Statizoid

Population in Bulgaria

Bulgaria: Population was 6.80 million people in 2023. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2023)
6.80 million people
Change on year
down 0.4%
World rank
110th
of 238 countries
All-time high
8.99 million people
in 1988
All-time low
550,000 people
in 1400
Years of data
241
1000–2023

Population in Bulgaria, 1000–2023

02.0M4.0M6.0M8.0M100015112023

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

Analysis

In 2023, population in Bulgaria stood at 6.80 million people.

That represents a change of down 0.4% on the previous year and down 6.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, population in Bulgaria peaked at 8.99 million people in 1988 and was at its lowest, 550,000 people, in 1400.

That places Bulgaria 110th out of 238 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1000s 800,000 people 800,000 people 800,000 people 1
1100s 870,000 people 870,000 people 870,000 people 1
1200s 930,000 people 930,000 people 930,000 people 1
1300s 1.00 million people 1.00 million people 1.00 million people 1
1400s 550,000 people 550,000 people 550,000 people 1
1500s 800,000 people 800,000 people 800,000 people 1
1600s 1.25 million people 1.25 million people 1.25 million people 1
1700s 1.25 million people 1.25 million people 1.25 million people 1
1710s 1.29 million people 1.29 million people 1.29 million people 1
1720s 1.35 million people 1.35 million people 1.35 million people 1
1730s 1.42 million people 1.42 million people 1.42 million people 1
1740s 1.49 million people 1.49 million people 1.49 million people 1
1750s 1.56 million people 1.56 million people 1.56 million people 1
1760s 1.63 million people 1.63 million people 1.63 million people 1
1770s 1.71 million people 1.71 million people 1.71 million people 1
1780s 1.79 million people 1.79 million people 1.79 million people 1
1790s 1.88 million people 1.88 million people 1.88 million people 1
1800s 2.24 million people 2.22 million people 2.25 million people 10
1810s 2.20 million people 2.19 million people 2.22 million people 10
1820s 2.23 million people 2.19 million people 2.28 million people 10
1830s 2.33 million people 2.29 million people 2.38 million people 10
1840s 2.44 million people 2.39 million people 2.49 million people 10
1850s 2.52 million people 2.50 million people 2.53 million people 10
1860s 2.56 million people 2.54 million people 2.58 million people 10
1870s 2.75 million people 2.60 million people 2.93 million people 10
1880s 3.17 million people 2.97 million people 3.37 million people 10
1890s 3.66 million people 3.42 million people 3.90 million people 10
1900s 4.18 million people 3.96 million people 4.42 million people 10
1910s 4.71 million people 4.47 million people 4.96 million people 10
1920s 5.42 million people 5.03 million people 5.84 million people 10
1930s 6.23 million people 5.93 million people 6.51 million people 10
1940s 6.84 million people 6.58 million people 7.10 million people 10
1950s 7.51 million people 7.25 million people 7.79 million people 10
1960s 8.16 million people 7.86 million people 8.44 million people 10
1970s 8.68 million people 8.49 million people 8.82 million people 10
1980s 8.94 million people 8.86 million people 8.99 million people 10
1990s 8.40 million people 8.07 million people 8.82 million people 10
2000s 7.73 million people 7.49 million people 8.00 million people 10
2010s 7.20 million people 6.98 million people 7.44 million people 10
2020s 6.86 million people 6.80 million people 6.93 million people 4

Countries ranked near Bulgaria

  1. 107 Kyrgyzstan 7.07 million people compare
  2. 108 Paraguay 6.84 million people compare
  3. 109 Nicaragua 6.82 million people compare
  4. 111 Serbia 6.77 million people compare
  5. 112 El Salvador 6.31 million people compare
  6. 113 Congo 6.18 million people compare

See the full ranking of 239 places →

More population data for Bulgaria

All data for Bulgaria →

Frequently asked questions

What is population in Bulgaria?
Population in Bulgaria was 6.80 million people in 2023, according to HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest population recorded in Bulgaria?
The highest recorded value was 8.99 million people in 1988.
What is the lowest population recorded in Bulgaria?
The lowest recorded value was 550,000 people in 1400.
How does Bulgaria rank for population?
Bulgaria ranks 110th out of 238 countries with data for 2023.
Is population rising or falling in Bulgaria?
Over the last ten years it is down 6.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Bulgaria 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 Population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 241 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Population
Unit
people
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, 51,002 data points, 1000–2023
Last refreshed

Population by country, available from 10,000 BCE to 2023, based on data and estimates from different sources.