How many people live in the Marshall Islands right now?
Right now, according to UN estimates
34,723
| Today | In 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Births | · | · |
| Deaths | · | · |
| Net migration | · | · |
| Growth | · | · |
2026 figures
- Rank by population
- 220 of 237
- Share of world population
- 0.0004%
- Median age
- 20.5 years
- Children per woman
- 2.77
- Life expectancy
- 67.3 years
- People per km²
- 195
According to UN estimates, about 34,723 people live in the Marshall Islands right now. It ranks 220th out of 237 countries and territories by population, between Monaco and San Marino, and it is home to one in every 240,000 people on the planet.
Every year, about 680 people are born there and about 260 die. More people leave than arrive: net migration reduces the population by about 1,600 people a year. More people are born than die, but emigration makes the population shrink. Overall, it loses about 1,200 people a year.
In 1950, about 12,996 people lived there. Today there are 2.7 times as many. It peaked in 2010, at about 52,044, and has been falling since. By 2050 it is projected to have about 25,195 people (27% fewer than today), and by 2100 about 23,805.
Half of its people are younger than 21 (worldwide, 31). Women have an average of 2.77 children each, above the 2.1 needed for each generation to replace the one before, and life expectancy at birth is 67 years (worldwide, 74). There are 195 people per square kilometer.
UN estimates up to today and projections (medium variant) from today onward.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the population of the Marshall Islands in 2026?
- The Marshall Islands has about 34,723 people right now, according to the UN's World Population Prospects 2024. On July 1, 2026, there were 35,075.
- How many people are born each day in the Marshall Islands?
- Very few: about 680 a year. About 260 people die each year.
- Is the population of the Marshall Islands growing?
- No: it shrinks by 3.28% a year, or about 1,200 people.
- What will the population of the Marshall Islands be in 2050?
- According to the UN projection (medium variant), about 25,195.
- 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
- Liechtenstein 40,439
- British Virgin Islands 39,991
- Monaco 38,017
- San Marino 33,616
- Caribbean Netherlands 32,072
- Saint Martin 23,607
More countries in Oceania
- Australia 27,305,174
- Papua New Guinea 11,005,638
- New Zealand 5,298,036
- Fiji 938,561
- Solomon Islands 864,518
- Vanuatu 344,893
- New Caledonia 298,674
- French Polynesia 283,264
- Samoa 220,922
- Guam 170,550
- Kiribati 139,061
- Micronesia 114,346
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.