Number of children, working-age adults, and older people in Portugal

Portugal: Number of children, working-age adults, and older people was 2.51 million people in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
2.51 million people
Change on year
up 1.9%
World rank
45th
of 236 countries
All-time high
2.51 million people
in 2023
All-time low
591,239 people
in 1950
Years of data
74
1950–2023

Number of children, working-age adults, and older people in Portugal, 1950–2023

500.0k1.0M1.5M2.0M2.5M195019862023

Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.

Analysis

In 2023, number of children, working-age adults, and older people in Portugal stood at 2.51 million people. That is the highest value across all 74 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.9% on the previous year and up 22.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, number of children, working-age adults, and older people in Portugal peaked at 2.51 million people in 2023 and was at its lowest, 591,239 people, in 1950.

Portugal ranks 45th of 236 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.

Number of children, working-age adults, and older people in Portugal, year by year

Annual values for Number of children, working-age adults, and older people in Portugal, 1950 to 2023.
Year people Change
1950 591,239 people
1951 602,813 people +2.0%
1952 613,593 people +1.8%
1953 626,931 people +2.2%
1954 634,852 people +1.3%
1955 647,639 people +2.0%
1956 658,419 people +1.7%
1957 663,190 people +0.7%
1958 675,683 people +1.9%
1959 687,848 people +1.8%
1960 699,160 people +1.6%
1961 710,851 people +1.7%
1962 722,170 people +1.6%
1963 731,969 people +1.4%
1964 737,338 people +0.7%
1965 753,882 people +2.2%
1966 772,795 people +2.5%
1967 783,522 people +1.4%
1968 797,980 people +1.8%
1969 809,718 people +1.5%
1970 825,451 people +1.9%
1971 846,483 people +2.5%
1972 869,660 people +2.7%
1973 895,030 people +2.9%
1974 916,655 people +2.4%
1975 947,059 people +3.3%
1976 980,004 people +3.5%
1977 1.01 million people +2.8%
1978 1.04 million people +3.0%
1979 1.07 million people +2.9%
1980 1.10 million people +3.0%
1981 1.13 million people +2.4%
1982 1.15 million people +1.8%
1983 1.16 million people +1.3%
1984 1.17 million people +1.1%
1985 1.19 million people +1.8%
1986 1.22 million people +2.4%
1987 1.25 million people +2.4%
1988 1.28 million people +2.4%
1989 1.32 million people +2.5%
1990 1.35 million people +2.5%
1991 1.38 million people +2.3%
1992 1.41 million people +2.2%
1993 1.44 million people +2.1%
1994 1.47 million people +2.1%
1995 1.50 million people +2.2%
1996 1.53 million people +2.1%
1997 1.56 million people +2.1%
1998 1.60 million people +2.0%
1999 1.62 million people +1.8%
2000 1.66 million people +2.1%
2001 1.70 million people +2.3%
2002 1.73 million people +1.9%
2003 1.76 million people +1.6%
2004 1.79 million people +1.7%
2005 1.81 million people +1.5%
2006 1.84 million people +1.3%
2007 1.86 million people +1.3%
2008 1.89 million people +1.5%
2009 1.92 million people +1.7%
2010 1.96 million people +1.9%
2011 1.99 million people +1.7%
2012 2.02 million people +1.3%
2013 2.05 million people +1.7%
2014 2.09 million people +2.0%
2015 2.13 million people +1.9%
2016 2.17 million people +2.0%
2017 2.22 million people +2.0%
2018 2.26 million people +2.0%
2019 2.31 million people +2.3%
2020 2.37 million people +2.4%
2021 2.42 million people +2.1%
2022 2.46 million people +2.0%
2023 2.51 million people +1.9%

Portugal compared with similar countries

  • Portugal's 2.51 million people is above the median for high income countries, which is 285,676 people, 8.8× the median. (85 countries reporting)
  • Portugal's 2.51 million people is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 941,948 people, 2.7× the median. (56 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 640,221 people 591,239 people 687,848 people 10
1960s 751,938 people 699,160 people 809,718 people 10
1970s 939,238 people 825,451 people 1.07 million people 10
1980s 1.20 million people 1.10 million people 1.32 million people 10
1990s 1.49 million people 1.35 million people 1.62 million people 10
2000s 1.79 million people 1.66 million people 1.92 million people 10
2010s 2.12 million people 1.96 million people 2.31 million people 10
2020s 2.44 million people 2.37 million people 2.51 million people 4

Countries ranked near Portugal

  1. 42 Chile 2.69 million people compare
  2. 43 Venezuela 2.64 million people compare
  3. 44 Malaysia 2.62 million people compare
  4. 46 Greece 2.40 million people compare
  5. 47 Belgium 2.36 million people compare
  6. 48 Czechia 2.22 million people compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More population data for Portugal

All data for Portugal →

Frequently asked questions

What is number of children, working-age adults, and older people in Portugal?
Number of children, working-age adults, and older people in Portugal was 2.51 million people in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest number of children, working-age adults, and older people recorded in Portugal?
The highest recorded value was 2.51 million people in 2023.
What is the lowest number of children, working-age adults, and older people recorded in Portugal?
The lowest recorded value was 591,239 people in 1950.
How does Portugal rank for number of children, working-age adults, and older people?
Portugal ranks 45th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
Is number of children, working-age adults, and older people rising or falling in Portugal?
Over the last ten years it is up 22.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Portugal data come from?
The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of children, working-age adults, and older people. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Number of children, working-age adults, and older people in Portugal. Statizoid, drawing on UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://population.statizoid.com/stat/population-young-working-elderly-with-projections/portugal/

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About this data

Indicator
Number of children, working-age adults, and older people
Unit
people
Source
UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
236 places, 17,464 data points, 1950–2023
Last refreshed

Total population, measured on 1 July of the year shown. This only includes people aged 65+.