Country or area · Western Europe · Europe · UN WPP 2024

Switzerland population

Switzerland population now

9,017,054

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: 8.9–9.2 million.

Mid-2023, UN estimate: 8,870,561

Year: 2026; projection · medium
Population, mid-2026: 9.00780 million; 95% range, 31 Dec: 8.9–9.2 million
Median age: 44.2
Aged 65+: 20.9%

Move through time, 1950–2100

2023 | 2024 peak 2051

male female projection · one cell = 1,000 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

CHE · 1950–2100 · in brief

Switzerland in numbers

In mid-2023 there were 8,870,561 people in Switzerland: the 101st-largest population of the 236 countries and areas the UN reports, and 0.11% of the world's people. That is 1.9 times its 1950 population of 4.7 million.

The UN's medium projection has it peaking in 2051 at 9.3 million, then falling to 9.1 million by 2100. The projection is uncertain: on 1 January 2100 the UN's 95% range runs from 3.1 million to 17.0 million.

In the medium projection, deaths outnumber births every year from 2028 on. The population still grows until 2051, because more people arrive than leave.

The median age was 33.2 in 1950 and 43.3 in 2023; the projection has 49.1 in 2100. 19.6% of people were 65 or older in 2023, against 32.1% projected for 2100. The working-age population (15–64) is projected to peak in 2024 at 5.8 million.

By size it is the 101st country in 2023; the projection puts it 104th in 2050 and 106th in 2100. In the medium projection it overtakes Belarus in 2026, Austria in 2029 and Hungary in 2036. It is overtaken by Sierra Leone in 2027, Laos in 2042 and the Republic of the Congo in 2042.

Population, mid-2023: 8,870,561
Rank by population, 2023: 101 of 236
Share of the world, 2023: 0.11%
Change in a year, mid-2022 to mid-2023: +0.89% · +78,379 people
People per km² of land, 2023: 225
Land area, 2023: 39,510 km²
Births, 2023: 83,702
Deaths, 2023: 73,788
Net migration, 2023: +45,098
Children per woman, 2023: 1.43
Median age, 2023: 43.3 years
Life expectancy at birth, 2023: 84.0 years
In a city, 2025: 32 of every 100
Population, mid-1950: 4,692,642
Projected, mid-2050: 9,342,586
Projected, mid-2100: 9,126,132

CHE · 1950–2100 · total population

Population, 1950–2100

peak 2051estimates | projections05 m10 m15 m20 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: Switzerland, 1950–2100

