The United Nations projects world population to reach 10 billion in the year 2056.

8 Billion (2023)

According to the most recent United Nations estimates, the human population (the total number of humans currently living) of the world is expected to reach 8 billion people in 2023.

7.5 Billion (2016)

According to United Nations estimates elaborated by Worldometers, the current world population is 7.5 billion as of December 2016 ^[1].

7 Billion (2011)

According to the United Nations, world population reached 7 Billion on October 31, 2011.
The US Census Bureau made a lower estimate, for which the 7 billion mark was only reached on March 12, 2012.

6 Billion (1999)

According to the United Nations, the 6 billion figure was reached on October 12, 1999 (celebrated as the Day of 6 Billion). According to the U.S. Census Bureau instead, the six billion milestone was reached on July 22, 1999, at about 3:49 AM GMT. Yet, according to the U.S. Census web site, the date and time of when 6 billion was reached will probably change because the already uncertain estimates are constantly being updated.

Previous Milestones

5 Billion: 1987
4 Billion: 1974
3 Billion: 1960
2 Billion: 1927
1 Billion: 1804

Summary Table

1 - 1804 (1803 years): 0.2 to 1 bil.

1804 - 2011 (207 years): from 1 billion to 7 billion

Year	1	1000	1500	1650	1750	1804	1850	1900	1927	1950	1960	1974	1980	1987	1999	2011	2020	2024	2030	2038	2050	2056	2100
Population	0.2	0.275	0.45	0.5	0.7	1	1.2	1.6	2	2.55	3	4	4.5	5	6	7	7.7	8	8.4	9	9.5	10	11.2

World Population by Region

#	Region	Population (2016)	Yearly Change	Net Change	Density (P/Km²)	Area (Km²)	Migrants (net)	Fert. Rate	Med. Age	Urban Pop %	World Share
1	Asia	4,436,224,473	0.98 %	42,928,459	143	31,022,549	-1,256,133	2.2	30	48.7 %	59.7 %
2	Africa	1,216,129,815	2.53 %	29,951,533	41	29,661,703	-579,959	4.71	19	40.2 %	16.4 %
3	Europe	738,849,002	0.06 %	406,932	33	22,121,228	824,644	1.6	42	74.3 %	9.9 %
4	Latin America and the Caribbean	641,029,306	1.05 %	6,642,739	32	20,158,154	-414,767	2.15	29	79.5 %	8.6 %
5	Northern America	360,529,324	0.75 %	2,691,288	19	18,680,276	1,235,878	1.86	38	82.6 %	4.9 %
6	Oceania	39,901,355	1.45 %	570,225	5	8,489,650	190,337	2.42	33	70.8 %	0.5 %

World Population Density (people/km²)

Population density map of the world showing not only countries but also many subdivisions (regions, states, provinces). See also: World Map

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:

2,173,180,000 Christians (31% of world population), of which 50% are Catholic, 37% Protestant, 12% Orthodox, and 1% other.
1,598,510,000 Muslims (23%), of which 87-90% are Sunnis, 10-13% Shia.
1,126,500,000 No Religion affiliation (16%): atheists, agnostics and people who do not identify with any particular religion. One-in-five people (20%) in the United States are religiously unaffiliated.
1,033,080,000 Hindus (15%), the overwhelming majority (94%) of which live in India.
487,540,000 Buddhists (7%), of which half live in China.
405,120,000 Folk Religionists (6%): faiths that are closely associated with a particular group of people, ethnicity or tribe.
58,110,000 Other Religions (1%): Baha’i faith, Taoism, Jainism, Shintoism, Sikhism, Tenrikyo, Wicca, Zoroastrianism and many others.
13,850,000 Jews (0.2%), four-fifths of which live in two countries: United States (41%) and Israel (41%).

