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Visualizing the Changing World Population, by Country

by Freny Fernandes
This post is by Freny Fernandes from Visual Capitalist

Top 50 countries with largest population in 2050

Visualizing the Changing World Population, by Country

On average, there are 250 babies born every minute around the world. This adds up to over 130 million new human beings entering the world every year.

Then it’s no surprise that the world’s population, which now stands at a whopping 8 billion, has more than tripled since the mid-20th century.

This graphic by Truman Du uses December 2022 population data from the UN and summaries from the French Institute for Demographic Studies (INED) to show the unequal rise and fall of the world’s population by 2050.

Let’s take a closer look at some of these population trends.

Most Populous Countries: 2022 vs. 2050

The Asian countries of India and China have topped the rankings of the world’s most populous countries for hundreds of years.

China currently holds the number one spot on this list. But the population of India is expected to surpass that of China’s by later this year, eventually reaching a total of 1.67 billion in 2050.

RankMost Populous Countries (2022)Population (2022)Most Populous Countries (2050)Population (2050)
1China1.43BIndia1.67B
2India1.42BChina1.32B
3United States of America338MUnited States of America375M
4Indonesia276MNigeria375M
5Pakistan236MPakistan366M
6Nigeria219MIndonesia317M

The United States, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Indonesia are the next most populous countries in 2022, and they are expected to hold onto these spots until 2050. However, they have a long (Read more...)

Charted: The World’s Most Populous Countries (1973–2023)

by Nick Routley
This post is by Nick Routley from Visual Capitalist

World at 8 Billion Report

VC+ members get access to our World at 8 Billion Report.

Gain access to this exclusive new report and webinar by becoming a VC+ member.

Data visualization showing the world's top 10 most populous countries over the past 50 years

The World’s Most Populous Countries (1973–2023)

Humankind is now double the size it was in 1973.

Of course, that growth has been far from uniform, and the ranking of the world’s most populous countries continues to evolve.

Using the latest data available from the United Nations, we’ve looked at which countries have the largest share of the planet’s eight billion people.

The Top 10 Most Populous Countries

Here are the countries shown above, including how much they’ve grown over the past 50 years:

CountryPopulation (1973)Population (2023)Change (1973–2023)
🇨🇳 China881,652,0841,425,671,353↑ 544,019,269
🇮🇳 India596,107,4871,428,627,666↑ 832,520,179
🇺🇸 United States207,314,772339,996,567↑ 132,681,795
🇷🇺 Russia132,191,636144,444,360↑ 12,252,724
🇮🇩 Indonesia124,709,060277,534,118↑ 152,825,058
🇯🇵 Japan109,679,473123,294,516↑ 13,615,043
🇧🇷 Brazil103,666,906216,422,450↑ 112,755,544
🇩🇪 Germany78,667,47383,294,634↑ 4,627,161
🇧🇩 Bangladesh711,44,816172,954,325↑ 101,809,509
🇵🇰 Pakistan64,285,630240,485,666↑ 176,200,036
🇳🇬 Nigeria59,605,450223,804,636↑ 164,199,186
🇲🇽 Mexico55,228,202128,455,563↑ 73,227,361

The numbers above highlight the extreme variance in growth for these world’s most populous countries. While Germany has grown by just 6% over the past 50 years, Pakistan and Nigeria have nearly quadrupled their populations.

Half a century ago, there were only six countries with populations of over 100 million. Today, there are 15 countries past that mark, with Vietnam positioned to hit that milestone (Read more...)

Charted: The World’s Most Populous Countries (1973–2023)

by Nick Routley
This post is by Nick Routley from Visual Capitalist

World at 8 Billion Report

VC+ members get access to our World at 8 Billion Report.

Gain access to this exclusive new report and webinar by becoming a VC+ member.

Data visualization showing the world's top 10 most populous countries over the past 50 years

The World’s Most Populous Countries (1973–2023)

Humankind is now double the size it was in 1973.

Of course, that growth has been far from uniform, and the ranking of the world’s most populous countries continues to evolve.

Using the latest data available from the United Nations, we’ve looked at which countries have the largest share of the planet’s eight billion people.

The Top 10 Most Populous Countries

Here are the countries shown above, including how much they’ve grown over the past 50 years:

CountryPopulation (1973)Population (2023)Change (1973–2023)
🇨🇳 China881,652,0841,425,671,353↑ 544,019,269
🇮🇳 India596,107,4871,428,627,666↑ 832,520,179
🇺🇸 United States207,314,772339,996,567↑ 132,681,795
🇷🇺 Russia132,191,636144,444,360↑ 12,252,724
🇮🇩 Indonesia124,709,060277,534,118↑ 152,825,058
🇯🇵 Japan109,679,473123,294,516↑ 13,615,043
🇧🇷 Brazil103,666,906216,422,450↑ 112,755,544
🇩🇪 Germany78,667,47383,294,634↑ 4,627,161
🇧🇩 Bangladesh711,44,816172,954,325↑ 101,809,509
🇵🇰 Pakistan64,285,630240,485,666↑ 176,200,036
🇳🇬 Nigeria59,605,450223,804,636↑ 164,199,186
🇲🇽 Mexico55,228,202128,455,563↑ 73,227,361

The numbers above highlight the extreme variance in growth for these world’s most populous countries. While Germany has grown by just 6% over the past 50 years, Pakistan and Nigeria have nearly quadrupled their populations.

Half a century ago, there were only six countries with populations of over 100 million. Today, there are 15 countries past that mark, with Vietnam positioned to hit that milestone (Read more...)