Switzerland: 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	4,668,088		84,393	47,306	2.40	68.9
1951	estimate	4,717,195		81,749	49,899	2.31	68.7
1952	estimate	4,778,975		83,133	47,598	2.32	69.6
1953	estimate	4,844,249		82,864	49,627	2.29	69.5
1954	estimate	4,907,055		83,540	49,069	2.29	70.0
1955	estimate	4,970,440		85,183	50,247	2.31	70.1
1956	estimate	5,033,784		87,858	51,513	2.36	70.2
1957	estimate	5,097,456		90,662	50,988	2.41	70.5
1958	estimate	5,162,868		91,330	49,147	2.41	71.3
1959	estimate	5,230,015		92,703	49,998	2.42	71.5
1960	estimate	5,295,585		94,100	52,030	2.44	71.4
1961	estimate	5,359,976		97,910	50,882	2.52	71.7
1962	estimate	5,508,270		103,030	54,980	2.58	71.3
1963	estimate	5,639,122		108,614	56,947	2.65	71.3
1964	estimate	5,749,208		111,948	53,516	2.65	72.2
1965	estimate	5,829,090		111,437	55,427	2.59	72.3
1966	estimate	5,883,749		109,109	55,669	2.50	72.5
1967	estimate	5,952,174		106,404	54,982	2.39	72.7
1968	estimate	6,031,292		104,149	57,246	2.29	72.7
1969	estimate	6,104,022		101,787	57,869	2.19	72.7
1970	estimate	6,168,681		99,828	57,026	2.10	73.1
1971	estimate	6,193,163		95,862	57,772	2.04	73.2
1972	estimate	6,233,898		90,780	56,404	1.91	73.8
1973	estimate	6,288,263		87,056	56,934	1.81	74.1
1974	estimate	6,326,542		84,036	56,368	1.73	74.4
1975	estimate	6,356,211		78,936	55,978	1.61	74.8
1976	estimate	6,320,988		74,620	57,231	1.55	74.9
1977	estimate	6,284,121		72,675	55,689	1.53	75.4
1978	estimate	6,278,598		71,269	57,826	1.51	75.3
1979	estimate	6,285,479		71,729	57,518	1.52	75.6
1980	estimate	6,303,950		73,088	59,134	1.55	75.6
1981	estimate	6,335,743		73,255	59,863	1.54	75.8
1982	estimate	6,373,370		74,185	59,249	1.55	76.2
1983	estimate	6,410,238		73,400	60,912	1.52	76.2
1984	estimate	6,428,384		74,186	58,646	1.52	76.8
1985	estimate	6,456,460		74,271	59,676	1.51	76.9
1986	estimate	6,485,453		75,630	60,280	1.53	77.0
1987	estimate	6,524,047		76,089	59,716	1.52	77.3
1988	estimate	6,567,498		79,489	60,802	1.56	77.4
1989	estimate	6,620,788		80,581	61,014	1.56	77.6
1990	estimate	6,674,789		82,303	63,955	1.58	77.4
1991	estimate	6,751,557		83,817	62,783	1.58	77.7
1992	estimate	6,842,328		85,929	62,495	1.57	77.9
1993	estimate	6,907,773		83,142	62,754	1.51	78.2
1994	estimate	6,968,439		82,273	62,244	1.49	78.5
1995	estimate	7,018,736		81,735	63,600	1.48	78.6
1996	estimate	7,062,219		82,427	62,970	1.50	79.0
1997	estimate	7,081,548		80,260	63,092	1.48	79.2
1998	estimate	7,096,777		78,545	62,833	1.47	79.5
1999	estimate	7,123,805		77,882	62,856	1.48	79.7
2000	estimate	7,164,437		77,396	62,722	1.49	79.8
2001	estimate	7,203,576		71,686	61,478	1.39	80.3
2002	estimate	7,249,205		71,363	61,918	1.38	80.4
2003	estimate	7,308,299		71,095	63,366	1.38	80.5
2004	estimate	7,358,595		72,160	60,441	1.41	81.0
2005	estimate	7,409,794		72,245	61,387	1.42	81.2
2006	estimate	7,453,852		72,600	60,598	1.43	81.5
2007	estimate	7,503,166		73,400	61,444	1.45	81.7
2008	estimate	7,587,596		75,325	61,489	1.48	82.0
2009	estimate	7,695,860		77,128	62,879	1.49	82.0
2010	estimate	7,779,430		79,172	62,925	1.52	82.3
2011	estimate	7,872,077		79,714	62,312	1.51	82.6
2012	estimate	7,956,666		81,027	64,348	1.52	82.6
2013	estimate	8,041,187		81,688	65,477	1.51	82.7
2014	estimate	8,141,217		84,045	64,133	1.53	83.1
2015	estimate	8,239,254		85,476	67,991	1.54	82.8
2016	estimate	8,328,614		86,752	65,189	1.54	83.5
2017	estimate	8,421,188		86,532	67,304	1.52	83.4
2018	estimate	8,486,068		86,891	67,599	1.51	83.6
2019	estimate	8,546,621		85,393	68,100	1.48	83.8
2020	estimate	8,608,427		85,214	76,427	1.47	83.1
2021	estimate	8,672,736		89,352	71,444	1.53	83.7
2022	estimate	8,741,311		81,859	76,534	1.40	83.2
2023	estimate	8,843,053		83,702	73,788	1.43	84.0
2024	estimate	8,898,069		82,864	75,143	1.44	84.1
2025	projection	8,945,893	8.9–9.0 million	81,819	76,041	1.44	84.2
2026	projection	8,988,922	8.9–9.1 million	80,644	76,989	1.45	84.4
2027	projection	9,026,674	8.9–9.2 million	79,354	77,960	1.45	84.5
2028	projection	9,061,137	8.8–9.3 million	78,013	79,031	1.45	84.6
2029	projection	9,091,889	8.8–9.4 million	76,751	80,144	1.45	84.8
2030	projection	9,118,018	8.7–9.5 million	75,729	81,230	1.46	84.9
2031	projection	9,142,567	8.7–9.6 million	75,016	82,413	1.47	85.0
2032	projection	9,165,477	8.6–9.7 million	74,453	83,621	1.47	85.2
2033	projection	9,183,915	8.6–9.8 million	74,032	84,945	1.47	85.3
2034	projection	9,200,883	8.5–9.9 million	73,845	86,273	1.48	85.4
2035	projection	9,217,534	8.4–10.0 million	73,926	87,494	1.48	85.5
