Demographics of Poland

The demographics of Poland constitute all demographic features of the population of Poland, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1950	24,824,018	—
1960	29,614,201	+19.3%
1970	32,639,258	+10.2%
1980	35,539,720	+8.9%
1990	37,960,653	+6.8%
2000	38,556,693	+1.6%
2010	38,321,789	−0.6%
2020	37,846,611	−1.2%
Source: United Nations Population Division[1]

The population of Poland, Data of FAO, 1961-2014 ; Number of inhabitants in millions.

Largest cities and towns in Poland (over 20,000 citizens; 2010 data)
Alternative map

Population density in Poland by powiat (county).

According to the 2011 census by the Polish Central Statistical Office (GUS), at the end of 2011 Poland had a population of 38,538,447,[2] which translates into an average population density of 123 people/km² (urban 1105 per 1 km², rural 50 per 1 km²). 61.5% of the Polish population lives in urban areas, a number which is slowly diminishing. Poland is the 37th most populous country in the world (8th in Europe, with 5.4% of the European population). Total population of Poland is almost stagnant (population growth was 0.08%). In 2018, the average life expectancy was 77.9 years; 74.1 for men and 82 for women. Population distribution is uneven. Ethnically, Poland is a very homogeneous country, with 96.7% of population being Polish.

A number of censuses have assessed this data, including a national census in 2002, and a survey by the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights (HFHR), which confirmed there are numerous autochthonous ethnic groups in Poland. Estimates by INTEREG and Eurominority present a similar demographic picture of Poland but they provide estimates only for the most numerous of these ethnic groups.

Like many developed nations, Poland is ageing. In 1950, the median age was 25.8: half of the Polish population was younger, half older. Today it is 38.2. If current trends continue, it may be 51 by 2050.[3] As the population is ageing, it also started to decline in the 1990s mainly due to low birth rates and continued emigration overseas which impacted the local economy; however this has started to change, with the Polish government encouraging citizens to return to Poland with increased wage incentives. The number of children born in Polish families (TFR of 1.31, down from 2 in 1990) is one of the lowest in Central Europe, but has started to increase in recent years.[4][5]

Historical population

Population of Poland 1900-2010

For many centuries, until the end of World War II in 1945, the population of Poland included many significant ethnic minorities.

Twentieth century

The population of Poland decreased by about six million due to the losses sustained during the Holocaust and German occupation during World War II (1939-1945), and Poland became one of the most ethnically homogeneous areas in Europe (next to the populations of Slovakia and the Czech Republic) as a result of radically altered borders and population expulsions at the end of and after the war. The post-war population movements were accompanied by waves of forced migrations ordered by the Soviet and Polish communist authorities, including the transfers of sizable Polish populations (1944–1946) from Poland's pre-war eastern territories which were incorporated into the Soviet Union, the expulsion of ethnic Ukrainians to the USSR (1944–1946), Operation Vistula (1947), and the expulsion of Germans (1945–1950) from former German provinces awarded to Poland.

Recent trends

According to GUS, about 38,325,000 people live in Poland, however, the same report states that the number of residents living in the country all the time is approximately 37,200,000; with 1,125,000 people living abroad for 6 to 7 months or more. It means that the permanent population may be correspondingly smaller.[6]

In the 21st century many Poles migrated following Poland's accession to the European Union in 2004 and the opening of the EU's labor market; with approximately 2 million (primarily young) Poles taking up jobs abroad.[7]

Vital statistics

Total fertility rate by Polish regions in 2014 (Eurostat)

1.4 - 1.5   1.3 - 1.4   < 1.3

[8][9][10]

Total fertility rate from 1800 to 1920

The total fertility rate is the number of children born per woman. It is based on fairly good data for the entire period. Sources: Our World In Data and Gapminder Foundation.[11]

Years	1800	1801	1802	1803	1804	1805	1806	1807	1808	1809	1810[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Poland	6.28	6.26	6.25	6.23	6.22	6.2	6.19	6.17	6.16	6.14	6.12

Years	1811	1812	1813	1814	1815	1816	1817	1818	1819	1820[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Poland	6.11	6.09	6.08	6.06	6.05	6.03	6.03	6.16	6.3	6.03

Years	1821	1822	1823	1824	1825	1826	1827	1828	1829	1830[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Poland	6.3	6.03	5.76	5.49	6.83	6.16	6.3	6.22	6.14	6.06

Years	1831	1832	1833	1834	1835	1836	1837	1838	1839	1840[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Poland	5.98	5.9	6.43	6.83	5.9	6.3	6.57	6.03	6.43	6.57

Years	1841	1842	1843	1844	1845	1846	1847	1848	1849	1850[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Poland	6.16	6.43	6.3	6.03	5.36	5.49	5.09	4.82	5.49	5.63

Years	1851	1852	1853	1854	1855	1856	1857	1858	1859	1860[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Poland	5.63	5.49	5.63	5.36	4.82	5.36	5.76	6.3	6.57	6.57

Years	1861	1862	1863	1864	1865	1866	1867	1868	1869	1870[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Poland	6.43	6.97	6.57	6.2	5.83	5.46	5.09	5.63	5.63	6.16

Years	1871	1872	1873	1874	1875	1876	1877	1878	1879	1880[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Poland	5.76	5.49	5.76	5.76	5.49	5.49	5.23	5.23	5.36	5.23

