censuswall PNG · 2026 · ages 0–100
Topics

Country or area · Melanesia · Oceania · UN WPP 2024

Papua New Guinea population

Papua New Guinea population now

10,993,042

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: 10.8–11.3 million.

Mid-2023, UN estimate: 10,389,635

Year
2026
projection · medium
Population, mid-2026
10.9478 million
95% range, 31 Dec: 10.8–11.3 million
Median age
24.0
Aged 65+
3.7%
2023 | 2024

male female projection · one cell = 2,000 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

PNG · 1950–2100 · in brief

Papua New Guinea in numbers

The UN counts 10,389,635 people in Papua New Guinea in mid-2023, which makes it the 93rd-largest population of the 236 countries and areas the UN reports, and 0.13% of the world's people. That is 6.7 times its 1950 population of 1.5 million.

In the UN's medium projection it is still growing in 2100, when it reaches 18.6 million. The projection is uncertain: on 1 January 2100 the UN's 95% range runs from 7.2 million to 47.9 million.

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

The median age was 18.3 in 1950 and 23.3 in 2023; the projection has 38.2 in 2100. 3.3% of people were 65 or older in 2023, against 15.6% projected for 2100. The working-age population (15–64) is projected to peak in 2097 at 12.2 million.

Its place in the world by population: 93rd in 2023, 85th in 2050, 82nd in 2100. In the medium projection it overtakes Portugal in 2024, Czechia in 2025 and Sweden in 2025. It is overtaken by Togo in 2044, Israel in 2087 and the Republic of the Congo in 2090.

Population, mid-2023
10,389,635
Rank by population, 2023
93 of 236
Share of the world, 2023
0.13%
Change in a year, mid-2022 to mid-2023
+1.83% · +186,465 people
People per km² of land, 2023
23
Land area, 2023
452,860 km²
Births, 2023
255,331
Deaths, 2023
67,700
Net migration, 2023
−787
Children per woman, 2023
3.10
Median age, 2023
23.3 years
Life expectancy at birth, 2023
66.1 years
In a city, 2025
12 of every 100
Population, mid-1950
1,543,429
Projected, mid-2050
14,906,590
Projected, mid-2100
18,640,542

PNG · 1950–2100 · total population

Population, 1950–2100

estimates | projections010 m20 m30 m40 m50 m1950197520002025205020752100

estimate   projection, up to the bottom of the 95% range   95% range   medium projection. Each column is the population on 1 January of one year; the paper rules cut it into equal cells.

