Fertility rate vs share that are religious in Japan

Japan: Fertility rate vs share that are religious was 1.21 in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
1.21
Change on year
down 3.8%
World rank
216th
of 236 countries
All-time high
3.62
in 1950
All-time low
1.21
in 2023
Years of data
74
1950–2023

Fertility rate vs share that are religious in Japan, 1950–2023

11.522.533.5195019862023

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

Japan recorded 1.21 for fertility rate vs share that are religious in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 74 years on record.

The figure is down 3.8% on the previous year and down 13.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, fertility rate vs share that are religious in Japan peaked at 3.62 in 1950 and was at its lowest, 1.21, in 2023.

Japan ranks 216th of 236 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 74 years of available data.

Fertility rate vs share that are religious in Japan, year by year

Annual values for Fertility rate vs share that are religious in Japan, 1950 to 2023.
Year Value Change
1950 3.62 —
1951 3.23 -10.8%
1952 2.95 -8.6%
1953 2.67 -9.3%
1954 2.47 -7.7%
1955 2.35 -4.8%
1956 2.21 -6.1%
1957 2.04 -7.7%
1958 2.1 +3.0%
1959 2.04 -3.0%
1960 1.98 -2.7%
1961 1.93 -2.7%
1962 1.93 +0.0%
1963 1.95 +1.2%
1964 2 +2.4%
1965 2.09 +4.6%
1966 1.63 -21.9%
1967 2.16 +32.2%
1968 2.06 -4.3%
1969 2.03 -1.9%
1970 2.04 +0.4%
1971 2.09 +2.7%
1972 2.11 +1.2%
1973 2.15 +1.5%
1974 2.06 -3.7%
1975 1.92 -7.0%
1976 1.84 -4.2%
1977 1.79 -2.8%
1978 1.79 -0.2%
1979 1.77 -1.0%
1980 1.74 -1.7%
1981 1.72 -1.2%
1982 1.74 +1.2%
1983 1.77 +1.8%
1984 1.78 +0.6%
1985 1.74 -2.5%
1986 1.7 -2.2%
1987 1.67 -1.9%
1988 1.62 -2.5%
1989 1.55 -4.8%
1990 1.51 -2.5%
1991 1.5 -0.3%
1992 1.48 -1.7%
1993 1.44 -2.6%
1994 1.47 +1.9%
1995 1.41 -4.2%
1996 1.4 -0.3%
1997 1.38 -1.9%
1998 1.37 -0.4%
1999 1.34 -2.3%
2000 1.35 +0.4%
2001 1.32 -1.6%
2002 1.31 -1.3%
2003 1.28 -1.8%
2004 1.28 -0.6%
2005 1.25 -2.5%
2006 1.28 +3.2%
2007 1.3 +1.6%
2008 1.33 +1.9%
2009 1.33 +0.2%
2010 1.36 +1.8%
2011 1.36 +0.4%
2012 1.38 +1.0%
2013 1.39 +0.9%
2014 1.39 -0.1%
2015 1.42 +1.9%
2016 1.41 -0.5%
2017 1.39 -1.3%
2018 1.37 -1.2%
2019 1.32 -3.6%
2020 1.3 -1.4%
2021 1.27 -2.2%
2022 1.26 -1.5%
2023 1.21 -3.8%

Japan compared with similar countries

  • Japan's 1.21 is below the median for high income countries, which is 1.5, 80% of the median. (85 countries reporting)
  • Japan's 1.21 is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 2.13, 57% of the median. (37 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Fertility rate vs share that are religious in Japan changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
1967 +32.2% 1.63 2.16

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 2.57 2.04 3.62 10
1960s 1.98 1.63 2.16 10
1970s 1.96 1.77 2.15 10
1980s 1.7 1.55 1.78 10
1990s 1.43 1.34 1.51 10
2000s 1.3 1.25 1.35 10
2010s 1.38 1.32 1.42 10
2020s 1.26 1.21 1.3 4

Countries ranked near Japan

  1. 213 Mauritius 1.24 compare
  2. 214 Spain 1.21 compare
  3. 215 Thailand 1.21 compare
  4. 216 Belarus 1.21 compare
  5. 218 Lithuania 1.2 compare
  6. 219 United Arab Emirates 1.2 compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More population data for Japan

All data for Japan →

Frequently asked questions

What is fertility rate vs share that are religious in Japan?
Fertility rate vs share that are religious in Japan was 1.21 in 2023, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest fertility rate vs share that are religious recorded in Japan?
The highest recorded value was 3.62 in 1950.
What is the lowest fertility rate vs share that are religious recorded in Japan?
The lowest recorded value was 1.21 in 2023.
How does Japan rank for fertility rate vs share that are religious?
Japan ranks 216th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
Is fertility rate vs share that are religious rising or falling in Japan?
Over the last ten years it is down 13.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Japan data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Fertility rate vs share that are religious. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Fertility rate vs share that are religious in Japan. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 11 November 2026, from https://population.statizoid.com/stat/fertility-rate-vs-share-that-are-religious/japan/

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About this data

Indicator
Fertility rate vs share that are religious
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
236 places, 17,464 data points, 1950–2023
Last refreshed