Country or area · Southern Asia · Asia · UN WPP 2024

Afghanistan population

Afghanistan population now

45,345,814

A projection read at this second, not a count: the UN's totals for 1 January 2026 and 2027, joined by a straight line. 95% range for 31 December 2026: 40.0–51.1 million.

Mid-2023, UN estimate: 41,454,761

Year: 2026; projection · medium
Population, mid-2026: 45.0471 million; 95% range, 31 Dec: 40.0–51.1 million
Median age: 18.4
Aged 65+: 2.5%

Move through time, 1950–2100

2023 | 2024

male female projection · one cell = 20,000 people

How to read this: one row for each age, newborns at the bottom; men on the left, women on the right.

Verified 2026-09-30 · 73 canaries

AFG · 1950–2100 · in brief

Afghanistan in numbers

41,454,761 people lived in Afghanistan in mid-2023: 0.51% of the world's people, and the 36th-largest population of the 236 countries and areas the UN reports. That is 5.3 times its 1950 population of 7.8 million.

In the UN's medium projection it is still growing in 2100, when it reaches 130 million. The projection is uncertain: on 1 January 2100 the UN's 95% range runs from 44.0 million to 397 million.

Births outnumber deaths in every year from 1950 to 2100, estimates and projection alike.

The median age was 19.4 in 1950 and 17.9 in 2023; the projection has 35.8 in 2100. 2.4% of people were 65 or older in 2023, against 14.2% projected for 2100. The working-age population (15–64) is still growing in 2100 in the medium projection.

Its place in the world by population: 36th in 2023, 25th in 2050, 16th in 2100. In the medium projection it overtakes Argentina in 2027, Spain in 2029 and Algeria in 2031. It is overtaken by Angola in 2060.

Population, mid-2023: 41,454,761
Rank by population, 2023: 36 of 236
Share of the world, 2023: 0.51%
Change in a year, mid-2022 to mid-2023: +2.16% · +875,919 people
People per km² of land, 2023: 64
Land area, 2023: 652,230 km²
Births, 2023: 1,469,029
Deaths, 2023: 240,296
Net migration, 2023: −48,958
Children per woman, 2023: 4.84
Median age, 2023: 17.9 years
Life expectancy at birth, 2023: 66.0 years
In a city, 2025: 40 of every 100
Population, mid-1950: 7,776,176
Projected, mid-2050: 76,885,134
Projected, mid-2100: 130,216,738

AFG · 1950–2100 · total population

Population, 1950–2100

estimates | projections0100 m200 m300 m400 m1950197520002025205020752100

estimate projection, up to the bottom of the 95% range 95% range medium projection. Every column stands for a single year, counted on 1 January, and the paper rules slice it into cells of equal size.

