Photo: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center/Reto Stöckli

Samoa: population and ages

Samoa: 220,000 people on 1 January 2026.

The UN projects growth until at least 2100, to 384,000.

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

Population, 1 January 2026
219,916
Median age
19.8
Births in 2026
5,373
Deaths in 2026
1,368
Life expectancy at birth
72.1
Children per woman
3.70
Under 15
37.8%
65 and over
6.2%
Population pyramid, Samoa, 1 January 2026MaleFemale0102030405060708090100+02K2K4K4K
Population pyramid, Samoa, 1 January 2026 Projection

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Population over time

In mid-1950 there were 88,300 people, so the population is now 2.5 times as large.

The UN projects 5,370 births and 1,370 deaths in 2026, 4,010 more births than deaths.

More people leave than move in: net migration in 2026 is projected at minus 2,790.

Population, 1950 to 2100Projected from 20240100K200K300K400K1950197520002025205020752100
2026 Samoa: 220.5K

Ages

The median age is 19.8, which is 11.3 years below the world’s 31.1.

38% of the people are under 15 and 6.2% are 65 or older (world: 24% and 11%).

In the UN projection, children under 15 outnumber people aged 65 and over in every year to 2100.

Women have 3.7 children on average at today’s rates (world: 2.2), against 7.6 in 1950.

Life expectancy at birth is 72.1 years, below the world’s 73.8. In 1950 it was 49.2.

Median age, 1950 to 2100Projected from 2024010203040501950197520002025205020752100WorldSamoa
2026 Samoa: 20World: 31

See how the pyramid changes from 1950 to 2100

Births, deaths and the years ahead

For mid-2050 the UN projects 273,000 people, 24% more than now, with a median age of 24.0.

Births and deaths per year, 1950 to 2100Projected from 202402K4K6K8K1950197520002025205020752100BirthsDeaths
2026 Births: 5.4KDeaths: 1.4K

Compare Samoa with other countries

Development and urbanisation

In 2025, 0% of the people lived in cities, 58% in towns and semi-dense areas and 42% in rural areas. For 2050 the UN projects 23% 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 internet21.2%2014
Access to electricity100.0%2024
Adult literacy (ages 15 and over)98.0%2019
99.4%2024
97.1%2024
65.0%2024
Human Development Index0.7082023

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 71.7 years. People who had reached 65 could expect 16.0 more years for women and 13.4 for men.

On 1 January 2026, there are 11.0 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 384,000, with a 95 percent prediction interval of 75,900 to 1.7 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, 3,840 international migrants lived here, 1.8% of the population.

In mid-2024, 119,000 people from here lived in other countries.

Largest countries of origin
CountryPeople
American Samoa1,250
New Zealand1,164
United States284
Australia258
Fiji105
Largest countries of destination
CountryPeople
New Zealand63,075
Australia38,964
American Samoa15,931
Greece483
Fiji308

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

No city of 50,000 people or more here by the UN definition.

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

All cities

Data and sources

Samoa every ten years
YearPopulation (1 July)Median ageBirthsDeathsLife expectancyChildren per woman
195088,28014.74,7181,45249.27.55
1960112,49014.05,7361,43755.27.78
1970140,40013.55,7971,23160.47.34
1980164,32215.35,7631,09165.05.86
1990169,04217.45,7681,00967.85.01
2000181,68518.85,82497070.84.52
2010193,02319.75,8941,11671.54.52
2020211,94420.45,8191,37770.74.00
2030225,97120.35,5251,43472.63.54
2040247,19622.56,3841,61973.93.17
2050272,72624.06,0161,74375.22.86
2060295,76425.55,8101,80376.52.63
2070322,07028.25,9461,90677.82.43
2080348,03631.25,5632,15179.12.27
2090368,46533.95,2882,61180.42.15
2100383,55736.15,1323,21181.72.06

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).

All countries and areas