World Population by Country

#	Country (or dependency)	Population (2016)	Yearly Change	Net Change	Density (P/Km²)	Area (Km²)	Migrants (net)	Fert. Rate	Med. Age	Urban Pop %	World Share
1	China	1,382,323,332	0.46 %	6,274,389	147	9,390,784	-360,000	1.55	37	57.9 %	18.6 %
2	India	1,326,801,576	1.2 %	15,751,049	446	2,972,892	-519,644	2.48	27	32.4 %	17.9 %
3	U.S.	324,118,787	0.73 %	2,345,156	35	9,155,898	1,001,577	1.89	38	82.7 %	4.4 %
4	Indonesia	260,581,100	1.17 %	3,017,285	144	1,812,108	-140,000	2.5	28	54 %	3.5 %
5	Brazil	209,567,920	0.83 %	1,720,392	25	8,349,320	3,185	1.82	31	84.2 %	2.8 %
6	Pakistan	192,826,502	2.07 %	3,901,628	250	770,998	-216,384	3.72	23	38.9 %	2.6 %
7	Nigeria	186,987,563	2.63 %	4,785,601	205	910,802	-60,000	5.74	18	49 %	2.5 %
8	Bangladesh	162,910,864	1.19 %	1,915,222	1,252	130,172	-445,296	2.23	26	34.9 %	2.2 %
9	Russia	143,439,832	-0.01 %	-17,086	9	16,299,981	223,577	1.66	39	73.2 %	1.9 %
10	Mexico	128,632,004	1.27 %	1,614,780	66	1,943,082	-104,717	2.29	27	78.3 %	1.7 %
11	Japan	126,323,715	-0.2 %	-249,766	347	364,571	70,000	1.4	47	94.1 %	1.7 %
12	Philippines	102,250,133	1.54 %	1,550,738	343	298,192	-140,000	3.04	24	44.8 %	1.4 %
13	Ethiopia	101,853,268	2.48 %	2,462,518	102	999,541	-12,000	4.59	19	19.8 %	1.4 %
14	Viet Nam	94,444,200	1.07 %	996,599	305	310,060	-40,000	1.96	30	34.1 %	1.3 %
15	Egypt	93,383,574	2.05 %	1,875,490	94	995,560	-43,136	3.38	25	39.8 %	1.3 %
16	Germany	80,682,351	-0.01 %	-6,194	232	348,520	250,000	1.39	46	77.2 %	1.1 %
17	Iran	80,043,146	1.18 %	933,874	49	1,630,207	-60,000	1.75	30	74.3 %	1.1 %
18	DR Congo	79,722,624	3.18 %	2,455,810	35	2,264,847	-19,184	6.15	17	39.5 %	1.1 %
19	Turkey	79,622,062	1.22 %	956,232	104	769,295	400,001	2.1	30	71.9 %	1.1 %
20	Thailand	68,146,609	0.28 %	187,250	133	510,844	20,000	1.53	38	51.1 %	0.9 %
21	U.K.	65,111,143	0.61 %	395,333	269	241,959	180,000	1.92	40	81.7 %	0.9 %
22	France	64,668,129	0.42 %	272,784	118	547,571	66,311	2	41	80.5 %	0.9 %
23	Italy	59,801,004	0.01 %	3,319	203	294,152	105,654	1.43	46	70.7 %	0.8 %
24	Tanzania	55,155,473	3.15 %	1,685,053	62	885,321	-40,000	5.24	17	31.6 %	0.7 %
25	South Africa	54,978,907	0.9 %	488,501	45	1,213,662	120,000	2.4	26	63.9 %	0.7 %
26	Myanmar	54,363,426	0.87 %	466,272	83	653,407	-94,856	2.25	28	34.8 %	0.7 %
27	South Korea	50,503,933	0.42 %	210,494	519	97,235	60,000	1.26	41	81.7 %	0.7 %
28	Colombia	48,654,392	0.88 %	425,688	44	1,108,301	-29,000	1.93	30	79 %	0.7 %
29	Kenya	47,251,449	2.61 %	1,201,147	83	569,295	-10,000	4.44	19	26.4 %	0.6 %
30	Spain	46,064,604	-0.12 %	-57,095	92	498,535	-118,614	1.32	43	82 %	0.6 %
31	Ukraine	44,624,373	-0.44 %	-199,392	77	579,537	39,000	1.49	40	69.5 %	0.6 %
32	Argentina	43,847,277	0.99 %	430,522	16	2,740,455	6,000	2.35	31	89.1 %	0.6 %
33	Sudan	41,175,541	2.34 %	940,659	23	1,767,191	-160,000	4.46	19	33.5 %	0.6 %
34	Algeria	40,375,954	1.79 %	709,435	17	2,375,056	-28,654	2.93	28	73 %	0.5 %