Show the numbers: Afghanistan, 1950–2100

Afghanistan: population on 1 January, births, deaths, fertility and life expectancy, 1950–2100
Year	Kind	Population, 1 Jan	95% range	Births	Deaths	Children per woman	Life expectancy
1950	estimate	7,726,586		383,985	290,970	7.25	28.2
1951	estimate	7,825,766		391,002	288,753	7.26	28.6
1952	estimate	7,932,912		397,663	288,064	7.26	29.0
1953	estimate	8,042,655		404,666	287,712	7.27	29.4
1954	estimate	8,150,741		410,428	289,189	7.25	29.7
1955	estimate	8,265,158		417,650	286,725	7.26	30.4
1956	estimate	8,388,801		425,071	286,659	7.27	30.8
1957	estimate	8,519,802		432,044	286,115	7.26	31.4
1958	estimate	8,656,868		439,867	285,913	7.27	31.8
1959	estimate	8,789,935		447,510	285,503	7.28	32.3
1960	estimate	8,948,604		456,418	286,157	7.28	32.8
1961	estimate	9,121,483		465,920	286,822	7.28	33.3
1962	estimate	9,306,683		476,486	288,059	7.29	33.8
1963	estimate	9,502,129		487,782	289,744	7.30	34.2
1964	estimate	9,706,845		499,081	291,214	7.30	34.7
1965	estimate	9,921,791		510,721	292,983	7.30	35.1
1966	estimate	10,150,226		523,769	294,989	7.32	35.6
1967	estimate	10,382,564		536,916	296,952	7.34	36.0
1968	estimate	10,629,354		550,849	299,048	7.36	36.5
1969	estimate	10,884,489		564,969	301,151	7.39	37.0
1970	estimate	11,150,329		578,135	302,999	7.40	37.5
1971	estimate	11,429,926		593,459	305,185	7.43	37.9
1972	estimate	11,705,409		607,433	306,801	7.45	38.4
1973	estimate	12,001,983		623,433	308,373	7.49	39.0
1974	estimate	12,314,016		640,572	310,343	7.53	39.5
1975	estimate	12,624,237		655,576	311,723	7.54	40.0
1976	estimate	12,923,671		670,354	312,568	7.56	40.5
1977	estimate	13,196,031		684,795	312,223	7.59	41.1
1978	estimate	13,485,482		698,108	329,008	7.60	40.1
1979	estimate	13,737,400		710,483	348,736	7.61	38.8
1980	estimate	13,573,734		703,929	338,529	7.64	39.3
1981	estimate	12,764,889		658,773	315,309	7.62	39.4
1982	estimate	11,110,273		571,255	308,042	7.60	36.1
1983	estimate	10,872,483		558,710	294,924	7.57	36.5
1984	estimate	10,963,481		563,440	358,182	7.55	31.5
1985	estimate	11,416,962		590,687	362,217	7.55	32.1
1986	estimate	11,436,742		596,068	286,000	7.55	38.4
1987	estimate	11,403,405		594,693	280,339	7.55	38.8
1988	estimate	11,372,232		595,844	237,447	7.55	43.2
1989	estimate	11,674,364		613,672	232,519	7.56	44.5
1990	estimate	12,073,812		637,076	234,642	7.58	45.1
1991	estimate	12,017,508		639,838	229,887	7.63	45.5
1992	estimate	12,460,250		668,128	228,005	7.70	46.6
1993	estimate	14,097,697		759,621	218,362	7.76	51.0
1994	estimate	15,788,647		851,696	242,606	7.77	51.0
1995	estimate	16,712,942		899,076	245,793	7.77	52.1
1996	estimate	17,418,729		932,409	247,402	7.76	52.8
1997	estimate	18,107,803		961,674	251,891	7.73	53.2
1998	estimate	18,796,380		985,909	266,057	7.69	52.5
1999	estimate	19,523,611		1,013,252	252,507	7.64	54.5
2000	estimate	20,251,958		1,036,525	253,807	7.57	55.0
2001	estimate	20,008,696		1,006,562	242,471	7.45	55.5
2002	estimate	20,559,918		1,015,202	239,157	7.32	56.2
2003	estimate	22,196,316		1,069,727	243,570	7.17	57.2
2004	estimate	23,269,782		1,095,372	244,433	7.02	57.8
2005	estimate	23,851,525		1,097,038	241,933	6.86	58.3
2006	estimate	24,957,609		1,120,880	245,583	6.69	58.5
2007	estimate	25,890,580		1,135,656	245,810	6.51	59.0
2008	estimate	25,929,124		1,126,525	235,284	6.39	59.7
