World population growth in USSR

USSR: World population growth was 0.5% in 1991. ▲ Rising

Latest (1991)
0.5%
Change on year
down 18.3%
World rank
20th
of 239 countries
All-time high
1.8%
in 1958
All-time low
0.2%
in 1700
Years of data
54
1700–1991

World population growth in USSR, 1700–1991

00.511.52170018451991

Source: HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

In 1991, world population growth in USSR stood at 0.5%.

The figure is down 18.3% on the previous year and down 33.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, world population growth in USSR peaked at 1.8% in 1958 and was at its lowest, 0.2%, in 1700.

USSR ranks 20th of 239 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 54 years of available data.

World population growth in USSR, year by year

Annual values for World population growth in USSR, 1700 to 1991.
Year % Change
1700 0.2%
1800 0.3% +112.5%
1900 0.9% +168.8%
1905 0.9% +0.1%
1910 0.9% -7.9%
1915 0.8% -10.4%
1920 0.8% +8.3%
1925 0.9% +7.2%
1930 0.9% -0.5%
1935 0.9% -0.8%
1940 0.9% +0.1%
1945 0.9% +0.1%
1950 1.2% +39.3%
1951 1.5% +20.9%
1952 1.5% +0.9%
1953 1.5% +1.3%
1954 1.6% +3.4%
1955 1.6% +3.9%
1956 1.7% +2.4%
1957 1.7% +2.9%
1958 1.8% +2.4%
1959 1.7% -3.9%
1960 1.7% -2.8%
1961 1.7% +0.2%
1962 1.6% -6.0%
1963 1.5% -7.0%
1964 1.4% -7.3%
1965 1.2% -9.4%
1966 1.1% -6.1%
1967 1.1% -4.6%
1968 1.0% -5.2%
1969 1.0% -4.9%
1970 0.9% -10.9%
1971 0.9% -0.8%
1972 0.9% +7.6%
1973 0.9% -2.3%
1974 0.9% -0.3%
1975 0.9% +3.3%
1976 1.0% +4.7%
1977 1.0% +2.7%
1978 1.0% -3.1%
1979 0.9% -10.8%
1980 0.8% -8.4%
1981 0.8% +1.8%
1982 0.9% +4.9%
1983 0.9% +10.1%
1984 1.0% +2.8%
1985 1.0% -2.0%
1986 1.0% +7.3%
1987 1.1% +4.3%
1988 1.0% -4.3%
1989 0.9% -15.9%
1990 0.7% -22.0%
1991 0.5% -18.3%

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where World population growth in USSR 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
1900 +168.8% 0.3% 0.9%
1800 +112.5% 0.2% 0.3%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1700s 0.2% 0.2% 0.2% 1
1800s 0.3% 0.3% 0.3% 1
1900s 0.9% 0.9% 0.9% 2
1910s 0.8% 0.8% 0.9% 2
1920s 0.9% 0.8% 0.9% 2
1930s 0.9% 0.9% 0.9% 2
1940s 0.9% 0.9% 0.9% 2
1950s 1.6% 1.2% 1.8% 10
1960s 1.3% 1.0% 1.7% 10
1970s 0.9% 0.9% 1.0% 10
1980s 0.9% 0.8% 1.1% 10
1990s 0.6% 0.5% 0.7% 2

Countries ranked near USSR

  1. 17 French Guiana 0.6% compare
  2. 18 Cameroon 0.6% compare
  3. 19 Togo 0.6% compare
  4. 21 Zambia 0.5% compare
  5. 22 Vanuatu 0.5% compare
  6. 23 Australia 0.5% compare

See the full ranking of 239 places →

More population data for USSR

All data for USSR →

Frequently asked questions

What is world population growth in USSR?
World population growth in USSR was 0.5% in 1991, according to HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest world population growth recorded in USSR?
The highest recorded value was 1.8% in 1958.
What is the lowest world population growth recorded in USSR?
The lowest recorded value was 0.2% in 1700.
How does USSR rank for world population growth?
USSR ranks 20th out of 239 countries with data for 1991.
Is world population growth rising or falling in USSR?
Over the last ten years it is down 33.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this USSR data come from?
The figures come from HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of World population growth. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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World population growth in USSR. Statizoid, drawing on HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://population.statizoid.com/stat/population-growth-rate/ussr/

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About this data

Indicator
World population growth
Unit
%
Source
HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
239 places, 38,302 data points, 1700–2100
Last refreshed

Average exponential rate of growth of the population over a given period. It is calculated as ln(P2/P1) where P1 and P2 are the populations on subsequent years. Available from 1700 to 2100, based on data and estimates from different sources.