South Africa vs United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: The global population hockey stick
South Africa
63.21 million people
in 2023
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
68.68 million people
in 2023
South Africa rank
25th
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland rank
22nd
The global population hockey stick over time
- South Africa
- 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 63.21 million people in South Africa, a difference of 5.47 million people.
That makes United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland's figure about 1.1 times South Africa's.
Across all 241 years both countries report, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has been ahead every year.
South Africa ranks 25th and United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 22nd of 239 countries.
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has averaged higher in every one of the 40 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | South Africa | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1000s | 258,000 people | 1.70 million people | 1.44 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1100s | 309,600 people | 2.56 million people | 2.25 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1200s | 361,200 people | 4.53 million people | 4.17 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1300s | 412,800 people | 6.33 million people | 5.92 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1400s | 464,400 people | 2.90 million people | 2.44 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1500s | 516,000 people | 4.21 million people | 3.69 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1600s | 602,000 people | 5.01 million people | 4.40 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1700s | 860,000 people | 6.76 million people | 5.90 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1710s | 843,752 people | 7.25 million people | 6.41 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1720s | 827,505 people | 7.75 million people | 6.92 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1730s | 811,258 people | 8.25 million people | 7.44 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1740s | 795,011 people | 8.76 million people | 7.97 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1750s | 778,764 people | 9.29 million people | 8.51 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1760s | 762,517 people | 9.82 million people | 9.06 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1770s | 746,270 people | 10.37 million people | 9.63 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1780s | 730,023 people | 10.94 million people | 10.21 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1790s | 713,776 people | 11.52 million people | 10.80 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1800s | 1.47 million people | 11.29 million people | 9.82 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1810s | 1.54 million people | 15.78 million people | 14.24 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1820s | 1.72 million people | 22.44 million people | 20.72 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1830s | 2.14 million people | 25.28 million people | 23.14 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1840s | 2.67 million people | 26.92 million people | 24.26 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1850s | 3.16 million people | 27.95 million people | 24.79 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1860s | 3.52 million people | 30.00 million people | 26.48 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1870s | 3.91 million people | 32.81 million people | 28.89 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1880s | 4.36 million people | 35.86 million people | 31.50 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1890s | 4.85 million people | 39.07 million people | 34.22 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1900s | 5.56 million people | 42.76 million people | 37.19 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1910s | 6.56 million people | 45.67 million people | 39.11 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1920s | 7.86 million people | 46.29 million people | 38.43 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1930s | 9.64 million people | 46.86 million people | 37.22 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1940s | 11.72 million people | 48.99 million people | 37.27 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1950s | 14.43 million people | 51.10 million people | 36.67 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1960s | 18.89 million people | 54.11 million people | 35.22 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1970s | 25.38 million people | 56.10 million people | 30.72 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1980s | 34.50 million people | 56.61 million people | 22.12 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 1990s | 44.05 million people | 58.09 million people | 14.04 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 2000s | 49.31 million people | 60.56 million people | 11.25 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 2010s | 55.92 million people | 65.12 million people | 9.20 million people | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| 2020s | 61.91 million people | 67.97 million people | 6.06 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, South Africa or United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, at 68.68 million people against 63.21 million people in South Africa as of 2023.
- What is the difference in the global population hockey stick between South Africa and United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- 5.47 million people, with United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for South Africa and United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- 241 years are reported by both, from 1000 to 2023.
- How do South Africa and United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland rank globally for the global population hockey stick?
- South Africa ranks 25th 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.