Population in China (People’s Republic of)

China (People’s Republic of): Population was 1.41 billion in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
1.41 billion
Change on year
down 0.1%
World rank
2nd
of 186 countries
All-time high
1.41 billion
in 2021
All-time low
660.33 million
in 1961
Years of data
65
1960–2024

Population in China (People’s Republic of), 1960–2024

0500.0M1.0B1.5B196019922024

Source: International Monetary Fund.

Analysis

China (People’s Republic of) recorded 1.41 billion for population in 2024.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.1% on the previous year and up 2.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, population in China (People’s Republic of) peaked at 1.41 billion in 2021 and was at its lowest, 660.33 million, in 1961.

That places China (People’s Republic of) 2nd out of 186 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 65 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 714.95 million 660.33 million 796.02 million 10
1970s 901.94 million 818.32 million 969.00 million 10
1980s 1.05 billion 981.24 million 1.12 billion 10
1990s 1.20 billion 1.14 billion 1.25 billion 10
2000s 1.30 billion 1.26 billion 1.33 billion 10
2010s 1.37 billion 1.34 billion 1.41 billion 10
2020s 1.41 billion 1.41 billion 1.41 billion 5

Countries ranked near China (People’s Republic of)

  1. 1 India 1.45 billion compare
  2. 3 United States 340.11 million compare
  3. 4 Indonesia 283.49 million compare
  4. 5 Pakistan 251.27 million compare

See the full ranking of 186 places →

More gender data for China (People’s Republic of)

All data for China (People’s Republic of) →

Frequently asked questions

What is population in China (People’s Republic of)?
Population in China (People’s Republic of) was 1.41 billion in 2024, according to International Monetary Fund.
What is the highest population recorded in China (People’s Republic of)?
The highest recorded value was 1.41 billion in 2021.
What is the lowest population recorded in China (People’s Republic of)?
The lowest recorded value was 660.33 million in 1961.
How does China (People’s Republic of) rank for population?
China (People’s Republic of) ranks 2nd out of 186 countries with data for 2024.
Is population rising or falling in China (People’s Republic of)?
Over the last ten years it is up 2.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this China (People’s Republic of) data come from?
The figures come from International Monetary Fund, published as part of Population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Population in China (People’s Republic of). Statizoid, drawing on International Monetary Fund. Retrieved 18 August 2026, from https://gender.statizoid.com/stat/population-5/china/

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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

Data on Gender-disaggregated on selected population characteristics.