Photo: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center/Reto Stöckli

Paraguay: population and ages

Paraguay: 7.05 million people on 1 January 2026.

The UN projects growth until 2078, to a peak of 9.29 million, and a decline after that.

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

Population, 1 January 2026
7,054,615
Median age
27.3
Births in 2026
134,692
Deaths in 2026
41,123
Life expectancy at birth
74.2
Children per woman
2.37
Under 15
28.3%
65 and over
6.8%
Population pyramid, Paraguay, 1 January 2026MaleFemale0102030405060708090100+020K20K40K40K60K60K80K80K
Population pyramid, Paraguay, 1 January 2026 Projection

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Population over time

In mid-1950 there were 1.5 million people, so the population is now 4.7 times as large.

The UN projects 135,000 births and 41,100 deaths in 2026, 93,600 more births than deaths.

The UN projects the first year with more deaths than births in 2085.

Population, 1950 to 2100Projected from 202402.5M5M7.5M10M1950197520002025205020752100
2026 Paraguay: 7.1M

Ages

The median age is 27.3, which is 3.8 years below the world’s 31.1.

28% of the people are under 15 and 6.8% are 65 or older (world: 24% and 11%).

The UN projects that people aged 65 and over will outnumber children under 15 from 2069.

Women have 2.4 children on average at today’s rates (world: 2.2), against 6.5 in 1950.

Life expectancy at birth is 74.2 years, above the world’s 73.8. In 1950 it was 58.1.

Median age, 1950 to 2100Projected from 2024010203040501950197520002025205020752100ParaguayWorld
2026 Paraguay: 27World: 31

See how the pyramid changes from 1950 to 2100

Births, deaths and the years ahead

For mid-2050 the UN projects 8.64 million people, 22% more than now, with a median age of 33.5.

Births and deaths per year, 1950 to 2100Projected from 2024050K100K150K1950197520002025205020752100DeathsBirths
2026 Births: 134.7KDeaths: 41.1K

Compare Paraguay with other countries

Development and urbanisation

In 2025, 35% of the people lived in cities, 25% in towns and semi-dense areas and 39% 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 internet81.6%2024
Access to electricity99.8%2024
Adult literacy (ages 15 and over)94.9%2024
99.6%2024
95.9%2024
76.0%2024
Human Development Index0.7562023

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 73.8 years. People who had reached 65 could expect 17.7 more years for women and 14.7 for men.

On 1 January 2026, there are 10.5 people aged 65 or more for every 100 aged 15 to 64. For 2050, the UN projects 18.4.

For 2100 the UN projects a population of 9.05 million, with a 95 percent prediction interval of 4.75 million to 17.2 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, 181,000 international migrants lived here, 2.6% of the population.

In mid-2024, 746,000 people from here lived in other countries.

Largest countries of origin
CountryPeople
Brazil85,207
Argentina65,943
Uruguay3,379
South Korea2,942
Canada2,635
Largest countries of destination
CountryPeople
Argentina517,429
Spain144,878
Brazil53,941
Chile6,354
Canada6,174

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: 9.

CityPopulation 2025
Asunción1,314,663
Ciudad del Este412,725
Encarnacion170,683
Coronel Oviedo112,027
Caaguazú109,926
Pedro Juan Caballero109,096
Concepción91,441
Villarrica77,048
Hernandarias71,283

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

All cities

Data and sources

Paraguay every ten years
YearPopulation (1 July)Median ageBirthsDeathsLife expectancyChildren per woman
19501,504,34415.966,91917,57958.16.49
19601,883,51415.679,90119,89260.26.50
19702,388,02816.088,32922,42562.65.72
19803,053,23517.6110,44425,87764.65.10
19904,035,74818.2138,98226,11867.34.57
20005,100,86819.0137,13627,15870.03.51
20105,737,97222.2129,35829,90272.62.69
20206,603,74025.5138,91740,24972.72.50
20307,407,61828.4131,25444,62174.82.29
20408,087,57230.9126,98254,89476.12.13
20508,640,46433.5124,00866,21477.52.02
20609,039,00436.4115,87477,02179.01.94
20709,245,16438.8109,25089,31180.41.88
20809,284,17640.6103,48398,49981.71.84
20909,209,81842.496,551101,12083.01.81
21009,047,98944.189,950103,74384.21.78

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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