Statizoid

Population in Japan

Japan: Population was 124.37 million people in 2023. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2023)
124.37 million people
Change on year
down 0.5%
World rank
12th
of 238 countries
All-time high
128.19 million people
in 2009
All-time low
6.00 million people
in 1000
Years of data
241
1000–2023

Population in Japan, 1000–2023

025.0M50.0M75.0M100.0M125.0M100015112023

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

Analysis

In 2023, population in Japan stood at 124.37 million people.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.5% on the previous year and down 2.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, population in Japan peaked at 128.19 million people in 2009 and was at its lowest, 6.00 million people, in 1000.

That places Japan 12th out of 238 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1000s 6.00 million people 6.00 million people 6.00 million people 1
1100s 6.20 million people 6.20 million people 6.20 million people 1
1200s 6.40 million people 6.40 million people 6.40 million people 1
1300s 7.30 million people 7.30 million people 7.30 million people 1
1400s 9.30 million people 9.30 million people 9.30 million people 1
1500s 12.30 million people 12.30 million people 12.30 million people 1
1600s 17.00 million people 17.00 million people 17.00 million people 1
1700s 26.70 million people 26.70 million people 26.70 million people 1
1710s 29.00 million people 29.00 million people 29.00 million people 1
1720s 29.00 million people 29.00 million people 29.00 million people 1
1730s 29.00 million people 29.00 million people 29.00 million people 1
1740s 29.00 million people 29.00 million people 29.00 million people 1
1750s 29.00 million people 29.00 million people 29.00 million people 1
1760s 28.80 million people 28.80 million people 28.80 million people 1
1770s 28.60 million people 28.60 million people 28.60 million people 1
1780s 28.40 million people 28.40 million people 28.40 million people 1
1790s 28.20 million people 28.20 million people 28.20 million people 1
1800s 28.65 million people 28.00 million people 29.31 million people 10
1810s 30.15 million people 29.46 million people 30.82 million people 10
1820s 31.14 million people 30.93 million people 31.30 million people 10
1830s 31.48 million people 31.33 million people 31.63 million people 10
1840s 31.82 million people 31.66 million people 31.98 million people 10
1850s 32.56 million people 32.05 million people 33.11 million people 10
1860s 33.81 million people 33.23 million people 34.41 million people 10
1870s 35.60 million people 34.58 million people 36.70 million people 10
1880s 38.42 million people 36.98 million people 39.93 million people 10
1890s 42.08 million people 40.29 million people 43.95 million people 10
1900s 46.80 million people 44.42 million people 49.29 million people 10
1910s 52.69 million people 49.88 million people 55.61 million people 10
1920s 59.97 million people 56.33 million people 63.80 million people 10
1930s 68.59 million people 64.67 million people 72.63 million people 10
1940s 78.34 million people 73.59 million people 83.27 million people 10
1950s 91.55 million people 86.44 million people 95.62 million people 10
1960s 100.60 million people 96.40 million people 105.47 million people 10
1970s 112.40 million people 106.71 million people 117.52 million people 10
1980s 120.67 million people 118.36 million people 122.95 million people 10
1990s 125.31 million people 123.40 million people 126.80 million people 10
2000s 127.76 million people 127.03 million people 128.19 million people 10
2010s 127.45 million people 126.70 million people 128.19 million people 10
2020s 125.34 million people 124.37 million people 126.31 million people 4

Countries ranked near Japan

  1. 9 Russia 145.44 million people compare
  2. 10 Mexico 129.74 million people compare
  3. 11 Ethiopia 128.69 million people compare
  4. 13 Philippines 114.89 million people compare
  5. 14 Egypt 114.54 million people compare
  6. 15 Democratic Republic of Congo 105.79 million people compare

See the full ranking of 239 places →

More population data for Japan

All data for Japan →

Frequently asked questions

What is population in Japan?
Population in Japan was 124.37 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 Japan?
The highest recorded value was 128.19 million people in 2009.
What is the lowest population recorded in Japan?
The lowest recorded value was 6.00 million people in 1000.
How does Japan rank for population?
Japan ranks 12th out of 238 countries with data for 2023.
Is population rising or falling in Japan?
Over the last ten years it is down 2.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Japan 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.