Total population in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: Total population was 8,731 thousands in 2025. β² Rising
Total population in Sierra Leone, 1970β2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in thousands.
Analysis
Sierra Leone recorded 8,731 thousands for total population in 2025. That is the highest value across all 56 years on record.
That represents a change of up 2.1% on the previous year and up 25.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, total population in Sierra Leone peaked at 8,731 thousands in 2025 and was at its lowest, 2,687 thousands, in 1970.
Sierra Leone ranks 100th 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 | 2,924 thousands | 2,687 thousands | 3,176 thousands | 10 |
| 1980s | 3,580 thousands | 3,239 thousands | 3,987 thousands | 10 |
| 1990s | 4,206 thousands | 4,081 thousands | 4,313 thousands | 10 |
| 2000s | 5,254 thousands | 4,327 thousands | 5,970 thousands | 10 |
| 2010s | 6,882 thousands | 6,141 thousands | 7,643 thousands | 10 |
| 2020s | 8,277 thousands | 7,821 thousands | 8,731 thousands | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sierra Leone
More population data for Sierra Leone
- Population growth rate by level of development -0.137 (2100)
- Projected population under age 5 983,692 (2100)
- Population density 220.76 (2100)
- Population growth rate -0.137 (2100)
- Fertility and wanted fertility 3.7 (2024)
- Refugee population by country or territory of asylum 0 (2024)
- Fertility vs unmet contraception 3.7 (2024)
- Fertility vs contraception 3.7 (2024)
- Natural population growth 2.23 (2023)
- Fertility rate with projections 3.79 (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is total population in Sierra Leone?
- Total population in Sierra Leone was 8,731 thousands in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest total population recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The highest recorded value was 8,731 thousands in 2025.
- What is the lowest total population recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The lowest recorded value was 2,687 thousands in 1970.
- How does Sierra Leone rank for total population?
- Sierra Leone ranks 100th out of 230 countries with data for 2025.
- Is total population rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
- Over the last ten years it is up 25.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sierra Leone 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