Fertility rate, total in Malawi
Malawi: Fertility rate, total was 3.65 births per woman in 2023. βΌ Falling
Fertility rate, total in Malawi, 1970β2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in births per woman.
Analysis
Malawi recorded 3.65 births per woman for fertility rate, total in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 54 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.9% on the previous year and down 23.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fertility rate, total in Malawi peaked at 7.52 births per woman in 1980 and was at its lowest, 3.65 births per woman, in 2023.
Malawi ranks 39th of 215 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 54 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 7.37 births per woman | 7.29 births per woman | 7.46 births per woman | 10 |
| 1980s | 7.2 births per woman | 6.8 births per woman | 7.52 births per woman | 10 |
| 1990s | 6.43 births per woman | 6.12 births per woman | 6.74 births per woman | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.8 births per woman | 5.45 births per woman | 6 births per woman | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.53 births per woman | 3.95 births per woman | 5.26 births per woman | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.76 births per woman | 3.65 births per woman | 3.88 births per woman | 4 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More population data for Malawi
- Population growth rate by level of development 0.423 (2100)
- Projected population under age 5 3.85 million (2100)
- Population density 627.29 (2100)
- Population growth rate 0.423 (2100)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.2289 % change on previous year (2100)
- Fertility and wanted fertility 3.59 (2024)
- Refugee population by country or territory of asylum 35,510 (2024)
- Fertility vs unmet contraception 3.59 (2024)
- Fertility vs contraception 3.59 (2024)
- Natural population growth 2.6 (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is fertility rate, total in Malawi?
- Fertility rate, total in Malawi was 3.65 births per woman in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest fertility rate, total recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 7.52 births per woman in 1980.
- What is the lowest fertility rate, total recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.65 births per woman in 2023.
- How does Malawi rank for fertility rate, total?
- Malawi ranks 39th out of 215 countries with data for 2023.
- Is fertility rate, total rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 23.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Fertility rate, total (births per woman). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV Β· JSON β 54 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release