What is the difference in population between China, People's Republic of and India?

41.97 million, with India ahead.

How many years of comparable data are there for China, People's Republic of and India?

65 years are reported by both, from 1960 to 2024.

Where does this data come from?

International Monetary Fund, published as Population. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

China, People's Republic of vs India: Population

China, People's Republic of

1.41 billion

in 2024

India

1.45 billion

in 2024

China, People's Republic of rank

2nd

India rank

1st

Population over time

China, People's Republic of
India

How they compare

India currently reports 1.45 billion against 1.41 billion in China, People's Republic of, a difference of 41.97 million.

The two have swapped places 1 time across 65 shared years of data; in 1960 it was China, People's Republic of ahead.

China, People's Republic of ranks 2nd and India ranks 1st of 186 countries.

Across the 7 decades both report, China, People's Republic of averaged higher in 6 and India in 1.

Head to head by decade

Decade	China, People's Republic of	India	Difference	Ahead
1960s	714.95 million	484.63 million	230.32 million	China, People's Republic of
1970s	901.94 million	605.98 million	295.96 million	China, People's Republic of
1980s	1.05 billion	764.93 million	281.68 million	China, People's Republic of
1990s	1.20 billion	951.12 million	245.72 million	China, People's Republic of
2000s	1.30 billion	1.14 billion	155.00 million	China, People's Republic of
2010s	1.37 billion	1.32 billion	55.96 million	China, People's Republic of
2020s	1.41 billion	1.43 billion	15.19 million	India

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher population, China, People's Republic of or India?: India, at 1.45 billion against 1.41 billion in China, People's Republic of as of 2024.
What is the difference in population between China, People's Republic of and India?: 41.97 million, with India ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for China, People's Republic of and India?: 65 years are reported by both, from 1960 to 2024.
How do China, People's Republic of and India rank globally for population?: China, People's Republic of ranks 2nd and India ranks 1st of 186 countries.
Where does this data come from?: International Monetary Fund, published as Population. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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China, People's Republic of vs India: Population. Statizoid, drawing on International Monetary Fund. Retrieved 18 August 2026, from https://gender.statizoid.com/compare/population-5/china/india/

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About this data

Indicator: Population
Source: International Monetary Fund
Licence: IMF Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage: 186 places, 12,090 data points, 1960–2024
Last refreshed: 18 August 2026

Data on Gender-disaggregated on selected population characteristics.