35	Uganda	40,322,768	3.31 %	1,290,385	202	199,816	-30,000	5.91	16	16.9 %	0.5 %
36	Poland	38,593,161	-0.05 %	-18,633	126	306,295	-14,762	1.37	40	59.9 %	0.5 %
37	Iraq	37,547,686	3.09 %	1,124,291	87	434,077	109,733	4.64	19	68.1 %	0.5 %
38	Canada	36,286,378	0.96 %	346,451	4	9,071,595	235,173	1.61	41	81.9 %	0.5 %
39	Morocco	34,817,065	1.28 %	439,554	78	446,373	-62,125	2.56	28	59.9 %	0.5 %
40	Afghanistan	33,369,945	2.59 %	843,383	51	653,032	94,601	5.13	18	26.6 %	0.4 %
41	Saudi Arabia	32,157,974	1.96 %	617,602	15	2,143,865	170,000	2.85	28	78.8 %	0.4 %
42	Peru	31,774,225	1.27 %	397,555	25	1,281,219	-48,000	2.5	28	78.4 %	0.4 %
43	Venezuela	31,518,855	1.32 %	410,772	36	882,881	-13,824	2.4	27	89.6 %	0.4 %
44	Malaysia	30,751,602	1.39 %	420,595	94	328,543	90,000	1.97	29	76.2 %	0.4 %
45	Uzbekistan	30,300,446	1.36 %	406,958	71	425,568	-39,000	2.48	26	36.2 %	0.4 %
46	Nepal	28,850,717	1.18 %	337,017	201	143,322	-74,474	2.32	23	18.9 %	0.4 %
47	Mozambique	28,751,362	2.76 %	773,499	37	785,556	-5,000	5.45	17	31.4 %	0.4 %
48	Ghana	28,033,375	2.27 %	623,482	123	227,544	-10,000	4.25	21	53.7 %	0.4 %
49	Yemen	27,477,600	2.41 %	645,385	52	528,415	-10,000	4.35	19	33.4 %	0.4 %
50	Angola	25,830,958	3.23 %	808,984	21	1,247,872	20,464	6.2	16	40.8 %	0.3 %
51	North Korea	25,281,327	0.5 %	126,010	210	120,387	0	2	34	61 %	0.3 %
52	Madagascar	24,915,822	2.81 %	680,432	43	582,145	-1,000	4.5	19	35.7 %	0.3 %
53	Australia	24,309,330	1.42 %	340,357	3	7,596,666	204,621	1.92	38	89.2 %	0.3 %
54	Cameroon	23,924,407	2.49 %	580,228	51	472,814	-12,000	4.81	19	55.1 %	0.3 %
55	Taiwan	23,395,600	0.06 %	14,562	661	35,410	0	1.07	40	77.5 %	0.3 %
56	Côte d'Ivoire	23,254,184	2.43 %	552,628	73	318,115	10,000	5.1	18	51.4 %	0.3 %
57	Sri Lanka	20,810,816	0.46 %	95,806	332	62,702	-96,954	2.11	32	19.3 %	0.3 %
58	Niger	20,715,285	4.1 %	816,165	16	1,263,127	-5,699	7.63	15	18.4 %	0.3 %
59	Romania	19,372,734	-0.71 %	-138,590	84	230,080	-87,440	1.48	42	60.8 %	0.3 %
60	Burkina Faso	18,633,725	2.92 %	528,155	68	273,623	-25,000	5.65	17	30.3 %	0.3 %
61	Syria	18,563,595	0.33 %	61,182	101	183,616	-805,999	3.03	21	71.2 %	0.2 %
62	Mali	18,134,835	3.04 %	535,141	15	1,217,103	-60,490	6.35	16	37.6 %	0.2 %
63	Chile	18,131,850	1.02 %	183,709	24	743,109	40,258	1.78	34	89.4 %	0.2 %
64	Kazakhstan	17,855,384	1.31 %	230,158	7	2,705,361	31,961	2.64	29	50.5 %	0.2 %
65	Malawi	17,749,826	3.11 %	534,594	188	94,264	-6,000	5.25	17	16.5 %	0.2 %
66	Netherlands	16,979,729	0.32 %	54,800	504	33,717	22,001	1.75	43	90.5 %	0.2 %
67	Zambia	16,717,332	3.12 %	505,565	23	742,993	-6,898	5.45	17	39.7 %	0.2 %
68	Guatemala	16,672,956	2.02 %	330,059	156	107,153	-24,000	3.3	21	52 %	0.2 %
69	Ecuador	16,385,450	1.49 %	241,087	66	248,264	-7,600	2.59	27	64.3 %	0.2 %
70	Zimbabwe	15,966,810	2.33 %	364,059	41	386,606	-43,984	4.02	19	31.3 %	0.2 %
71	Cambodia	15,827,241	1.6 %	249,342	90	176,446	-30,000	2.7	24	21.1 %	0.2 %
72	Senegal	15,589,485	3.04 %	460,212	81	192,463	-19,999	5.18	18	43.5 %	0.2 %