2036	projection	9,230,916	8.4–10.1 million	74,269	88,753	1.48	85.7
2037	projection	9,242,579	8.3–10.2 million	74,776	89,941	1.49	85.8
2038	projection	9,253,226	8.2–10.3 million	75,226	91,124	1.49	85.9
2039	projection	9,262,073	8.2–10.4 million	75,804	92,388	1.49	86.0
2040	projection	9,270,648	8.1–10.5 million	76,513	93,584	1.49	86.1
2041	projection	9,281,709	8.0–10.6 million	77,180	94,805	1.50	86.3
2042	projection	9,288,577	8.0–10.7 million	78,021	96,017	1.50	86.4
2043	projection	9,298,413	7.9–10.8 million	78,859	97,262	1.50	86.5
2044	projection	9,305,714	7.8–10.9 million	79,387	98,573	1.51	86.6
2045	projection	9,312,633	7.7–11.1 million	80,007	99,813	1.51	86.7
2046	projection	9,318,363	7.6–11.2 million	80,512	101,222	1.51	86.8
2047	projection	9,324,397	7.5–11.3 million	80,858	102,716	1.51	87.0
2048	projection	9,331,343	7.4–11.4 million	81,208	104,132	1.52	87.1
2049	projection	9,338,252	7.4–11.5 million	81,477	105,761	1.52	87.2
2050	projection	9,341,672	7.3–11.6 million	81,641	107,222	1.52	87.3
2051	projection	9,343,500	7.2–11.8 million	81,610	108,741	1.52	87.4
2052	projection	9,343,523	7.1–11.9 million	81,475	110,146	1.53	87.5
2053	projection	9,343,495	7.0–12.0 million	81,200	111,479	1.53	87.7
2054	projection	9,338,435	6.9–12.1 million	80,841	112,756	1.53	87.8
2055	projection	9,331,145	6.9–12.2 million	80,392	113,881	1.53	87.9
2056	projection	9,322,797	6.8–12.3 million	79,861	114,866	1.53	88.0
2057	projection	9,315,654	6.7–12.4 million	79,363	115,604	1.53	88.1
2058	projection	9,310,069	6.6–12.4 million	78,831	116,026	1.53	88.2
2059	projection	9,301,850	6.5–12.6 million	78,383	116,287	1.53	88.3
2060	projection	9,291,652	6.4–12.7 million	77,827	116,475	1.53	88.5
2061	projection	9,282,874	6.3–12.8 million	77,306	116,413	1.53	88.5
2062	projection	9,271,237	6.2–13.0 million	76,984	116,087	1.53	88.7
2063	projection	9,260,549	6.1–13.0 million	76,681	115,691	1.54	88.8
2064	projection	9,250,640	6.0–13.1 million	76,369	115,278	1.54	88.9
2065	projection	9,239,839	5.9–13.2 million	76,154	114,729	1.54	89.0
2066	projection	9,227,957	5.8–13.2 million	76,005	114,222	1.54	89.1
2067	projection	9,216,382	5.7–13.3 million	75,965	113,658	1.54	89.2
2068	projection	9,209,065	5.6–13.4 million	76,177	113,386	1.54	89.3
2069	projection	9,200,765	5.6–13.5 million	76,267	112,978	1.54	89.4
2070	projection	9,192,770	5.5–13.6 million	76,581	112,769	1.55	89.5
2071	projection	9,181,970	5.5–13.7 million	76,768	112,576	1.55	89.7
2072	projection	9,172,358	5.4–13.8 million	77,015	112,536	1.55	89.8
2073	projection	9,164,705	5.3–13.9 million	77,498	112,368	1.55	89.9
2074	projection	9,155,828	5.2–14.0 million	77,813	112,430	1.55	90.0
2075	projection	9,145,254	5.2–14.2 million	78,130	112,315	1.55	90.1
2076	projection	9,139,815	5.1–14.3 million	78,613	112,277	1.55	90.2
2077	projection	9,134,926	5.0–14.4 million	79,032	112,186	1.55	90.3
2078	projection	9,127,366	4.9–14.4 million	79,353	111,934	1.56	90.4
2079	projection	9,120,717	4.7–14.5 million	79,579	111,588	1.56	90.5
2080	projection	9,113,361	4.6–14.6 million	79,700	111,212	1.56	90.6
2081	projection	9,107,028	4.5–14.7 million	79,835	110,620	1.56	90.8
2082	projection	9,100,734	4.5–14.8 million	79,861	109,900	1.56	90.9
2083	projection	9,095,016	4.4–14.9 million	79,837	109,049	1.56	91.0
2084	projection	9,090,150	4.3–15.0 million	79,788	108,073	1.56	91.1
2085	projection	9,085,945	4.2–15.1 million	79,777	106,881	1.56	91.2
2086	projection	9,081,762	4.1–15.2 million	79,637	105,624	1.56	91.3
2087	projection	9,080,052	4.1–15.3 million	79,573	104,366	1.57	91.4
2088	projection	9,080,387	4.0–15.3 million	79,446	102,828	1.57	91.5
2089	projection	9,079,055	3.9–15.4 million	79,127	101,526	1.57	91.6
2090	projection	9,079,418	3.8–15.6 million	78,870	100,247	1.57	91.7
2091	projection	9,081,417	3.8–15.8 million	78,441	98,810	1.57	91.8
2092	projection	9,084,319	3.7–16.0 million	78,161	97,593	1.57	92.0
2093	projection	9,086,878	3.7–16.1 million	77,850	96,580	1.57	92.1
2094	projection	9,089,272	3.6–16.2 million	77,552	95,689	1.57	92.2
2095	projection	9,093,602	3.5–16.3 million	77,380	95,100	1.57	92.3
2096	projection	9,099,056	3.4–16.5 million	77,115	94,585	1.57	92.4
2097	projection	9,102,742	3.4–16.7 million	76,949	94,446	1.57	92.5
2098	projection	9,110,035	3.3–16.8 million	76,870	94,366	1.57	92.6
2099	projection	9,116,322	3.2–16.9 million	76,828	94,429	1.57	92.7
2100	projection	9,124,053	3.1–17.0 million	76,907	94,941	1.58	92.8

