How many people live in Bhutan right now?
Right now, according to UN estimates
803,810
| Today | In 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Births | · | · |
| Deaths | · | · |
| Net migration | · | · |
| Growth | · | · |
2026 figures
- Rank by population
- 167 of 237
- Share of world population
- 0.0097%
- Median age
- 31.0 years
- Children per woman
- 1.43
- Life expectancy
- 73.8 years
- People per km²
- 21
According to UN estimates, about 803,810 people live in Bhutan right now. It ranks 167th out of 237 countries and territories by population, between Guyana and Macao, and it is home to one in every 10,400 people on the planet.
Every day, about 30 people are born there and about 13 die. More people arrive than leave: net migration adds about 630 people a year. Overall, the population grows by about 15 people a day (0.70% a year).
In 1950, about 169,982 people lived there. Today there are 4.7 times as many. The UN expects it to peak around 2052, at about 883,872, and then begin to fall. By 2050 it is projected to have about 882,340 people (10% more than today), and by 2100 about 690,432.
Half of its people are younger than 31 (worldwide, 31). Women have an average of 1.43 children each, below the 2.1 needed for each generation to replace the one before, and life expectancy at birth is 74 years (worldwide, 74). There are 21 people per square kilometer.
UN estimates up to today and projections (medium variant) from today onward.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the population of Bhutan in 2026?
- Bhutan has about 803,810 people right now, according to the UN's World Population Prospects 2024. On July 1, 2026, there were 802,214.
- How many people are born each day in Bhutan?
- About 30 a day (9,800 a year). About 13 people die each day (4,800 a year).
- Is the population of Bhutan growing?
- Yes: it grows by 0.70% a year, or about 5,600 people.
- What will the population of Bhutan be in 2050?
- According to the UN projection (medium variant), about 882,340, with a peak around 2052 at about 883,872.
- Why doesn't this figure match the country's official statistics?
- The UN estimates the population of every country with the same method, based on censuses, surveys and registers, and projects it year by year. Each national statistics office uses its own censuses and registers, which may be more up to date or count foreign residents differently. That is why the figures can differ slightly.
Countries with a similar population
- Réunion 887,535
- Solomon Islands 864,515
- Guyana 842,511
- Macao 723,468
- Luxembourg 689,604
- Suriname 646,933
More countries in Asia
- India 1,480,585,673
- China 1,411,888,751
- Indonesia 288,550,191
- Pakistan 260,627,804
- Bangladesh 178,484,332
- Japan 122,207,048
- Philippines 118,018,855
- Vietnam 102,351,304
- Iran 93,380,237
- Turkey 88,012,259
- Thailand 71,536,973
- Myanmar 55,285,237
All countries and territories →
Where these figures come from
The figures are estimates from the United Nations Population Division, published in World Population Prospects 2024 (medium variant): the reference used by international organizations and by most population counters. The UN estimates how many people there are on July 1 of each year and how many are born, die and migrate; between one date and the next, this counter spreads the change continuously, second by second.
It is not a real-time headcount: nobody can count every person in a country at once. It is the best available estimate, and it may differ slightly from the figures of each country's statistics office, which use their own censuses and population registers.