73	Chad	14,496,739	3.27 %	459,267	12	1,260,586	20,000	6.31	16	21.9 %	0.2 %
74	Guinea	12,947,122	2.68 %	338,532	53	245,676	-2,000	5.13	19	36.8 %	0.2 %
75	South Sudan	12,733,427	3.19 %	393,615	21	612,184	173,000	5.15	19	18.7 %	0.2 %
76	Rwanda	11,882,766	2.35 %	273,100	482	24,668	-15,000	4.05	19	32 %	0.2 %
77	Burundi	11,552,561	3.34 %	373,640	450	25,678	8,000	6.08	18	11.9 %	0.2 %
78	Cuba	11,392,889	0.03 %	3,327	107	106,476	-16,000	1.63	41	76.1 %	0.2 %
79	Tunisia	11,375,220	1.08 %	121,666	73	155,399	-6,588	2.16	31	66.9 %	0.2 %
80	Belgium	11,371,928	0.64 %	72,736	376	30,277	54,000	1.82	42	96.6 %	0.2 %
81	Benin	11,166,658	2.64 %	286,829	99	112,795	-2,000	4.89	19	44.4 %	0.2 %
82	Somalia	11,079,013	2.71 %	291,909	18	625,933	-80,000	6.61	17	41.4 %	0.1 %
83	Greece	10,919,459	-0.32 %	-35,158	85	128,919	-27,260	1.34	44	79.8 %	0.1 %
84	Bolivia	10,888,402	1.53 %	163,697	10	1,078,060	-12,359	3.04	24	70.9 %	0.1 %
85	Haiti	10,848,175	1.28 %	137,108	394	27,561	-30,000	3.13	23	59.2 %	0.1 %
86	Dominican Republic	10,648,613	1.14 %	120,222	220	48,315	-30,602	2.53	26	80.8 %	0.1 %
87	Czech Republic	10,548,058	0.05 %	4,872	137	77,219	6,000	1.45	42	74.8 %	0.1 %
88	Portugal	10,304,434	-0.44 %	-45,369	113	91,595	-28,000	1.28	44	65.9 %	0.1 %
89	Azerbaijan	9,868,447	1.17 %	114,479	119	82,650	-3,225	2.3	31	54 %	0.1 %
90	Sweden	9,851,852	0.74 %	72,426	24	410,494	54,525	1.92	41	85.2 %	0.1 %
91	Hungary	9,821,318	-0.34 %	-33,705	109	90,519	6,000	1.34	41	72.2 %	0.1 %
92	Belarus	9,481,521	-0.15 %	-14,305	47	203,030	24,107	1.58	40	74.9 %	0.1 %
93	United Arab Emirates	9,266,971	1.2 %	110,008	111	83,637	81,000	1.82	33	90.3 %	0.1 %
94	Serbia	8,812,705	-0.43 %	-38,270	101	87,428	-20,000	1.56	41	59.2 %	0.1 %
95	Tajikistan	8,669,464	2.21 %	187,609	62	140,056	-23,476	3.55	23	27.3 %	0.1 %
96	Austria	8,569,633	0.29 %	25,047	104	82,400	29,418	1.47	43	66.2 %	0.1 %
97	Switzerland	8,379,477	0.97 %	80,814	212	39,507	76,453	1.52	42	73.5 %	0.1 %
98	Israel	8,192,463	1.59 %	128,427	379	21,639	3,899	3.05	30	90.4 %	0.1 %
99	Honduras	8,189,501	1.42 %	114,441	73	111,878	-16,000	2.47	23	58 %	0.1 %
100	Papua New Guinea	7,776,115	2.06 %	156,794	17	452,100	0	3.84	21	13.1 %	0.1 %
101	Jordan	7,747,800	2.02 %	153,253	87	88,749	45,923	3.51	23	84.7 %	0.1 %
102	Togo	7,496,833	2.63 %	192,255	138	54,404	-1,999	4.69	19	39.7 %	0.1 %
103	Hong Kong	7,346,248	0.8 %	58,265	6,996	1,050	30,000	1.2	43	N.A.	0.1 %
104	Bulgaria	7,097,796	-0.73 %	-51,991	65	108,529	-10,000	1.52	44	73.8 %	0.1 %
105	Laos	6,918,367	1.71 %	116,344	30	230,612	-23,540	3.1	22	41 %	0.1 %
106	Paraguay	6,725,430	1.3 %	86,307	17	397,954	-17,340	2.6	25	63.7 %	0.1 %
107	Sierra Leone	6,592,102	2.15 %	138,918	91	72,203	-4,200	4.79	19	39.3 %	0.1 %
108	Libya	6,330,159	0.82 %	51,721	4	1,758,378	-100,338	2.53	28	79.6 %	0.1 %
109	Nicaragua	6,150,035	1.12 %	68,003	51	120,353	-27,000	2.32	25	60.9 %	0.1 %