Show the numbers: Papua New Guinea, 1950–2100
Papua New Guinea: population on 1 January, births, deaths, fertility and life expectancy, 1950–2100
YearKindPopulation, 1 Jan95% rangeBirthsDeathsChildren per womanLife expectancy
1950estimate1,526,96170,87833,0955.7139.4
1951estimate1,559,89773,30239,3975.7435.5
1952estimate1,589,94775,41333,3335.7640.7
1953estimate1,629,12877,76033,5075.7941.3
1954estimate1,671,32979,27533,6285.7842.0
1955estimate1,715,68081,35733,6775.8242.6
1956estimate1,762,75883,09033,7365.8443.3
1957estimate1,812,12184,98333,7635.8943.9
1958estimate1,862,88486,70333,7625.9344.6
1959estimate1,915,04488,14733,7875.9645.1
1960estimate1,967,96490,03933,7136.0245.8
1961estimate2,022,25591,83733,6866.0746.4
1962estimate2,069,99894,03234,0586.1346.7
1963estimate2,117,83995,66433,4036.1547.7
1964estimate2,164,91397,77233,2146.1948.3
1965estimate2,211,73899,65832,9646.2048.9
1966estimate2,259,902101,91232,7066.2349.6
1967estimate2,311,646103,90432,3856.2450.3
1968estimate2,363,417106,07732,0936.2550.9
1969estimate2,418,190108,25731,8026.2651.5
1970estimate2,475,663110,23131,5196.2552.1
1971estimate2,535,592112,03831,4386.2352.6
1972estimate2,597,251113,72431,0536.2053.3
1973estimate2,659,614114,48730,6666.1653.9
1974estimate2,721,644115,11430,2846.1154.4
1975estimate2,783,697115,78429,9766.0755.0
1976estimate2,845,944116,66029,6976.0255.5
1977estimate2,908,711117,42629,4715.9656.0
1978estimate2,971,943118,07129,3225.8856.5
1979estimate3,035,485118,55229,2225.7957.0
1980estimate3,099,198119,45429,1885.7157.4
1981estimate3,163,826121,06529,2995.6457.8
1982estimate3,230,211123,06529,5435.5958.1
1983estimate3,298,372125,96429,9835.5658.3
1984estimate3,368,894128,39330,2895.5158.6
1985estimate3,441,501131,04130,7105.4758.8
1986estimate3,516,370133,48031,1345.4259.0
1987estimate3,593,216135,91531,5495.3659.2
1988estimate3,671,869138,32932,0745.3059.4
1989estimate3,751,891140,66532,4635.2459.6
1990estimate3,840,265142,99332,9615.1859.8
1991estimate3,952,696145,11733,6635.1159.9
1992estimate4,090,978149,10734,2865.0360.3
1993estimate4,242,421153,92635,2574.9660.5
1994estimate4,399,322158,22836,1134.8760.7
1995estimate4,561,095162,49137,0814.7860.9
1996estimate4,727,461168,04638,2434.7361.1
1997estimate4,899,262173,77539,3164.6861.3
1998estimate5,076,505179,54042,8634.6360.4
1999estimate5,256,274185,41641,8234.5961.5
2000estimate5,442,391190,60043,1074.5361.6
2001estimate5,631,736195,99244,5644.4761.6
2002estimate5,825,135201,31346,2244.4261.6
2003estimate6,022,872206,22447,6154.3661.7
2004estimate6,225,122210,12849,1054.2861.8
2005estimate6,430,960214,46150,5774.2261.9
2006estimate6,640,850218,37051,8304.1562.0
2007estimate6,854,590222,27952,9714.0862.2
2008estimate7,072,099226,61353,7964.0162.5
2009estimate7,293,904230,14854,7233.9462.8
2010estimate7,518,972234,60855,6083.8863.1
2011estimate7,748,074238,16956,3263.8263.4
2012estimate7,970,618240,84157,1843.7563.6
2013estimate8,192,162243,71557,9293.6863.9
2014estimate8,413,233246,32358,7273.6364.2
2015estimate8,633,649248,09159,4873.5664.5
2016estimate8,852,843249,72160,4393.5064.7
2017estimate9,070,592251,14361,4213.4364.9
2018estimate9,286,836253,24262,5763.3865.1
2019estimate9,502,191254,31463,6493.3265.3
2020estimate9,715,829256,11166,9813.2765.1
