Total population in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: Total population was 10,670 thousands in 2025. β² Rising
Total population in Papua New Guinea, 1970β2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in thousands.
Analysis
The most recent figure for total population in Papua New Guinea is 10,670 thousands, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 56 years on record.
The figure is up 1.8% on the previous year and up 23.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, total population in Papua New Guinea peaked at 10,670 thousands in 2025 and was at its lowest, 2,476 thousands, in 1970.
Papua New Guinea ranks 89th of 230 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 56 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 2,754 thousands | 2,476 thousands | 3,035 thousands | 10 |
| 1980s | 3,414 thousands | 3,099 thousands | 3,752 thousands | 10 |
| 1990s | 4,505 thousands | 3,840 thousands | 5,256 thousands | 10 |
| 2000s | 6,344 thousands | 5,442 thousands | 7,294 thousands | 10 |
| 2010s | 8,519 thousands | 7,519 thousands | 9,502 thousands | 10 |
| 2020s | 10,198 thousands | 9,716 thousands | 10,670 thousands | 6 |
Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea
More population data for Papua New Guinea
- Population growth rate by level of development 0.048 (2100)
- Projected population under age 5 1.15 million (2100)
- Population density 41.16 (2100)
- Population growth rate 0.048 (2100)
- Fertility and wanted fertility 3.07 (2024)
- Refugee population by country or territory of asylum 7,732 (2024)
- Fertility vs unmet contraception 3.07 (2024)
- Fertility vs contraception 3.07 (2024)
- Natural population growth 1.81 (2023)
- Fertility rate with projections 3.1 (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is total population in Papua New Guinea?
- Total population in Papua New Guinea was 10,670 thousands in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest total population recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The highest recorded value was 10,670 thousands in 2025.
- What is the lowest total population recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The lowest recorded value was 2,476 thousands in 1970.
- How does Papua New Guinea rank for total population?
- Papua New Guinea ranks 89th out of 230 countries with data for 2025.
- Is total population rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 23.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Papua New Guinea data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Total population (thousands). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV Β· JSON β 56 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release