110	El Salvador	6,146,419	0.32 %	19,836	297	20,723	-48,083	1.97	27	70.7 %	0.1 %
111	Kyrgyzstan	6,033,769	1.58 %	93,807	32	191,548	-22,793	3.12	25	34.4 %	0.1 %
112	Lebanon	5,988,153	2.35 %	137,410	585	10,229	250,000	1.72	29	74.5 %	0.1 %
113	Singapore	5,696,506	1.66 %	92,766	8,138	700	79,587	1.23	40	N.A.	0.1 %
114	Denmark	5,690,750	0.38 %	21,669	134	42,437	19,368	1.73	42	87.7 %	0.1 %
115	Finland	5,523,904	0.37 %	20,447	18	303,511	21,482	1.75	43	83.7 %	0.1 %
116	Turkmenistan	5,438,670	1.21 %	65,168	12	468,851	-5,000	2.34	26	50.4 %	0.1 %
117	Slovakia	5,429,418	0.06 %	3,160	113	48,091	240	1.37	39	53.8 %	0.1 %
118	Eritrea	5,351,680	2.37 %	123,889	53	100,975	-32,000	4.4	19	29.9 %	0.1 %
119	Norway	5,271,958	1.17 %	60,991	14	366,108	47,133	1.8	39	79.6 %	0.1 %
120	Central African Republic	4,998,493	2 %	98,219	8	624,812	2,000	4.41	20	39.5 %	0.1 %
121	Costa Rica	4,857,218	1.03 %	49,368	95	51,075	3,932	1.85	31	81 %	0.1 %
122	State of Palestine	4,797,239	2.76 %	128,773	797	6,020	-8,750	4.28	19	73.4 %	0.1 %
123	Congo	4,740,992	2.61 %	120,662	14	341,079	-12,000	4.95	19	66.4 %	0.1 %
124	Ireland	4,713,993	0.54 %	25,528	68	68,918	-28,000	2.01	37	64.4 %	0.1 %
125	Oman	4,654,471	3.65 %	163,930	15	310,298	242,200	2.88	29	72.3 %	0.1 %
126	Liberia	4,615,222	2.48 %	111,784	48	96,351	-4,000	4.83	19	50.1 %	0.1 %
127	New Zealand	4,565,185	0.81 %	36,659	17	263,884	1,453	2.05	38	87.8 %	0.1 %
128	Croatia	4,225,001	-0.36 %	-15,316	76	55,960	-4,000	1.52	43	59.5 %	0.1 %
129	Mauritania	4,166,463	2.43 %	98,899	4	1,041,616	-4,000	4.69	20	60.6 %	0.1 %
130	Moldova	4,062,862	-0.15 %	-6,035	124	32,844	-1,906	1.27	36	37.9 %	0.1 %
131	Kuwait	4,007,146	2.96 %	115,031	225	17,817	103,500	2.15	31	90.3 %	0.1 %
132	Panama	3,990,406	1.56 %	61,265	54	74,309	5,621	2.48	29	67.9 %	0.1 %
133	Georgia	3,979,781	-0.5 %	-20,031	57	69,455	-59,265	1.81	38	58 %	0.1 %
134	Bosnia and Herzegovina	3,802,134	-0.22 %	-8,282	75	50,967	-501	1.28	42	40.1 %	0.1 %
135	Puerto Rico	3,680,772	-0.07 %	-2,466	415	8,869	-20,707	1.64	36	93.5 %	0 %
136	Uruguay	3,444,071	0.36 %	12,516	20	174,826	-6,000	2.04	35	95.4 %	0 %
137	Armenia	3,026,048	0.28 %	8,336	106	28,467	-1,975	1.55	35	61.9 %	0 %
138	Mongolia	3,006,444	1.6 %	47,310	2	1,582,339	-3,000	2.68	27	71.8 %	0 %
139	Albania	2,903,700	0.24 %	7,021	106	27,393	-18,350	1.78	34	64.5 %	0 %
140	Lithuania	2,850,030	-0.99 %	-28,375	46	62,638	-33,906	1.57	43	69.7 %	0 %
141	Jamaica	2,803,362	0.36 %	10,027	259	10,828	-19,400	2.08	29	55.5 %	0 %
142	Namibia	2,513,981	2.24 %	55,151	3	810,962	-274	3.6	21	46.1 %	0 %
143	Botswana	2,303,820	1.83 %	41,335	4	561,907	4,000	2.9	24	52 %	0 %
144	Qatar	2,291,368	2.51 %	56,013	197	11,608	72,700	2.08	31	N.A.	0 %
145	Lesotho	2,160,309	1.18 %	25,287	71	30,341	-4,000	3.26	21	27.6 %	0 %
146	TFYR Macedonia	2,081,012	0.12 %	2,559	83	25,224	-1,000	1.51	38	58 %	0 %
147	Slovenia	2,069,362	0.09 %	1,836	103	20,150	865	1.58	43	49.9 %	0 %