2021estimate9,915,662256,14972,3843.2164.4
2022estimate10,110,130256,71669,8483.1765.3
2023estimate10,296,209255,33167,7003.1066.1
2024estimate10,483,061256,91169,3203.0766.3
2025projection10,669,94210.6–10.8 million256,97470,9353.0366.4
2026projection10,855,69210.7–11.0 million257,49272,6572.9966.5
2027projection11,040,00410.8–11.3 million257,98974,3692.9566.6
2028projection11,222,54110.9–11.6 million258,64876,2042.9266.8
2029projection11,403,24711.0–11.9 million258,87078,0372.8866.9
2030projection11,582,36011.0–12.2 million259,32380,0152.8467.0
2031projection11,760,48911.1–12.5 million259,77281,9732.8167.1
2032projection11,935,95411.2–12.8 million260,82083,9622.7867.3
2033projection12,110,30111.2–13.1 million261,74786,0312.7567.4
2034projection12,282,99211.3–13.4 million262,51488,1782.7367.5
2035projection12,455,52111.4–13.7 million263,13890,3632.6967.6
2036projection12,625,68411.4–14.0 million263,82392,5732.6767.7
2037projection12,795,68111.5–14.4 million264,26394,8102.6467.8
2038projection12,963,79911.5–14.7 million265,13997,1702.6168.0
2039projection13,130,44811.6–15.1 million265,91099,4932.5968.1
2040projection13,294,89211.6–15.4 million266,669101,9052.5668.2
2041projection13,457,42911.6–15.8 million267,243104,2522.5468.3
2042projection13,617,31211.6–16.2 million267,307106,7542.5168.4
2043projection13,774,98211.7–16.5 million268,035109,2652.5068.5
2044projection13,931,85511.7–16.9 million268,709111,6782.4868.6
2045projection14,088,01211.7–17.2 million269,312114,1542.4668.7
2046projection14,243,16411.7–17.6 million269,520116,7362.4468.8
2047projection14,394,62011.7–18.0 million269,444119,0792.4268.9
2048projection14,543,82311.7–18.4 million269,372121,5812.4069.0
2049projection14,690,91811.7–18.8 million269,220124,1412.3869.1
2050projection14,836,28711.7–19.2 million269,079126,6942.3769.2
2051projection14,976,89311.7–19.7 million268,887129,2132.3569.3
2052projection15,115,97911.7–20.1 million268,661131,6922.3369.4
2053projection15,253,28411.6–20.5 million268,094134,1892.3269.5
2054projection15,386,00011.5–20.9 million267,571136,7102.3069.6
2055projection15,518,22011.5–21.4 million267,079139,2352.2869.7
2056projection15,645,06711.4–21.9 million266,612141,6522.2769.8
2057projection15,769,09111.4–22.4 million266,064144,1192.2670.0
2058projection15,891,03911.4–22.9 million265,407146,5342.2470.1
2059projection16,009,91011.3–23.4 million264,812149,0122.2370.2
2060projection16,126,78911.2–23.9 million263,937151,4352.2170.3
2061projection16,242,13111.2–24.4 million263,352153,9352.2070.4
2062projection16,351,54311.1–25.0 million262,767156,3622.1970.5
2063projection16,457,60110.9–25.6 million262,096158,7122.1770.6
2064projection16,561,05210.9–26.1 million261,846160,9602.1670.7
2065projection16,664,40810.9–26.8 million261,240163,3142.1570.8
2066projection16,765,99210.7–27.4 million260,813165,6022.1470.9
2067projection16,864,76610.6–27.9 million260,107167,8232.1371.0
2068projection16,960,97210.5–28.5 million259,524170,0042.1271.1
2069projection17,053,49710.3–29.1 million259,123172,1802.1171.2
2070projection17,142,30710.3–29.7 million258,434174,2972.1071.3
2071projection17,228,03610.2–30.4 million257,697176,2862.0871.5
2072projection17,312,33610.1–30.9 million257,114178,4292.0871.5
2073projection17,393,09510.0–31.5 million255,946180,5202.0671.7