2009	estimate	27,036,120		1,158,017	237,448	6.29	60.3
2010	estimate	27,896,081		1,181,113	237,639	6.20	60.7
2011	estimate	28,672,096		1,202,456	235,726	6.09	61.3
2012	estimate	30,023,320		1,243,843	239,040	5.99	61.7
2013	estimate	31,096,748		1,274,030	240,240	5.88	62.2
2014	estimate	32,148,660		1,300,107	246,291	5.77	62.3
2015	estimate	33,436,386		1,331,758	254,691	5.65	62.3
2016	estimate	34,227,141		1,344,010	254,011	5.54	62.6
2017	estimate	35,174,083		1,362,270	261,082	5.43	62.4
2018	estimate	36,203,786		1,382,424	267,162	5.33	62.4
2019	estimate	37,282,292		1,405,919	267,424	5.24	62.9
2020	estimate	38,429,950		1,429,983	295,554	5.14	61.5
2021	estimate	39,708,008		1,453,685	320,099	5.04	60.4
2022	estimate	40,292,816		1,462,654	243,193	4.93	65.6
2023	estimate	40,864,868		1,469,029	240,296	4.84	66.0
2024	estimate	42,044,654		1,492,956	243,186	4.76	66.3
2025	projection	43,250,330	41.2–45.0 million	1,507,838	245,867	4.66	66.5
2026	projection	44,437,893	40.5–48.1 million	1,520,756	248,524	4.56	66.8
2027	projection	45,656,244	40.0–51.1 million	1,539,697	251,824	4.48	67.0
2028	projection	46,861,567	39.8–54.2 million	1,554,635	254,759	4.40	67.2
2029	projection	48,079,582	39.2–57.4 million	1,560,603	257,554	4.30	67.4
2030	projection	49,371,851	39.2–60.9 million	1,576,405	261,694	4.22	67.6
2031	projection	50,706,953	39.2–64.6 million	1,593,559	265,769	4.15	67.8
2032	projection	52,045,049	39.1–68.3 million	1,608,835	270,297	4.07	68.0
2033	projection	53,370,646	38.8–71.5 million	1,623,191	274,772	4.00	68.2
2034	projection	54,717,862	38.9–75.5 million	1,644,283	279,861	3.95	68.4
2035	projection	56,001,066	38.4–79.7 million	1,656,173	284,253	3.89	68.6
2036	projection	57,293,399	38.7–83.3 million	1,667,402	289,139	3.82	68.8
2037	projection	58,613,923	38.5–86.6 million	1,676,947	294,477	3.76	69.0
2038	projection	59,944,165	38.3–89.7 million	1,677,662	300,064	3.67	69.1
2039	projection	61,251,511	38.7–94.9 million	1,684,713	305,848	3.61	69.3
2040	projection	62,637,433	38.9–98.0 million	1,700,106	312,502	3.56	69.5
2041	projection	64,058,308	38.8–102.7 million	1,709,246	319,482	3.49	69.6
2042	projection	65,419,378	39.0–106.2 million	1,720,301	326,578	3.44	69.8
2043	projection	66,701,061	39.6–111.1 million	1,728,236	333,699	3.39	69.9
2044	projection	68,049,266	39.8–115.2 million	1,741,359	341,188	3.35	70.1
2045	projection	69,358,651	40.0–119.6 million	1,750,865	349,011	3.30	70.2
2046	projection	70,683,748	40.2–122.1 million	1,765,924	357,522	3.26	70.4
2047	projection	72,085,638	40.4–125.5 million	1,778,232	366,340	3.22	70.5
2048	projection	73,426,983	41.0–128.4 million	1,791,287	375,370	3.18	70.6
2049	projection	74,792,486	41.2–132.9 million	1,799,474	384,382	3.14	70.8
2050	projection	76,238,717	42.0–136.9 million	1,811,144	394,682	3.09	70.9
2051	projection	77,531,552	42.1–140.4 million	1,817,284	404,301	3.05	71.0
2052	projection	78,778,551	42.2–144.0 million	1,821,208	413,748	3.01	71.2
2053	projection	80,136,021	43.5–149.5 million	1,830,909	424,090	2.98	71.3
2054	projection	81,507,771	43.8–153.3 million	1,840,348	434,901	2.94	71.5
2055	projection	82,885,848	43.9–156.5 million	1,850,759	446,395	2.91	71.6
2056	projection	84,271,925	43.9–162.1 million	1,860,635	457,825	2.88	71.8
2057	projection	85,689,380	43.7–165.0 million	1,870,982	470,071	2.85	71.9