148	Gambia	2,054,986	3.22 %	64,062	203	10,118	-2,695	5.78	17	59.6 %	0 %
149	Latvia	1,955,742	-0.75 %	-14,761	31	62,285	-14,688	1.48	43	69.6 %	0 %
150	Guinea-Bissau	1,888,429	2.39 %	44,104	67	28,102	-2,000	4.95	19	48.5 %	0 %
151	Gabon	1,763,142	2.19 %	37,850	7	259,286	1,000	4	21	88.8 %	0 %
152	Bahrain	1,396,829	1.42 %	19,592	1,838	760	5,983	2.1	30	87.8 %	0 %
153	Trinidad and Tobago	1,364,973	0.36 %	4,885	266	5,130	-1,000	1.8	34	8.3 %	0 %
154	Estonia	1,309,104	-0.26 %	-3,454	31	42,366	-2,370	1.59	42	65.8 %	0 %
155	Swaziland	1,304,063	1.33 %	17,093	76	17,204	-1,200	3.36	21	21.3 %	0 %
156	Mauritius	1,277,459	0.33 %	4,247	629	2,030	0	1.5	35	38.9 %	0 %
157	Timor-Leste	1,211,245	2.24 %	26,480	82	14,862	-10,001	5.91	19	32.9 %	0 %
158	Cyprus	1,176,598	0.97 %	11,298	127	9,243	7,000	1.46	36	66.8 %	0 %
159	Djibouti	899,598	1.32 %	11,737	39	23,186	-3,199	3.3	24	78.6 %	0 %
160	Fiji	897,537	0.6 %	5,392	49	18,280	-5,744	2.61	28	54.1 %	0 %
161	Equatorial Guinea	869,587	2.9 %	24,527	31	28,051	4,000	4.97	21	37.9 %	0 %
162	Réunion	867,214	0.7 %	6,060	347	2,500	-2,512	2.24	34	99.3 %	0 %
163	Comoros	807,118	2.36 %	18,644	434	1,861	-2,000	4.6	20	27.7 %	0 %
164	Bhutan	784,103	1.2 %	9,273	21	38,063	2,000	2.1	27	39.5 %	0 %
165	Guyana	770,610	0.46 %	3,525	4	197,592	-5,456	2.6	25	30.2 %	0 %
166	Montenegro	626,101	0.05 %	320	47	13,436	-482	1.71	38	63.7 %	0 %
167	Macao	597,126	1.62 %	9,520	19,971	30	7,000	1.19	38	99.3 %	0 %
168	Solomon Islands	594,934	1.94 %	11,343	21	27,931	-2,374	4.06	20	22.8 %	0 %
169	Western Sahara	584,206	2.04 %	11,666	2	265,548	4,752	2.2	29	86.4 %	0 %
170	Luxembourg	576,243	1.61 %	9,133	223	2,590	9,741	1.57	39	86.3 %	0 %
171	Suriname	547,610	0.85 %	4,635	4	156,460	-1,000	2.4	29	66.6 %	0 %
172	Cabo Verde	526,993	1.25 %	6,491	131	4,029	-2,210	2.37	25	64.4 %	0 %
173	Guadeloupe	470,547	0.45 %	2,097	278	1,690	-749	2.17	39	98.8 %	0 %
174	Brunei	428,874	1.34 %	5,686	81	5,269	420	1.9	31	78.4 %	0 %
175	Malta	419,615	0.23 %	945	1,311	320	1,250	1.43	42	98.4 %	0 %
176	Martinique	396,364	-0.02 %	-61	374	1,060	-1,137	1.95	46	91.2 %	0 %
177	Bahamas	392,718	1.21 %	4,699	39	10,018	1,934	1.89	32	82.9 %	0 %
178	Maldives	369,812	1.69 %	6,155	1,233	300	-11	2.18	26	45.8 %	0 %
179	Belize	366,942	2.13 %	7,655	16	22,791	1,519	2.64	24	42.5 %	0 %
180	Iceland	331,778	0.71 %	2,353	3	100,539	-76	1.96	36	96.7 %	0 %
181	French Polynesia	285,735	1.05 %	2,971	78	3,659	-100	2.07	32	55.8 %	0 %
182	Barbados	285,006	0.28 %	791	663	430	436	1.79	39	31.8 %	0 %
183	French Guiana	275,688	2.64 %	7,082	3	81,085	1,200	3.48	25	82.3 %	0 %
184	Vanuatu	270,470	2.2 %	5,818	22	12,183	121	3.41	22	26.3 %	0 %
185	New Caledonia	266,431	1.26 %	3,313	15	18,249	1,132	2.13	33	70.7 %	0 %
186	Mayotte	246,496	2.7 %	6,481	657	375	-300	4.1	19	45.4 %	0 %
187	Samoa	194,523	0.67 %	1,295	69	2,831	-2,538	4.16	21	19 %	0 %
188	Sao Tome and Principe	194,390	2.13 %	4,046	203	960	-1,120	4.67	19	70.1 %	0 %
189	Saint Lucia	186,383	0.75 %	1,384	306	610	8	1.92	31	18.5 %	0 %