2074projection17,469,33110.0–32.1 million255,318182,4752.0571.8
2075projection17,543,0589.8–32.8 million254,346184,1202.0471.9
2076projection17,614,7829.7–33.4 million253,936185,9832.0472.0
2077projection17,683,1629.7–33.8 million253,453187,8922.0372.1
2078projection17,750,4519.6–34.3 million252,835189,6242.0272.2
2079projection17,816,9679.5–35.0 million252,039191,3632.0272.3
2080projection17,879,6389.4–35.7 million250,943193,0032.0172.4
2081projection17,944,3389.2–36.2 million250,200194,7172.0072.5
2082projection18,002,7109.1–36.8 million249,512196,3262.0072.6
2083projection18,057,7519.0–37.5 million248,590197,9841.9972.8
2084projection18,112,9448.9–38.3 million247,823199,4861.9872.9
2085projection18,163,7398.8–39.0 million246,907200,9581.9873.0
2086projection18,213,6958.7–39.6 million246,191202,3981.9773.1
2087projection18,261,6038.6–40.3 million245,222203,6821.9773.2
2088projection18,305,6608.5–40.9 million244,166204,9071.9673.3
2089projection18,346,9288.4–41.8 million242,728206,1991.9573.5
2090projection18,385,6218.3–42.4 million241,437207,4061.9473.6
2091projection18,425,7638.2–42.9 million240,175208,8021.9473.7
2092projection18,461,2188.1–43.3 million239,238210,0091.9373.8
2093projection18,493,3928.1–44.2 million238,122211,2691.9273.9
2094projection18,522,1607.9–44.7 million236,975212,6471.9274.0
2095projection18,548,8847.9–45.4 million235,903213,7241.9174.2
2096projection18,572,1647.7–45.9 million234,875214,7781.9174.3
2097projection18,593,1677.6–46.4 million233,371216,1131.9074.4
2098projection18,610,3817.5–46.8 million232,135217,1671.9074.5
2099projection18,624,0357.3–47.4 million230,779218,1931.8974.6
2100projection18,636,0267.2–47.9 million229,406218,9631.8874.8
Show the numbers: Papua New Guinea, mid-2026, by single year of age
Papua New Guinea: population by single year of age, mid-2026
AgeMaleFemale
0129,477120,958
1128,486120,074
2127,713119,352
3127,324118,927
4127,222118,927
5126,614118,448
6125,708117,502
7124,581116,365
8123,374115,077
9122,316113,850
10121,478112,794
11120,620111,688
12119,588110,409
13118,344108,940
14117,144107,512
15115,854106,013
16114,072104,063
17112,342102,173
18110,863100,562
19109,39299,011
20108,05897,672
21106,62096,354
22105,16795,122
23103,54893,821
24101,56092,256
2599,47090,679
2697,68689,400
2795,91888,123
2893,97486,688
2992,15485,378
3090,33884,113
3188,70683,056
3287,14282,098
3385,22180,836
3483,09279,424
3581,26678,367
3679,79477,787
3777,80476,779
3875,02474,932
3972,24272,934
4069,73071,002
4167,26868,972
4264,87166,884
4362,51664,715
4460,37062,614
4558,58060,724
4656,85358,896
4755,11157,075
4853,40955,234
4951,69153,340
5049,91851,360
5148,14049,360
5246,37447,372
5344,56145,334
5442,59543,150
5540,67840,966
5638,97438,937
5737,35236,974
5835,81235,067
5934,33733,207
6032,80831,319
6131,21029,421
6229,51027,494
6327,73125,584
6425,86423,685
6523,91221,786
6621,97819,994
6720,08418,316
6818,18616,670
6916,29215,042
7014,53213,576
7112,91812,266
7211,48111,131
7310,18010,106
748,9459,094
757,8208,149
766,7647,164
775,9436,073
785,1865,167
794,4014,541
803,7233,977
813,0913,407
822,5282,868
832,0472,384
841,6421,958
851,3041,587
861,0241,266
87791993
88600764
89446576
90324424
91231306
92162217
93112152
9478104
955270
963646
972430
981619
991012
100+1419