2058	projection	87,097,919	43.7–168.0 million	1,880,394	482,402	2.82	72.0
2059	projection	88,449,166	43.7–172.3 million	1,886,608	494,590	2.79	72.2
2060	projection	89,714,316	43.4–176.0 million	1,889,830	506,972	2.76	72.3
2061	projection	91,011,156	43.4–179.8 million	1,891,503	519,993	2.73	72.4
2062	projection	92,256,291	43.3–183.3 million	1,891,686	532,868	2.70	72.6
2063	projection	93,606,968	43.4–187.9 million	1,896,166	546,551	2.68	72.7
2064	projection	94,945,273	44.9–196.1 million	1,898,122	561,252	2.65	72.8
2065	projection	96,332,889	45.3–201.1 million	1,906,320	576,050	2.63	73.0
2066	projection	97,715,613	45.8–207.7 million	1,912,670	591,706	2.61	73.1
2067	projection	98,961,907	46.0–213.9 million	1,909,255	606,782	2.58	73.2
2068	projection	100,192,599	46.2–221.3 million	1,908,345	623,149	2.56	73.3
2069	projection	101,508,628	46.1–224.4 million	1,908,739	639,778	2.53	73.5
2070	projection	102,757,149	46.5–229.0 million	1,909,734	656,714	2.51	73.6
2071	projection	104,076,135	46.4–234.9 million	1,911,412	674,109	2.49	73.7
2072	projection	105,238,077	46.2–243.6 million	1,909,678	691,061	2.46	73.8
2073	projection	106,434,247	46.5–248.2 million	1,907,113	708,014	2.44	74.0
2074	projection	107,692,243	47.2–253.2 million	1,910,085	725,812	2.42	74.1
2075	projection	108,838,793	46.9–258.5 million	1,909,651	743,369	2.40	74.2
2076	projection	109,866,945	47.0–262.7 million	1,904,112	761,407	2.38	74.3
2077	projection	110,932,815	46.2–270.1 million	1,901,489	779,591	2.36	74.5
2078	projection	112,018,828	45.5–274.2 million	1,899,027	797,269	2.35	74.6
2079	projection	113,009,801	44.7–277.3 million	1,895,702	814,734	2.33	74.7
2080	projection	114,157,053	45.1–282.1 million	1,898,699	832,548	2.31	74.8
2081	projection	115,190,537	45.0–282.6 million	1,896,198	849,222	2.30	75.0
2082	projection	116,078,114	45.8–290.0 million	1,891,074	866,721	2.28	75.1
2083	projection	116,954,350	46.3–295.9 million	1,885,882	883,997	2.26	75.2
2084	projection	117,802,720	46.0–303.8 million	1,881,892	901,130	2.25	75.3
2085	projection	118,783,225	46.7–311.9 million	1,881,811	918,371	2.23	75.5
2086	projection	119,665,322	46.9–313.5 million	1,879,254	935,428	2.22	75.6
2087	projection	120,421,155	47.0–316.1 million	1,873,799	951,452	2.21	75.7
2088	projection	121,295,358	46.8–324.4 million	1,872,115	968,455	2.20	75.8
2089	projection	122,092,723	45.7–332.5 million	1,867,655	984,875	2.18	76.0
2090	projection	122,874,315	44.5–341.2 million	1,862,532	1,001,680	2.17	76.1
2091	projection	123,734,676	44.4–347.1 million	1,858,796	1,018,429	2.16	76.2
2092	projection	124,485,327	44.3–362.6 million	1,854,173	1,034,538	2.14	76.3
2093	projection	125,222,996	44.2–367.5 million	1,849,146	1,051,256	2.13	76.4
2094	projection	125,955,826	44.1–374.8 million	1,843,534	1,067,595	2.12	76.6
2095	projection	126,657,951	43.7–376.4 million	1,838,628	1,084,223	2.11	76.7
2096	projection	127,322,342	43.9–377.4 million	1,834,483	1,099,778	2.10	76.8
2097	projection	127,973,182	44.1–379.7 million	1,829,429	1,114,439	2.09	76.9
2098	projection	128,637,811	44.7–382.6 million	1,825,504	1,130,143	2.08	77.1
2099	projection	129,291,713	45.1–388.7 million	1,819,805	1,145,239	2.07	77.2
2100	projection	129,940,523	44.0–396.8 million	1,813,187	1,161,691	2.06	77.3