190	Guam	172,094	1.3 %	2,209	319	540	0	2.42	30	94.6 %	0 %
191	Channel Islands	164,466	0.47 %	774	866	190	731	1.46	43	31.5 %	0 %
192	Curaçao	158,635	0.91 %	1,432	357	444	1,142	2.1	41	93.7 %	0 %
193	Kiribati	114,405	1.76 %	1,982	141	810	-426	3.79	22	41.6 %	0 %
194	St. Vincent & Grenadines	109,644	0.17 %	182	281	390	-1,000	2.01	30	50.8 %	0 %
195	Grenada	107,327	0.47 %	502	316	340	-855	2.18	27	35.5 %	0 %
196	Tonga	106,915	0.7 %	745	149	720	-1,616	3.79	21	23.8 %	0 %
197	United States Virgin Islands	106,415	0.12 %	124	304	350	-721	2.3	41	95.9 %	0 %
198	Micronesia	104,966	0.48 %	506	150	700	-1,638	3.33	22	22.5 %	0 %
199	Aruba	104,263	0.36 %	374	579	180	251	1.68	40	41.3 %	0 %
200	Seychelles	97,026	0.58 %	555	211	460	-310	2.33	33	52.6 %	0 %
201	Antigua and Barbuda	92,738	1 %	920	211	440	-11	2.1	31	23.4 %	0 %
202	Isle of Man	88,421	0.73 %	641	155	570		N.A.	N.A.	51.8 %	0 %
203	Dominica	73,016	0.46 %	336	97	750		N.A.	N.A.	69.8 %	0 %
204	Andorra	69,165	-1.86 %	-1,308	147	470		N.A.	N.A.	99.8 %	0 %
205	Bermuda	61,662	-0.55 %	-342	1,233	50		N.A.	N.A.	N.A.	0 %
206	Cayman Islands	60,764	1.33 %	797	253	240		N.A.	N.A.	99.8 %	0 %
207	Greenland	56,196	0.02 %	10	0	561,960		N.A.	N.A.	88.5 %	0 %
208	Saint Kitts and Nevis	56,183	1.1 %	611	216	260		N.A.	N.A.	32 %	0 %
209	American Samoa	55,602	0.12 %	64	278	200		N.A.	N.A.	87.5 %	0 %
210	Northern Mariana Islands	55,389	0.58 %	319	120	460		N.A.	N.A.	89.2 %	0 %
211	Marshall Islands	53,069	0.14 %	76	295	180		N.A.	N.A.	73.3 %	0 %
212	Faeroe Islands	48,239	0.08 %	40	35	1,394		N.A.	N.A.	43.4 %	0 %
213	Sint Maarten	39,538	2.05 %	793	1,163	34		N.A.	N.A.	N.A.	0 %
214	Monaco	37,863	0.35 %	132	25,411	1		N.A.	N.A.	N.A.	0 %
215	Liechtenstein	37,776	0.65 %	245	236	160		N.A.	N.A.	14.3 %	0 %
216	Turks and Caicos Islands	34,904	1.65 %	565	37	951		N.A.	N.A.	92.5 %	0 %
217	Gibraltar	32,373	0.48 %	156	3,237	10		N.A.	N.A.	90.7 %	0 %
218	San Marino	31,950	0.53 %	169	533	60		N.A.	N.A.	94.2 %	0 %
219	British Virgin Islands	30,659	1.8 %	542	204	150		N.A.	N.A.	44.1 %	0 %
220	Caribbean Netherlands	25,328	1.88 %	467	77	328		N.A.	N.A.	59.8 %	0 %
221	Palau	21,501	0.99 %	210	47	460		N.A.	N.A.	87.6 %	0 %
222	Cook Islands	20,948	0.55 %	115	87	240		N.A.	N.A.	74.7 %	0 %
223	Anguilla	14,763	1.02 %	149	164	90		N.A.	N.A.	N.A.	0 %
224	Wallis and Futuna	13,112	-0.3 %	-39	94	140		N.A.	N.A.	0 %	0 %
225	Nauru	10,263	0.4 %	41	513	20		N.A.	N.A.	99.1 %	0 %
226	Tuvalu	9,943	0.27 %	27	331	30		N.A.	N.A.	60.6 %	0 %
227	Saint Pierre and Miquelon	6,301	0.21 %	13	27	230		N.A.	N.A.	86.9 %	0 %
228	Montserrat	5,154	0.57 %	29	52	100		N.A.	N.A.	9.1 %	0 %
229	Saint Helena	3,956	-0.13 %	-5	10	392		N.A.	N.A.	41.3 %	0 %
230	Falkland Islands	2,912	0.31 %	9	0	14,560		N.A.	N.A.	80.7 %	0 %
231	Niue	1,612	0.12 %	2	6	260		N.A.	N.A.	33.4 %	0 %
232	Tokelau	1,276	2.08 %	26	128	10		N.A.	N.A.	0 %	0 %
233	Holy See	801	0.12 %	1	1,821	0		N.A.	N.A.	N.A.	0 %

