France vs United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: The global population hockey stick
France
66.44 million people
in 2023
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
68.68 million people
in 2023
France rank
24th
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland rank
22nd
The global population hockey stick over time
- France
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
How they compare
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland currently reports 68.68 million people against 66.44 million people in France, a difference of 2.24 million people.
The two have swapped places 3 times across 241 shared years of data; in 1000 it was France ahead.
France ranks 24th and United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 22nd of 239 countries.
Across the 40 decades both report, France averaged higher in 28 and United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in 12.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | France | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1000s | 6.44 million people | 1.70 million people | 4.74 million people | France |
| 1100s | 7.67 million people | 2.56 million people | 5.10 million people | France |
| 1200s | 10.36 million people | 4.53 million people | 5.83 million people | France |
| 1300s | 15.81 million people | 6.33 million people | 9.48 million people | France |
| 1400s | 10.93 million people | 2.90 million people | 8.03 million people | France |
| 1500s | 14.87 million people | 4.21 million people | 10.66 million people | France |
| 1600s | 18.31 million people | 5.01 million people | 13.31 million people | France |
| 1700s | 21.99 million people | 6.76 million people | 15.23 million people | France |
| 1710s | 22.59 million people | 7.25 million people | 15.34 million people | France |
| 1720s | 23.19 million people | 7.75 million people | 15.45 million people | France |
| 1730s | 23.79 million people | 8.25 million people | 15.54 million people | France |
| 1740s | 24.39 million people | 8.76 million people | 15.63 million people | France |
| 1750s | 24.99 million people | 9.29 million people | 15.71 million people | France |
| 1760s | 25.57 million people | 9.82 million people | 15.75 million people | France |
| 1770s | 26.15 million people | 10.37 million people | 15.78 million people | France |
| 1780s | 26.72 million people | 10.94 million people | 15.79 million people | France |
| 1790s | 27.30 million people | 11.52 million people | 15.78 million people | France |
| 1800s | 29.49 million people | 11.29 million people | 18.21 million people | France |
| 1810s | 30.62 million people | 15.78 million people | 14.84 million people | France |
| 1820s | 32.17 million people | 22.44 million people | 9.72 million people | France |
| 1830s | 34.01 million people | 25.28 million people | 8.73 million people | France |
| 1840s | 35.55 million people | 26.92 million people | 8.62 million people | France |
| 1850s | 36.72 million people | 27.95 million people | 8.77 million people | France |
| 1860s | 37.65 million people | 30.00 million people | 7.66 million people | France |
| 1870s | 38.44 million people | 32.81 million people | 5.63 million people | France |
| 1880s | 39.09 million people | 35.86 million people | 3.23 million people | France |
| 1890s | 39.76 million people | 39.07 million people | 690,590 people | France |
| 1900s | 40.24 million people | 42.76 million people | 2.52 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1910s | 39.46 million people | 45.67 million people | 6.21 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1920s | 39.42 million people | 46.29 million people | 6.87 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1930s | 40.52 million people | 46.86 million people | 6.34 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1940s | 40.90 million people | 48.99 million people | 8.08 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1950s | 43.91 million people | 51.10 million people | 7.19 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1960s | 48.46 million people | 54.11 million people | 5.64 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1970s | 52.45 million people | 56.10 million people | 3.65 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1980s | 55.32 million people | 56.61 million people | 1.30 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1990s | 58.06 million people | 58.09 million people | 25,000 people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 2000s | 61.36 million people | 60.56 million people | 803,300 people | France |
| 2010s | 64.68 million people | 65.12 million people | 439,820 people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 2020s | 66.18 million people | 67.97 million people | 1.79 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher the global population hockey stick, France or United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, at 68.68 million people against 66.44 million people in France as of 2023.
- What is the difference in the global population hockey stick between France and United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- 2.24 million people, with United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for France and United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- 241 years are reported by both, from 1000 to 2023.
- How do France and United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland rank globally for the global population hockey stick?
- France ranks 24th and United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 22nd of 239 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – 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.