Population growth in Malawi
Malawi: Population growth was 2.6% in 2024. βΌ Falling
Latest (2024)
2.6%
Change on year
up 0.2%
World rank
26th
of 212 countries
All-time high
5.4%
in 1988
All-time low
-1.2%
in 1994
Years of data
55
1970β2024
Population growth in Malawi, 1970β2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in annual %.
Analysis
In 2024, population growth in Malawi stood at 2.6%.
That represents a change of up 0.2% on the previous year and down 8.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, population growth in Malawi peaked at 5.4% in 1988 and was at its lowest, -1.2%, in 1994.
Malawi ranks 26th of 212 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 55 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 2.9% | 2.5% | 3.7% | 10 |
| 1980s | 4.2% | 3.7% | 5.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.9% | -1.2% | 3.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.6% | 2.4% | 3.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.8% | 2.7% | 2.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.6% | 2.6% | 2.6% | 5 |
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)
- 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)
- Fertility rate with projections 3.65 (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is population growth in Malawi?
- Population growth in Malawi was 2.6% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest population growth recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 5.4% in 1988.
- What is the lowest population growth recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was -1.2% in 1994.
- How does Malawi rank for population growth?
- Malawi ranks 26th out of 212 countries with data for 2024.
- Is population growth rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.1%. 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 Population growth (annual %). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV Β· JSON β 55 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release