China vs India: The global population hockey stick
China
1.42 billion people
in 2023
India
1.44 billion people
in 2023
China rank
2nd
India rank
1st
The global population hockey stick over time
- China
- India
How they compare
India currently reports 1.44 billion people against 1.42 billion people in China, a difference of 15.49 million people.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 241 shared years of data; in 1000 it was India ahead.
China ranks 2nd and India ranks 1st of 239 countries.
Across the 40 decades both report, China averaged higher in 27 and India in 13.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | India | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1000s | 36.59 million people | 112.49 million people | 75.90 million people | India |
| 1100s | 90.18 million people | 116.24 million people | 26.07 million people | India |
| 1200s | 103.06 million people | 119.99 million people | 16.93 million people | India |
| 1300s | 79.97 million people | 123.74 million people | 43.77 million people | India |
| 1400s | 71.25 million people | 127.49 million people | 56.24 million people | India |
| 1500s | 91.26 million people | 131.24 million people | 39.98 million people | India |
| 1600s | 98.05 million people | 134.99 million people | 36.94 million people | India |
| 1700s | 99.43 million people | 164.99 million people | 65.56 million people | India |
| 1710s | 104.05 million people | 168.66 million people | 64.61 million people | India |
| 1720s | 119.50 million people | 172.32 million people | 52.83 million people | India |
| 1730s | 127.05 million people | 175.99 million people | 48.94 million people | India |
| 1740s | 142.98 million people | 179.66 million people | 36.68 million people | India |
| 1750s | 178.33 million people | 183.32 million people | 5.00 million people | India |
| 1760s | 197.05 million people | 186.99 million people | 10.06 million people | China |
| 1770s | 220.13 million people | 190.66 million people | 29.48 million people | China |
| 1780s | 275.68 million people | 194.32 million people | 81.36 million people | China |
| 1790s | 298.73 million people | 197.99 million people | 100.74 million people | China |
| 1800s | 337.01 million people | 202.52 million people | 134.49 million people | China |
| 1810s | 361.46 million people | 206.87 million people | 154.59 million people | China |
| 1820s | 393.32 million people | 212.96 million people | 180.36 million people | China |
| 1830s | 410.14 million people | 221.57 million people | 188.57 million people | China |
| 1840s | 411.90 million people | 230.66 million people | 181.24 million people | China |
| 1850s | 395.39 million people | 239.23 million people | 156.16 million people | China |
| 1860s | 367.43 million people | 247.01 million people | 120.42 million people | China |
| 1870s | 360.85 million people | 252.90 million people | 107.95 million people | China |
| 1880s | 370.70 million people | 264.33 million people | 106.37 million people | China |
| 1890s | 385.36 million people | 277.72 million people | 107.64 million people | China |
| 1900s | 405.63 million people | 287.35 million people | 118.27 million people | China |
| 1910s | 438.78 million people | 297.43 million people | 141.35 million people | China |
| 1920s | 472.62 million people | 312.69 million people | 159.93 million people | China |
| 1930s | 495.30 million people | 350.90 million people | 144.40 million people | China |
| 1940s | 523.96 million people | 365.73 million people | 158.22 million people | China |
| 1950s | 597.80 million people | 384.33 million people | 213.47 million people | China |
| 1960s | 717.50 million people | 484.63 million people | 232.87 million people | China |
| 1970s | 902.94 million people | 605.98 million people | 296.96 million people | China |
| 1980s | 1.05 billion people | 764.93 million people | 290.06 million people | China |
| 1990s | 1.21 billion people | 951.12 million people | 260.73 million people | China |
| 2000s | 1.31 billion people | 1.14 billion people | 162.41 million people | China |
| 2010s | 1.39 billion people | 1.32 billion people | 71.66 million people | China |
| 2020s | 1.43 billion people | 1.42 billion people | 5.00 million people | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher the global population hockey stick, China or India?
- India, at 1.44 billion people against 1.42 billion people in China as of 2023.
- What is the difference in the global population hockey stick between China and India?
- 15.49 million people, with India ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and India?
- 241 years are reported by both, from 1000 to 2023.
- How do China and India rank globally for the global population hockey stick?
- China ranks 2nd and India ranks 1st of 239 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) β with major processing by Our World in Data, published as The global population hockey stick. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Population by country, available from 10,000 BCE to 2023, based on data and estimates from different sources.