Show the numbers: Afghanistan, mid-2026, by single year of age

Afghanistan: population by single year of age, mid-2026
Age	Male	Female
0	746,486	714,804
1	730,915	700,952
2	717,275	687,543
3	701,164	671,784
4	684,664	655,880
5	671,142	642,938
6	659,262	631,497
7	646,160	618,776
8	633,464	606,335
9	620,730	593,890
10	607,532	580,928
11	594,782	568,424
12	581,850	555,850
13	567,946	542,165
14	553,926	528,266
15	539,404	513,872
16	524,494	499,230
17	510,732	485,844
18	496,008	471,876
19	483,099	459,956
20	473,571	451,267
21	463,571	442,266
22	453,435	433,172
23	443,688	424,495
24	432,376	414,762
25	419,129	403,442
26	405,303	391,437
27	390,348	378,630
28	375,388	365,824
29	360,827	352,927
30	345,772	339,333
31	330,702	325,172
32	315,288	310,256
33	299,006	294,506
34	282,384	278,390
35	266,364	262,826
36	252,039	248,865
37	239,280	236,369
38	226,918	224,292
39	215,264	212,900
40	203,631	201,608
41	191,809	190,178
42	182,076	180,592
43	174,652	173,172
44	168,464	167,028
45	163,133	161,854
46	157,176	156,213
47	150,569	150,033
48	144,582	144,550
49	138,580	139,168
50	132,330	133,654
51	126,261	128,381
52	119,999	122,980
53	113,470	117,388
54	107,136	112,091
55	100,839	106,866
56	94,690	101,801
57	88,752	96,925
58	82,798	91,982
59	77,010	87,176
60	71,434	82,480
61	66,189	77,961
62	61,339	73,646
63	56,810	69,386
64	52,598	65,206
65	48,714	61,204
66	45,086	57,339
67	41,640	53,550
68	38,348	49,834
69	35,244	46,258
70	32,278	42,777
71	29,364	39,290
72	26,600	35,962
73	23,960	32,771
74	21,414	29,682
75	18,882	26,367
76	16,862	24,076
77	14,934	22,606
78	13,192	20,532
79	11,743	18,026
80	10,112	15,376
81	8,508	12,858
82	7,030	10,604
83	5,709	8,655
84	4,564	6,996
85	3,596	5,586
86	2,788	4,408
87	2,125	3,450
88	1,580	2,657
89	1,136	1,978
90	790	1,418
91	535	995
92	353	686
93	226	459
94	141	298
95	85	188
96	50	115
97	28	68
98	15	40
99	8	22
100+	7	23

AFG · 1950–2100 · every age, every year

Afghanistan, every age in every year

Each column is a year and each row an age; the denser the ink in a cell, the more people. Everyone born in the same year climbs one 45° diagonal, so famines, baby booms and migration show up as streaks. Select a cell to follow its generation.

AFG · ages 15–64

Who does the work in Afghanistan

In Afghanistan the number of people aged 15–64 is still growing in 2100, the last year the UN projects. In 2023 there were 22,549,800 of them.