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

Switzerland: population by single year of age, mid-2026
Age	Male	Female
0	41,952	39,946
1	42,927	40,902
2	43,680	41,622
3	43,694	41,630
4	45,070	42,927
5	46,190	43,748
6	45,789	43,427
7	46,422	44,208
8	46,921	44,566
9	47,163	44,955
10	47,446	44,988
11	47,326	44,597
12	46,683	44,131
13	46,468	43,770
14	46,410	43,724
15	46,224	44,097
16	46,312	44,204
17	46,441	43,854
18	46,433	43,969
19	46,509	44,162
20	47,022	44,528
21	47,344	45,046
22	47,387	45,133
23	47,854	45,166
24	48,240	45,279
25	49,484	46,256
26	50,873	47,446
27	51,427	48,176
28	52,748	49,576
29	54,290	51,415
30	55,302	52,968
31	56,499	54,376
32	58,436	56,372
33	60,835	59,004
34	62,974	61,109
35	64,286	62,384
36	64,676	63,132
37	65,001	63,684
38	64,969	63,464
39	64,547	63,148
40	64,574	63,499
41	64,562	63,315
42	64,312	62,891
43	64,347	63,176
44	64,448	63,408
45	64,110	62,927
46	62,951	62,053
47	61,446	60,759
48	60,870	60,090
49	60,170	59,846
50	59,516	59,450
51	60,044	59,506
52	60,540	60,056
53	61,285	60,833
54	62,730	62,362
55	63,596	63,513
56	64,512	64,506
57	65,566	65,727
58	66,227	66,129
59	66,918	66,398
60	67,444	66,434
61	67,547	66,530
62	66,162	65,668
63	63,253	62,963
64	59,974	60,245
65	56,978	57,986
66	54,524	55,886
67	51,954	53,389
68	49,555	51,082
69	47,244	49,146
70	44,486	47,152
71	41,841	45,585
72	39,712	44,138
73	38,211	43,015
74	36,788	41,684
75	35,976	40,962
76	35,282	40,711
77	34,183	40,150
78	33,236	39,436
79	32,055	38,300
80	30,338	36,503
81	28,194	34,619
82	25,955	32,998
83	23,571	30,582
84	20,838	27,836
85	17,600	24,919
86	15,072	22,381
87	13,264	20,325
88	11,372	18,094
89	9,587	16,071
90	8,034	14,228
91	6,544	12,231
92	5,052	10,181
93	3,840	8,291
94	2,875	6,576
95	2,076	5,099
96	1,445	3,818
97	960	2,705
98	609	1,832
99	373	1,220
100+	479	1,838

CHE · 1950–2100 · every age, every year

Switzerland, 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.

CHE · ages 15–64

Who does the work in Switzerland

On the UN's projection, Switzerland will have the most working-age people it ever has in 2024: 5,801,980 people aged 15–64. In 2023 it had 5,799,360.

100 aged 15–64

23 children

30 aged 65+

aged 15–64 children under 15 aged 65 and over

How to read this: the orange squares are 100 people aged 15–64 in 2023, and the rows below are how many children (teal) and how many people aged 65 or older (violet) lived alongside them.

Fewer than 50 dependants live alongside every 100 people aged 15–64 in 39 years: 1950–1951 and 1981–2017.

