Birth rate in Netherlands
Netherlands: Birth rate was 9.28 births per 1,000 people in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
9.28 births per 1,000 people
Change on year
down 3.7%
World rank
183rd
of 236 countries
All-time high
38.05 births per 1,000 people
in 1876
All-time low
9.28 births per 1,000 people
in 2023
Years of data
174
1850–2023
Birth rate in Netherlands, 1850–2023
Source: Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in births per 1,000 people.
Analysis
Netherlands recorded 9.28 births per 1,000 people for birth rate in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 174 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 3.7% on the previous year and down 9.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, birth rate in Netherlands peaked at 38.05 births per 1,000 people in 1876 and was at its lowest, 9.28 births per 1,000 people, in 2023.
Netherlands ranks 183rd of 236 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 174 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1850s | 34.26 births per 1,000 people | 32.45 births per 1,000 people | 35.73 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1860s | 35.56 births per 1,000 people | 32.3 births per 1,000 people | 37.18 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1870s | 37.16 births per 1,000 people | 35.95 births per 1,000 people | 38.05 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1880s | 35.51 births per 1,000 people | 34.32 births per 1,000 people | 36.48 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1890s | 33.55 births per 1,000 people | 32.79 births per 1,000 people | 34.71 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1900s | 31.31 births per 1,000 people | 29.59 births per 1,000 people | 32.6 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1910s | 27.19 births per 1,000 people | 24.88 births per 1,000 people | 28.83 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1920s | 25.3 births per 1,000 people | 22.93 births per 1,000 people | 28.87 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1930s | 21.19 births per 1,000 people | 19.94 births per 1,000 people | 23.3 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1940s | 24.03 births per 1,000 people | 20.39 births per 1,000 people | 30.57 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1950s | 21.72 births per 1,000 people | 21.13 births per 1,000 people | 22.74 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1960s | 19.99 births per 1,000 people | 18.56 births per 1,000 people | 21.19 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1970s | 14.32 births per 1,000 people | 12.45 births per 1,000 people | 18.32 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1980s | 12.47 births per 1,000 people | 11.84 births per 1,000 people | 12.88 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1990s | 12.82 births per 1,000 people | 12.31 births per 1,000 people | 13.34 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 2000s | 11.85 births per 1,000 people | 11.05 births per 1,000 people | 12.99 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 2010s | 10.25 births per 1,000 people | 9.77 births per 1,000 people | 11.04 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 2020s | 9.72 births per 1,000 people | 9.28 births per 1,000 people | 10.27 births per 1,000 people | 4 |
Countries ranked near Netherlands
- 180 Bonaire Sint Eustatius and Saba 9.36 births per 1,000 people compare
- 181 Norway 9.34 births per 1,000 people compare
- 182 Sweden 9.28 births per 1,000 people compare
- 184 Mauritius 9.27 births per 1,000 people compare
- 185 Bulgaria 9.22 births per 1,000 people compare
- 186 North Macedonia 9.21 births per 1,000 people compare
More population data for Netherlands
- Population growth rate, by level of development -0.2% (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 757,165 people (2100)
- Population density 519.97 people per km² (2100)
- World population growth -0.2% (2100)
- Total fertility rate vs. wanted fertility rate 1.43 births per woman (2024)
- Refugees by country of asylum 263,399 people (2024)
- Fertility rate vs. unmet need for contraception 1.43 births per woman (2024)
- Total fertility rate vs. contraceptive prevalence 1.43 births per woman (2024)
- Natural population growth rate 0.0% (2023)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 1.43 live births per woman (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is birth rate in Netherlands?
- Birth rate in Netherlands was 9.28 births per 1,000 people in 2023, according to Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest birth rate recorded in Netherlands?
- The highest recorded value was 38.05 births per 1,000 people in 1876.
- What is the lowest birth rate recorded in Netherlands?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.28 births per 1,000 people in 2023.
- How does Netherlands rank for birth rate?
- Netherlands ranks 183rd out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is birth rate rising or falling in Netherlands?
- Over the last ten years it is down 9.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Netherlands data come from?
- The figures come from Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Birth rate. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 174 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
The total number of births per 1,000 people in a given year.