100 aged 15–64

79 children

4 aged 65+

aged 15–64 children under 15 aged 65 and over

How to read this: one orange square for each of 100 people aged 15–64 in 2023. Beneath them, teal for the children living alongside those 100 and violet for the people aged 65 or older.

At no point between 1950 and 2100 do fewer than 50 dependants live alongside every 100 people aged 15–64 here.

fewer than 50 dependants per 100 the same, projected 50 or more

How to read this: the strip runs 1950 to 2100. Coloured years are the ones with under 50 dependants for every 100 people aged 15–64; grey years are the rest, and a hatched year has not happened yet.

How every country compares

AFG · arrivals minus departures

Who arrives in Afghanistan, and who leaves

In 2020–2025 Afghanistan loses 250,922 people a year: everyone who arrives, minus everyone who leaves. The age at which that happens most is 0–4, at 40,126 a year more leaving than arriving.

one square = 5,000 people a year

020406080+

more arrive than leave more leave than arrive

How to read this: each column is one age, youngest on the left. Above the line, in blue, are the ages gaining people; below it, in orange, the ages losing them. This is the UN's projection for 2020–2025 — the record of migration by age does not go back beyond 2020.

Its best and worst years between 1950 and 2023: a gain of 1,197,329 (1992), and a loss of 1,998,086 (1981).

In 2024, 98,110 people living in Afghanistan had been born in another country, fewer than 1 of every 100 people there, against fewer than 1 in 1990.

How migration works everywhere

AFG · births by the mother's age · 1950–2100

Who has the babies in Afghanistan

Of every 100 babies born in Afghanistan in 2023, 10 had a mother under 20, 73 a mother aged 20 to 34 and 17 a mother aged 35 or older. In 1950 it was 15 under 20 and 17 aged 35 or older.

1950
15 · 68 · 17

2023
10 · 73 · 17

2050 · projected
5 · 68 · 27

The mother's age: under 20 20 to 34 35 or older projected

How to read this: shrink a year's babies to 100 and colour each one by the age of its mother — that is a block. Under it, the same three groups as numbers, starting with the youngest mothers.

Babies born, 2023: 1,469,029
Average age when women have a baby: 30.4 years; 29.2 in 1950
Babies a year per 1,000 girls aged 15–19: 64; 145 in 1950

Babies by the mother's age, 1950–2100

Babies born in Afghanistan by the mother's age
Mother's age	1950	1975	2000	2023	2050 projected	2100 projected
10–14	3,564	6,821	13,847	2,818	606	128
15–19	53,857	86,484	156,794	146,315	86,760	34,888
20–24	107,104	167,960	276,647	359,425	252,561	154,280
25–29	90,222	162,756	245,549	423,142	525,272	502,196
30–34	63,603	114,198	177,225	293,637	457,334	549,222
35–39	42,285	75,827	107,703	161,148	317,320	396,810
40–44	18,714	34,495	46,192	65,502	141,445	154,649
45–49	4,417	6,732	11,945	16,240	28,672	20,497
50–54	219	303	623	802	1,174	517
All babies	383,985	655,576	1,036,525	1,469,029	1,811,144	1,813,187

The UN's births for each year, split by the mother's age in the UN's own proportions.

AFG · healthy years · 2021

Years in good health in Afghanistan

Of the 59.1 years a baby born in Afghanistan in 2021 could expect, about 50.4 would be lived in full health (95% range 49.6–51.4). That leaves 8.7 years in less than full health, fewer than the world's 9.5, which mostly means lives are shorter here, with fewer years in which to be ill.

Women

51.3 in full health, 9.7 not: 61.0 years

Men

49.6 in full health, 7.8 not: 57.4 years

a year in full health a year in less than full health

How to read this: each square is a year of life, each row ten years; filled squares are years in full health, rounded to whole years.

Women: 51.3 healthy years of 61.0. Men: 49.6 of 57.4. In 2019, before the pandemic, the healthy years were 52.3.