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

CHE · arrivals minus departures

Who arrives in Switzerland, and who leaves

In 2020–2025 Switzerland gains 55,733 people a year: everyone who arrives, minus everyone who leaves. The age at which that happens most is 20–24, at 8,158 a year more arriving than leaving.

one square = 1,000 people a year

020406080+

more arrive than leave more leave than arrive

How to read this: left to right is age, from babies to 100. Blue squares above the line are ages at which more people arrive than leave; orange squares below it, ages at which more leave than arrive. These are the UN's projection for 2020–2025. There is no record of migration by age before 2020.

In the years that were counted, 1950–2023, the most it gained in one year was 101,278 (1961) and the most it lost was 58,187 (1975).

In 2024, 2,773,840 people living in Switzerland had been born in another country, 31 of every 100 people there, against 19 in 1990.

How migration works everywhere

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

Who has the babies in Switzerland

Of every 100 babies born in Switzerland in 2023, 68 a mother aged 20 to 34 and 32 a mother aged 35 or older. In 1950 it was 3 under 20 and 19 aged 35 or older.

1950
3 · 78 · 19

2023
0 · 68 · 32

2050 · projected
1 · 70 · 29

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

How to read this: each block is 100 babies born in that year, one square each, coloured by how old the mother was. The numbers under a block are the three groups, youngest mothers first.

Babies born, 2023: 83,702
Average age when women have a baby: 32.3 years; 29.5 in 1950
Babies a year per 1,000 girls aged 15–19: 2; 13 in 1950

Babies by the mother's age, 1950–2100

Babies born in Switzerland by the mother's age
Mother's age	1950	1975	2000	2023	2050 projected	2100 projected
10–14	5	8	3	1	1	1
15–19	2,162	3,471	1,192	308	330	357
20–24	18,464	22,433	9,494	4,333	5,032	5,097
25–29	28,658	31,166	24,203	18,698	20,213	19,127
30–34	19,162	15,726	28,558	33,914	32,187	29,583
35–39	11,640	4,888	12,131	21,267	19,283	18,168
40–44	4,039	1,141	1,746	4,772	4,243	4,187
45–49	263	103	61	406	350	384
50–54	0	0	8	3	2	3
All babies	84,393	78,936	77,396	83,702	81,641	76,907

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

CHE · healthy years · 2021

Years in good health in Switzerland

Of the 83.3 years a baby born in Switzerland in 2021 could expect, about 71.1 would be lived in full health (95% range 70.4–71.9). That leaves 12.2 years in less than full health, more than the world's 9.5: a longer life usually brings a longer stretch of illness near its end.

Women

71.3 in full health, 13.8 not: 85.1 years

Men

70.9 in full health, 10.6 not: 81.5 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: 71.3 healthy years of 85.1. Men: 70.9 of 81.5.

CHE · forced from home · end of 2025

Displacement in Switzerland

At the end of 2025, Switzerland was hosting 225,326 people who had crossed a border into it, about 25 of every 1,000 people living there.

hosted from abroad225,326
Switzerland nationals abroad39

stayed inside their own country crossed a border

How to read this: each square is 5,000 people, so the rows can be compared with one another. The last row is people from Switzerland living in another country, wherever they are. An outlined square means fewer people than one square stands for.

In 2025, 23,396 people asked for asylum in Switzerland for the first time; 16 people from Switzerland asked for asylum in another country. Who asks for asylum, and who is given it

How the world's displacement is counted

CHE · of every 100 people

How people live in Switzerland

Of every 100 people in Switzerland in 2025, 32 lived in a city, 45 in a town or suburb and 23 in the countryside.

cities towns and suburbs rural areas

Nearly everyone has electricity at home (2024). 2.7 of every 100 do not use the internet (2024).

How to read this: 100 squares, one for every 100th person, coloured by where they live, as the key says. The same rule is used in every country.

How the world's people live

CHE · adults 25 and over · 2020

How far people in Switzerland went in school

Of every 100 adults in Switzerland in 2020, 2 never went to school and 81 finished upper secondary or went further.

2 never went to school 5 finished primary 12 finished lower secondary 46 finished upper secondary 35 studied after school

Its people aged 15 to 64 are projected to be most numerous in 2025; the ones who finished upper secondary are most numerous later, in 2075.

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

CHE · cities · 2025

Cities in Switzerland

Switzerland had 17 cities in 2025, home to 2.9 million people. The largest, Zurich, holds 8 of every 100 people in Switzerland.

Zurich689,657
Geneva436,587
Basel333,021
Lausanne293,509
Bern206,716
Lucerne148,486
Winterthur103,553
Lugano93,677
Montreux74,950
Biel/Bienne72,704

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 Switzerland 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.