PNG · 1950–2100 · every age, every year

Papua New Guinea, 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.

PNG · ages 15–64

Who does the work in Papua New Guinea

On the UN's projection, Papua New Guinea will have the most working-age people it ever has in 2097: 12,210,100 people aged 15–64. In 2023 it had 6,529,620.

100 aged 15–64
54 children
5 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.

Fewer than 50 dependants live alongside every 100 people aged 15–64 in 25 years: 2056–2080.

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

How to read this: 1950 on the left, 2100 on the right; coloured in the years with fewer than 50 dependants per 100 working-age people, grey in the rest, hatched where that is a projection.

How every country compares

PNG · arrivals minus departures

Who arrives in Papua New Guinea, and who leaves

In 2020–2025 Papua New Guinea gains 2,726 people a year: everyone who arrives, minus everyone who leaves. The age at which that happens most is 15–19, at 800 a year more arriving than leaving.

one square = 100 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.

In the years that were counted, 1950–2023, the most it gained in one year was 50,106 (2010) and the most it lost was 26,232 (1988).

In 2024, 31,171 people living in Papua New Guinea had been born in another country, fewer than 1 of every 100 people there, against fewer than 1 in 1990.

How migration works everywhere

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

Who has the babies in Papua New Guinea

Of every 100 babies born in Papua New Guinea in 2023, 11 had a mother under 20, 70 a mother aged 20 to 34 and 19 a mother aged 35 or older. In 1950 it was 11 under 20 and 14 aged 35 or older.

1950
11 · 75 · 14
2023
11 · 70 · 19
2050 · projected
8 · 73 · 19

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
255,331
Average age when women have a baby
29.3 years
29.5 in 1950
Babies a year per 1,000 girls aged 15–19
54
87 in 1950
Babies by the mother's age, 1950–2100
Babies born in Papua New Guinea by the mother's age
Mother's age19501975200020232050 projected2100 projected
10–142927082,51285519337
15–197,50311,31821,44626,49923,0359,970
20–2420,44828,60847,40765,80767,66942,033
25–2919,28928,75247,70563,92571,09364,666
30–3413,58223,13335,36549,83956,80862,734
35–397,27915,12622,62932,12837,75440,293
40–442,1786,80810,82713,30010,9828,898
45–492981,2742,5752,8441,489757
50–549571341345618
All babies70,878115,784190,600255,331269,079229,406

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

PNG · healthy years · 2021

Years in good health in Papua New Guinea

In Papua New Guinea, WHO puts the healthy years a newborn could expect in 2021 at 57.5 (95% range 56.5–58.5), out of 65.5 in all. The years in less than full health come to 8.0, below the world's 9.5: shorter lives leave fewer years in which to be ill.

Women

58.1 in full health, 8.8 not: 66.9 years

Men

57.0 in full health, 7.2 not: 64.2 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: 58.1 healthy years of 66.9. Men: 57.0 of 64.2. In 2019, before the pandemic, the healthy years were 58.5.

PNG · forced from home · end of 2025

Displacement in Papua New Guinea

At the end of 2025, 70,124 people were displaced inside Papua New Guinea, about 7 of every 1,000 people living there.

  1. hosted from abroad10,848
  2. displaced inside it70,124
  3. Papua New Guinea nationals abroad1,871

stayed inside their own country   crossed a border

How to read this: each square is 2,000 people, so the rows can be compared with one another. The last row is people from Papua New Guinea living in another country, wherever they are.

In 2025, 422 people from Papua New Guinea asked for asylum in another country. Of every 100 people from Papua New Guinea whose claims were decided that year, 49 were given protection. Who asks for asylum, and who is given it

How the world's displacement is counted

PNG · of every 100 people

How people live in Papua New Guinea

Of every 100 people in Papua New Guinea in 2025, 12 lived in a city, 36 in a town or suburb and 52 in the countryside.

cities towns and suburbs rural areas

56.7 of every 100 have no electricity at home (2024). 81.2 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

PNG · adults 25 and over · 2020

How far people in Papua New Guinea went in school

Of every 100 adults in Papua New Guinea in 2020, 15 never went to school and 23 finished upper secondary or went further.

15 never went to school 19 some primary 29 finished primary 14 finished lower secondary 15 finished upper secondary 8 studied after school

Compare two generations. Aged 60–64, 38.8 of every 100 women and 14.4 of every 100 men never went to school; aged 25–29, 8.8 and 7.1.

The middle projection has its working-age people most numerous in 2070; those among them who finished upper secondary are most numerous later, in 2090.

How to read this: 100 squares, one for every hundredth adult aged 25 or over, from least schooling on the left to most on the right. Counted by the Wittgenstein Centre for 2020.

How far the world's people went in school

PNG · cities · 2025

Cities in Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea had 11 cities in 2025, home to 1.3 million people. The largest, Port Moresby, holds 4 of every 100 people in Papua New Guinea.

  1. Port Moresby413,223
  2. Mendi132,879
  3. Lae121,552
  4. Mount Hagen107,186
  5. Goroka95,462
  6. Madang93,347
  7. Kundiawa86,187
  8. Tari65,292
  9. Ganigle59,261
  10. Hides 456,552

How to read this: one bar for each of the 10 largest cities, 2025, all on the same scale. "City" here means the built-up area the UN measures, not the boundary the city draws itself.

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 Papua New Guinea 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.