Photo: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center/Reto Stöckli

Guatemala: population and ages

Guatemala: 18.8 million people on 1 January 2026.

The UN projects growth until 2077, to a peak of 27.2 million, and a decline after that.

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

Population, 1 January 2026
18,828,237
Median age
23.8
Births in 2026
380,396
Deaths in 2026
93,484
Life expectancy at birth
73.0
Children per woman
2.23
Under 15
30.8%
65 and over
5.0%
Population pyramid, Guatemala, 1 January 2026MaleFemale0102030405060708090100+0125K125K250K250K
Population pyramid, Guatemala, 1 January 2026 Projection

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Population over time

In mid-1950 there were 3.1 million people, so the population is now 6.1 times as large.

The UN projects 380,000 births and 93,500 deaths in 2026, 287,000 more births than deaths.

The UN projects the first year with more deaths than births in 2079.

Population, 1950 to 2100Projected from 2024010M20M30M1950197520002025205020752100
2026 Guatemala: 19M

Ages

The median age is 23.8, which is 7.3 years below the world’s 31.1.

31% of the people are under 15 and 5% are 65 or older (world: 24% and 11%).

The UN projects that people aged 65 and over will outnumber children under 15 from 2070.

Women have 2.2 children on average at today’s rates (world: 2.2), against 6.8 in 1950.

Life expectancy at birth is 73.0 years, below the world’s 73.8. In 1950 it was 37.8.

Median age, 1950 to 2100Projected from 2024010203040501950197520002025205020752100GuatemalaWorld
2026 Guatemala: 24World: 31

See how the pyramid changes from 1950 to 2100

Births, deaths and the years ahead

For mid-2050 the UN projects 24.7 million people, 30% more than now, with a median age of 33.0.

Births and deaths per year, 1950 to 2100Projected from 20240100K200K300K400K500K1950197520002025205020752100DeathsBirths
2026 Births: 380.4KDeaths: 93.5K

Compare Guatemala with other countries

Development and urbanisation

In 2025, 31% of the people lived in cities, 44% in towns and semi-dense areas and 25% in rural areas. For 2050 the UN projects 36% 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 internet60.2%2024
Access to electricity90.9%2024
Adult literacy (ages 15 and over)82.1%2024
93.2%2024
71.2%2024
51.0%2024
Human Development Index0.6622023

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 72.6 years. People who had reached 65 could expect 16.8 more years for women and 15.5 for men.

On 1 January 2026, there are 7.8 people aged 65 or more for every 100 aged 15 to 64. For 2050, the UN projects 13.7.

For 2100 the UN projects a population of 25.9 million, with a 95 percent prediction interval of 14.8 million to 44 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, 92,700 international migrants lived here, 0.5% of the population.

In mid-2024, 1.46 million people from here lived in other countries.

Largest countries of origin
CountryPeople
El Salvador22,750
Mexico20,758
United States10,228
Nicaragua10,131
Honduras9,924
Largest countries of destination
CountryPeople
United States1,298,936
Mexico81,012
Belize29,643
Canada18,187
El Salvador9,157

Counted by country of birth. Refugees are included. 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: 31.

CityPopulation 2025
Ciudad de Guatemala (Guatemala City)2,837,708
Quetzaltenango291,105
Cobán229,017
Chimaltenango175,556
Flores146,517
San Pedro Sacatepéquez [San Marcos]115,711
Santa Lucía Cotzumalguapa113,604
Escuintla113,313
Totonicapán112,939
Mazatenango111,597

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

All cities

Data and sources

Guatemala every ten years
YearPopulation (1 July)Median ageBirthsDeathsLife expectancyChildren per woman
19503,097,19816.8157,06780,19637.86.80
19604,063,65415.6197,26476,53845.87.00
19705,396,96615.7242,19786,25048.56.60
19806,900,21216.0300,93682,48155.36.17
19909,024,77316.0359,43879,12561.85.48
200011,697,59216.6406,00173,11167.14.58
201014,500,11218.6403,40778,60369.93.38
202017,357,32521.6382,615101,28070.02.47
203020,067,25325.4380,934102,23573.62.13
204022,626,87029.1368,296128,09475.11.97
205024,670,85733.0342,959158,58276.41.88
206026,157,02036.4323,989198,64477.81.82
207026,991,95439.3302,832248,07579.21.77
208027,127,63741.7281,992293,24980.61.74
209026,695,10543.6263,164320,80581.81.72
210025,912,09144.9245,450328,38883.11.70

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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