AFG · forced from home · end of 2025

Displacement in Afghanistan

At the end of 2025, 3,199,023 people were displaced inside Afghanistan, about 73 of every 1,000 people living there.

hosted from abroad21,251
displaced inside it3,199,023
Afghanistan nationals abroad3,972,525

stayed inside their own country crossed a border

How to read this: count the squares — 100,000 people each, so the rows can be compared with one another. The last row is people from Afghanistan living in another country, wherever they are. An outlined square means fewer people than one square stands for.

In 2025, 19 people asked for asylum in Afghanistan for the first time; 85,517 people from Afghanistan asked for asylum in another country. Of every 100 people from Afghanistan whose claims were decided that year, 74 were given protection. Who asks for asylum, and who is given it

How the world's displacement is counted

AFG · of every 100 people

How people live in Afghanistan

Of every 100 people in Afghanistan in 2025, 40 lived in a city, 43 in a town or suburb and 17 in the countryside.

cities towns and suburbs rural areas

12.2 of every 100 have no electricity at home (2024). 83.9 of every 100 do not use the internet (2024).

How to read this: one square for every hundredth person, coloured as the key shows. Because the rule behind the colours is the same everywhere, two countries' squares can be compared directly.

How the world's people live

AFG · adults 25 and over · 2020

How far people in Afghanistan went in school

Of every 100 adults in Afghanistan in 2020, 73 never went to school and 13 finished upper secondary or went further.

73 never went to school 14 finished primary 9 finished upper secondary 4 studied after school

Compare two generations. Aged 60–64, 94.5 of every 100 women and 70.5 of every 100 men never went to school; aged 25–29, 69.6 and 38.6.

Its people aged 15 to 64 are projected to be most numerous in 2095; the ones who finished upper secondary are still growing in 2100.

How to read this: every adult here as one of 100 squares. The stronger the colour, the further that person went in school (the Wittgenstein Centre, 2020).

How far the world's people went in school

AFG · cities · 2025

Cities in Afghanistan

Afghanistan had 85 cities in 2025, home to 17.6 million people. The largest, Kabul, holds 13 of every 100 people in Afghanistan.

Kabul5,635,737
Herat1,259,425
Kandahar799,015
Mazar i sharif651,287
Jalalabad587,508
Taloqan290,028
Kunduz287,295
Maymana229,355
Puli Khumri228,271
Charikar227,054

All 21 cities in Afghanistan that reach 300,000 people

Kabul 5,635,737
Herat 1,259,425
Kandahar 799,015
Mazar i sharif 651,287
Jalalabad 587,508
Taloqan 290,028
Kunduz 287,295
Maymana 229,355
Puli Khumri 228,271
Charikar 227,054
Shindand 213,596
Firozkoh 204,753
Fayzabad 195,148
Toraghundi 190,543
Guzarah 176,657
Mihtarlam 162,346
Lal 117,617
Golbahar 116,780
Qeysar 112,398
Baghlan 109,385
Ghazni 109,080

How to read this: the 10 largest cities in 2025, bars on one scale. A city is the whole built-up area on the UN's rule, not the city's own boundary.

All the world's cities

Apparatus

Sources and method

Every figure on this page comes from the UN's World Population Prospects 2024: the annual country tables (estimates to 2023, projections with 95% intervals from 2024), and the population by single year of age and sex for the pyramid.

The censuses, surveys and registers behind the UN's estimates for Afghanistan are listed, source by source, on the UN's own data sources page.

Sources: UN WPP 2024 · World Bank · UNHCR · country code lists · UN WUP 2025 · Wittgenstein Centre · WHO GHO · flag-icons · Natural Earth. Every source, its licence and how to cite it →

Checked before it was drawn

Verified 2026-09-30 · 73 canaries The pyramid for every year was checked against the published total. What that stamp counts, and what every page here has to pass before it can be built: how this site checks its figures.