Japan population

Japan: 123 million people in 2025 (123,366,734), 12th of 217 countries and areas — and 105 million projected for 2050.

Where it stands

In 2025 Japan has 123,366,734 people, which is 1.51% of the 8.19 billion counted across the 217 countries and areas on this site. That puts it 12th by population, behind Mexico and ahead of Egypt.

Since 1960

In 1960 the figure was 93,216,000. Since then the population has grown 1.32×, an average of 0.43% a year upward. It has not yet doubled since then.

The population peaked in 2010 at 128,070,000, and it has fallen 3.7% since. By 2050 the projected total is 105,052,904, 14.8% below the 2025 figure.

The ranking in 2050

In 2050 the projected rank is 17th, down 5 places from 12th. Rankings move when other countries grow faster or slower, not only when Japan changes.

People and land

Japan covers 364,569 km² of land, so 2025 density is 338 people per km² — 35th most crowded of 216 places with an area figure. At that density a square 10 km on a side holds about 33,839 people.

The fertility rate was 1.15 births per woman in 2024, below the roughly 2.1 needed to keep a population steady without migration; life expectancy at birth was 84 years (2024); 11.2% of people were under 15 and 30% were 65 or older (2025); 92% of the population lived in cities. These shape the curve above: a young population keeps growing after fertility falls, an old one starts shrinking sooner.

Its nearest neighbours in the ranking are Mexico just above, with 132 million (1.07× as many), and Egypt just below, with 118 million (1.04× as many as Egypt has).

How the numbers are taken. Total population from the World Bank's population estimates and projections (built from United Nations and national statistics). Values to 2025 are estimates; 2026–2050 are projections that continue current fertility, mortality and migration trends. Sources and limits.

Put it next to another country

Read more — Japan's numbers, method, cautions and questions

What this page covers

This page follows one country, Japan, through the World Bank population series from 1960 to 2050. It shows total residents only: no regional breakdown, no foreign-resident split and no statement about the economy. The chart above is the whole curve, the paragraphs summarise it, and the link below the chart opens the comparer so you can put Japan beside any other country in the data.

An unusual curve

Japan's series starts at 93.2 million in 1960, climbs to a peak of 128,070,000 in 2010, and then falls. By 2025 the estimate is 123,366,734, which is 3.7% below the peak, and the projection reaches 105,052,904 in 2050. Of the 217 entries here, 63 are projected to be smaller in 2050 than in 2025, so Japan is not alone, but it reached its peak earlier than almost every large country in the list.

Why the series bends

The indicators on this site show a fertility rate of 1.15 births per woman (2024), well under the roughly 2.1 that keeps a population steady without migration. Life expectancy at birth is 84 years, and 30% of people are aged 65 or over against 11.2% under 15. Few births and long lives together mean that deaths exceed births, and the age structure makes that gap persist for decades even if the birth rate rose. About 92% of the population lives in urban areas, and Japan has 364,569 km² of land, giving a density of 338 people per km² in 2025.

How the figures are produced

The population series is the World Bank's "Population, total" (SP.POP.TOTL) from its population estimates and projections database, which is built from United Nations and national statistics. Values to 2025 are estimates and the later ones are projections that continue current fertility, mortality and migration trends. The projection is not a forecast of events, and a change in immigration policy or in the birth rate would change the 2050 figure. Area, fertility, life expectancy and age shares come from separate World Bank indicators and are the latest year available, which is not always 2025. Licence and indicator codes are on the sources page.

Reading it with care

The figures count residents. They are not a count of Japanese citizens, and the series does not separate foreign residents.
A smaller total does not by itself say anything about output per person, wages or the size of the economy.
The decline is steady in the series, but projections are most reliable in the near years and least reliable at the far end.

Neighbours in the ranking

In 2025 Japan sits 12th in the list, between Mexico (132 million) and Egypt (118 million). By 2050 the projected position is 17th: countries below it are projected to grow past it while its own total falls. This is a ranking effect as much as a Japanese one, because a country's place depends on how fast the others move.

What to look at on the chart

Read the chart in three parts. The rising section to 2010 shows the postwar growth that the paragraphs above describe. The turn at 2010 is the single most useful point on the page, since it marks the first year in the series in which the total began to fall. The final section, which runs from 2026 to 2050, is the projection and should be read as a direction rather than a date. If you want to see Japan against a country that moves the other way, open the comparer from the button under the chart and choose a country with a young population; the crowds make the contrast clear.

Who this page is for

It suits a student writing about ageing societies, a reader checking a news claim that Japan's population is shrinking, or anyone who wants the size of Japan in context. It does not replace national statistics for planning: a government office, a researcher or a business needs regional and age-specific data that this page does not carry. The totals here are suitable for scale and trend, and the indicators beside them are suitable for explaining why the trend looks as it does.

Because every other country page on the site is built from the same series, the choice of Japan on this page also means the comparisons are consistent: a ratio given here for Japan against another country matches what the comparer shows for the same year. Nothing about the page depends on your browser or location, and nothing you view is recorded.

Questions

When did Japan's population peak?

In this series, in 2010, at 128,070,000.

Where does Japan rank?

12th of 217 in 2025 and 17th in 2050.

How do I compare Japan with its neighbours?

Use the pair links further down this page, or open the comparer and choose another country; the year slider moves both crowds together.