Has the population peaked? in New Zealand
New Zealand: Has the population peaked? was 5.17 million people in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
5.17 million people
Change on year
up 0.8%
World rank
123rd
of 236 countries
All-time high
5.17 million people
in 2023
All-time low
1.91 million people
in 1950
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Has the population peaked? in New Zealand, 1950–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
In 2023, has the population peaked? in New Zealand stood at 5.17 million people. That is the highest value across all 74 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.8% on the previous year and up 16.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, has the population peaked? in New Zealand peaked at 5.17 million people in 2023 and was at its lowest, 1.91 million people, in 1950.
New Zealand ranks 123rd of 236 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Has the population peaked? in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 1.91 million people | — |
| 1951 | 1.95 million people | +2.1% |
| 1952 | 2.00 million people | +2.4% |
| 1953 | 2.05 million people | +2.5% |
| 1954 | 2.10 million people | +2.3% |
| 1955 | 2.14 million people | +2.1% |
| 1956 | 2.18 million people | +2.1% |
| 1957 | 2.23 million people | +2.2% |
| 1958 | 2.29 million people | +2.3% |
| 1959 | 2.33 million people | +2.1% |
| 1960 | 2.38 million people | +2.0% |
| 1961 | 2.43 million people | +2.1% |
| 1962 | 2.48 million people | +2.2% |
| 1963 | 2.54 million people | +2.2% |
| 1964 | 2.59 million people | +2.0% |
| 1965 | 2.64 million people | +1.8% |
| 1966 | 2.68 million people | +1.7% |
| 1967 | 2.72 million people | +1.5% |
| 1968 | 2.75 million people | +1.1% |
| 1969 | 2.78 million people | +1.1% |
| 1970 | 2.82 million people | +1.4% |
| 1971 | 2.87 million people | +1.6% |
| 1972 | 2.92 million people | +1.8% |
| 1973 | 2.98 million people | +2.0% |
| 1974 | 3.04 million people | +2.1% |
| 1975 | 3.09 million people | +1.7% |
| 1976 | 3.13 million people | +1.1% |
| 1977 | 3.14 million people | +0.4% |
| 1978 | 3.14 million people | +0.1% |
| 1979 | 3.14 million people | -0.0% |
| 1980 | 3.15 million people | +0.2% |
| 1981 | 3.16 million people | +0.4% |
| 1982 | 3.19 million people | +0.8% |
| 1983 | 3.22 million people | +1.1% |
| 1984 | 3.25 million people | +0.9% |
| 1985 | 3.27 million people | +0.6% |
| 1986 | 3.28 million people | +0.4% |
| 1987 | 3.30 million people | +0.5% |
| 1988 | 3.32 million people | +0.5% |
| 1989 | 3.33 million people | +0.5% |
| 1990 | 3.40 million people | +1.9% |
| 1991 | 3.48 million people | +2.5% |
| 1992 | 3.53 million people | +1.5% |
| 1993 | 3.57 million people | +1.2% |
| 1994 | 3.62 million people | +1.3% |
| 1995 | 3.67 million people | +1.5% |
| 1996 | 3.73 million people | +1.5% |
| 1997 | 3.78 million people | +1.3% |
| 1998 | 3.81 million people | +0.9% |
| 1999 | 3.84 million people | +0.6% |
| 2000 | 3.86 million people | +0.6% |
| 2001 | 3.89 million people | +0.9% |
| 2002 | 3.95 million people | +1.5% |
| 2003 | 4.02 million people | +1.8% |
| 2004 | 4.08 million people | +1.5% |
| 2005 | 4.13 million people | +1.3% |
| 2006 | 4.18 million people | +1.1% |
| 2007 | 4.22 million people | +1.0% |
| 2008 | 4.26 million people | +0.9% |
| 2009 | 4.30 million people | +1.0% |
| 2010 | 4.35 million people | +1.0% |
| 2011 | 4.38 million people | +0.8% |
| 2012 | 4.41 million people | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 4.45 million people | +1.0% |
| 2014 | 4.52 million people | +1.6% |
| 2015 | 4.61 million people | +2.0% |
| 2016 | 4.71 million people | +2.2% |
| 2017 | 4.81 million people | +2.1% |
| 2018 | 4.90 million people | +1.8% |
| 2019 | 4.99 million people | +1.8% |
| 2020 | 5.07 million people | +1.6% |
| 2021 | 5.11 million people | +0.7% |
| 2022 | 5.13 million people | +0.5% |
| 2023 | 5.17 million people | +0.8% |
New Zealand compared with similar countries
- New Zealand's 5.17 million people is above the median for high income countries, which is 2.98 million people, 1.7× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- New Zealand's 5.17 million people is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 1.38 million people, 3.7× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 2.12 million people | 1.91 million people | 2.33 million people | 10 |
| 1960s | 2.60 million people | 2.38 million people | 2.78 million people | 10 |
| 1970s | 3.03 million people | 2.82 million people | 3.14 million people | 10 |
| 1980s | 3.25 million people | 3.15 million people | 3.33 million people | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.64 million people | 3.40 million people | 3.84 million people | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.09 million people | 3.86 million people | 4.30 million people | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.62 million people | 4.35 million people | 4.99 million people | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.12 million people | 5.07 million people | 5.17 million people | 4 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
More population data for New Zealand
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate -0.0739 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate -0.0744 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate -14.71 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate -0.0744 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population growth rate, by level of development -0.1% (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 256,010 people (2100)
- Population density 22.07 people per km² (2100)
- World population growth -0.1% (2100)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.191 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 0.628 Percent per annum (2030)
Frequently asked questions
- What is has the population peaked? in New Zealand?
- Has the population peaked? in New Zealand was 5.17 million people in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest has the population peaked? recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 5.17 million people in 2023.
- What is the lowest has the population peaked? recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.91 million people in 1950.
- How does New Zealand rank for has the population peaked??
- New Zealand ranks 123rd out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is has the population peaked? rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is up 16.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this New Zealand data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Has the population peaked?. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total population, measured on 1 July of the year shown.