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How many people have ever lived on earth?

It was written during the 1970s that 75% of the people who had ever been born were alive at that moment. This was grossly false.

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 Worldometers takes into consideration data from two major sources: the United Nations and the U.S. Census Bureau.

The United Nations Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs every two years calculates, updates, and publishes estimates of total population in its World Population Prospects series. These population estimates and projections provide the standard and consistent set of population figures that are used throughout the United Nations system.

The World Population Prospect: the 2015 Revision provides the most recent data available (released on July 29, 2015). Estimates and projected world population and country specific populations are given from 1950 through 2100 and are released every two years. The latest revision has revised upwards the world population projections. Worldometers, 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.
The International Programs Center at the U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division also develops estimates and projections based on analysis of available data (based on census, survey, and administrative information) on population, fertility, mortality, and migration for each country or area of the world. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, world population reached 7 billion on March 12, 2012.

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 Worldometers clocks are the most accurate

The above world population clock is based on the latest estimates released on July 29, 2015 by the United Nations and will show the same number wherever you are in the world and whatever time you set on your PC. Worldometers 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.

Visitors around the world visiting a PC clock based counter, see different numbers depending on where they are located, and in the past have seen other world population clocks - such as the one hosted on a United Nations website and on National Geographic - reaching 7 billion whenever their locally set PC clocks reached 4:21:10 AM on October 31, 2011.

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