Photo: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center/Reto Stöckli

Greece: population and ages

Greece: 9.92 million people on 1 January 2026.

The population peaked in 2010 at 11.1 million and is now 11% below that peak.

Figures for 2026 are UN projections (medium variant). Estimates end in 2023.

Population, 1 January 2026
9,918,577
Median age
47.1
Births in 2026
67,361
Deaths in 2026
124,937
Life expectancy at birth
82.4
Children per woman
1.34
Under 15
12.7%
65 and over
24.6%
Population pyramid, Greece, 1 January 2026MaleFemale0102030405060708090100+050K50K100K100K
Population pyramid, Greece, 1 January 2026 Projection

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Population over time

In mid-1950 there were 7.65 million people, so the population is now 1.3 times as large.

The UN projects 67,400 births and 125,000 deaths in 2026, 57,600 more deaths than births.

Deaths have outnumbered births every year since 2011.

More people move in than leave: net migration in 2026 is projected at plus 14,600.

Population, 1950 to 2100Projected from 202402M4M6M8M10M12M1950197520002025205020752100
2026 Greece: 9.9M

Ages

The median age is 47.1, which is 16.0 years above the world’s 31.1.

13% of the people are under 15 and 25% are 65 or older (world: 24% and 11%).

People aged 65 and over have outnumbered children under 15 since 1999.

Women have 1.3 children on average at today’s rates (world: 2.2), against 2.6 in 1950.

Life expectancy at birth is 82.4 years, above the world’s 73.8. In 1950 it was 66.2.

Median age, 1950 to 2100Projected from 202402040601950197520002025205020752100GreeceWorld
2026 Greece: 47World: 31

See how the pyramid changes from 1950 to 2100

Births, deaths and the years ahead

For mid-2050 the UN projects 8.81 million people, 11% fewer than now, with a median age of 49.9.

Births and deaths per year, 1950 to 2100Projected from 2024050K100K150K200K1950197520002025205020752100DeathsBirths
2026 Births: 67.4KDeaths: 124.9K

Compare Greece with other countries

Development and urbanisation

In 2025, 46% of the people lived in cities, 22% in towns and semi-dense areas and 32% in rural areas. For 2050 the UN projects 49% in cities.

Degree of urbanisation: one rule for every country, a city has at least 50,000 people at 1,500 or more per km². National definitions of “urban” differ.

IndicatorLatest valueYear
People using the internet86.3%2024
Access to electricity100.0%2024
Adult literacy (ages 15 and over)93.9%2009
100.0%2024
99.0%2024
100.0%2024
Human Development Index0.9082023

Each value is the latest one published, with the year it refers to. Countries publish in different years. Sources: World Bank, World Development Indicators (ITU, SDG 7.1.1, UNESCO UIS), UNDP, Human Development Report, UN, World Urbanization Prospects 2025.

Longevity, ageing and the future

By the death rates of 2023, life expectancy at birth was 81.9 years. People who had reached 65 could expect 21.4 more years for women and 18.2 for men.

On 1 January 2026, there are 39.2 people aged 65 or more for every 100 aged 15 to 64. For 2050, the UN projects 64.9.

For 2100 the UN projects a population of 6.28 million, with a 95 percent prediction interval of 1.61 million to 12 million.

Life expectancy at birth is a period measure. It sums up the death rates of one year and is not a forecast of how long the babies born that year will live.

Sources: World Population Prospects 2024, life tables, probabilistic projections, UN DESA Population Division (CC BY 3.0 IGO).

International migrants

In mid-2024, 1.42 million international migrants lived here, 14.2% of the population.

In mid-2024, 780,000 people from here lived in other countries.

Largest countries of origin
CountryPeople
Albania474,441
Germany123,912
Georgia90,365
Bulgaria78,992
Russia58,726
Largest countries of destination
CountryPeople
Germany242,582
United States130,822
Australia89,351
Canada50,296
Türkiye31,548

Counted by country of birth. A migrant stock counts people living outside their country at mid-year, not journeys or yearly moves. Sources: International Migrant Stock 2024, UN DESA Population Division (CC BY 3.0 IGO).

Cities

Cities of 50,000 people or more here, by the UN degree of urbanisation: 8.

CityPopulation 2025
Athína (Athens)3,101,979
Thessaloniki749,840
Heraklion155,817
Patras149,900
Larissa120,704
Volos100,418
Ioannina89,505
Chania65,689

Sources: World Urbanization Prospects 2025, UN DESA Population Division (CC BY 3.0 IGO).

All cities

Data and sources

Greece every ten years
YearPopulation (1 July)Median ageBirthsDeathsLife expectancyChildren per woman
19507,651,07924.6155,66971,82466.22.57
19608,384,49227.5166,51962,31270.52.29
19708,747,77632.3146,09273,90172.72.44
19809,653,41432.8151,87785,98974.52.30
199010,258,48735.0108,43391,50977.31.47
200010,782,63537.0106,714104,96678.41.33
201011,124,67040.3114,952110,51480.61.48
202010,699,36944.384,746122,91381.51.39
20309,721,98448.565,807122,89883.11.36
20409,275,61350.471,399122,70484.61.39
20508,812,07049.967,181126,81385.81.41
20608,203,17050.455,740128,35187.01.44
20707,550,90051.654,456119,63888.21.46
20807,040,43251.154,420100,27589.31.47
20906,666,80351.148,14388,06390.31.48
21006,275,57652.343,98688,96191.41.50

Rows from 2024 on are UN projections (medium variant), shown in italics.

The UN estimates every country and area within its present borders for every year since 1950, also for years before it became independent or took its present shape. Figures for earlier years therefore describe the people who lived on today’s territory.

Sources: World Population Prospects 2024, UN DESA Population Division (CC BY 3.0 IGO).

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