Years	1881	1882	1883	1884	1885	1886	1887	1888	1889	1890[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Poland	5.09	5.23	5.23	5.09	5.36	5.36	5.36	5.49	5.76	5.63

Years	1891	1892	1893	1894	1895	1896	1897	1898	1899	1900[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Poland	5.63	5.36	5.63	5.9	5.9	5.76	5.63	5.49	5.49	5.49

Years	1901	1902	1903	1904	1905	1906	1907	1908	1909	1910[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Poland	5.36	5.36	5.09	5.09	4.96	5.09	5.09	4.96	4.96	4.82

Years	1911	1912	1913	1914	1915	1916	1917	1918	1919	1920[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Poland	4.69	4.56	4.69	4.82	3.89	3.62	3.22	3.22	4.42	4.69

Vital statistics from 1921 to 1938

Birth and death rates in Poland between 1921 and 1938

[8][9][10]

Year [12]	Average population	Live births	Deaths	Natural change	Crude birth rate (per 1000)	Crude death rate (per 1000)	Natural change (per 1000)	Total fertility rates[fn 1][11]
1921	27,224,000	890,400	568,300	322,100	32.7	20.9	11.8	4.40
1922	27,846,000	983,100	554,600	482,500	35.3	19.9	15.4	4.73
1923	28,480,000	1,014,700	493,800	520,900	35.6	17.3	18.3	4.82
1924	29,007,000	1,000,100	519,200	480,900	34.5	17.9	16.6	4.69
1925	29,475,000	1,036,600	492,200	544,400	35.2	16.7	18.5	4.74
1926	29,906,000	989,100	532,700	456,400	33.1	17.8	15.3	4.44
1927	30,302,000	958,733	525,633	433,100	31.6	17.3	14.3	4.23
1928	30,693,000	990,993	504,207	486,786	32.3	16.4	15.9	4.29
1929	31,084,000	994,101	518,929	475,172	32.0	16.7	15.3	4.26
1930	31,490,000	1,022,811	488,417	534,394	32.5	15.5	17.0	4.33
1931	31,935,000	964,573	493,703	470,870	30.2	15.5	14.7	4.05
1932	32,394,000	934,663	486,548	448,115	28.9	15.0	13.8	3.87
1933	32,823,000	868,675	466,210	402,465	26.5	14.2	12.3	3.55
1934	33,223,000	881,615	479,684	401,931	26.5	14.4	12.1	3.56
1935	33,616,000	876,667	470,998	405,669	26.1	14.0	12.1	3.50
1936	34,020,000	892,320	482,633	409,687	26.2	14.2	12.0	3.51
1937	34,441,000	856,064	481,594	374,470	24.9	14.0	10.9	3.34
1938	34,849,000	849,873	479,602	370,271	24.4	13.8	10.6	3.26

Years	1939	1940	1941	1942	1943	1944	1945[11]
Total Fertility Rate in Poland	3.23	3.21	3.18	3.16	3.13	3.11	3.08

After World War II

[13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18][11][19][20]

	Average population	Live births	Deaths	Natural change	Crude birth rate (per 1000)	Crude death rate (per 1000)	Natural change (per 1000)	Total fertility rates	Life expectancy (males)	Life expectancy (females)	Share of births outside marriage	Immigration	Emigration	Net external migration
1946	23,777,000	570,000	335,000	235,000	24.0	14.1	9.9	3.06
1947	23,970,000	630,000	271,000	359,000	26.3	11.3	15.0	3.51
1948	23,980,000	704,772	268,000	436,772	29.4	11.2	18.2	3.93
1949	24,410,000	725,061	284,000	441,061	29.7	11.6	18.1	3.94
1950	24,824,000	763,108	288,685	474,423	30.7	11.6	19.1	3.71	56.07	61.68
1951	25,271,000	783,597	312,314	471,283	31.0	12.4	18.6	3.75	55.11	60.67
1952	25,753,000	778,962	286,730	492,232	30.2	11.1	19.1	3.67	57.59	63.07
1953	26,255,000	779,000	266,527	512,473	29.7	10.2	19.5	3.61	59.58	65.05
1954	26,761,000	778,054	276,406	501,648	29.1	10.3	18.7	3.58	59.80	65.06
1955	27,281,000	793,847	261,576	532,271	29.1	9.6	19.5	3.61	60.82	66.19
1956	27,815,000	779,835	249,606	530,229	28.0	9.0	19.1	3.61	62.29	67.52
1957	28,310,000	782,319	269,137	513,182	27.6	9.5	18.1	3.49	61.20	66.70
1958	28,770,000	752,600	241,435	511,165	26.2	8.4	17.8	3.36	63.08	68.57
1959	29,240,000	722,928	252,430	470,498	24.7	8.6	16.1	3.22	62.71	68.30
1960	29,561,000	669,485	224,167	445,318	22.6	7.6	15.1	2.98	64.94	70.60
1961	29,965,000	627,624	227,759	399,865	20.9	7.6	13.3	2.83	64.91	70.78
1962	30,324,000	599,505	239,199	360,306	19.8	7.9	11.9	2.72	64.53	70.49
1963	30,691,000	588,235	230,072	358,163	19.2	7.5	11.7	2.70	65.41	71.52
1964	31,161,000	562,855	235,919	326,936	18.1	7.6	10.5	2.57	65.78	71.60
1965	31,496,000	546,362	232,421	313,941	17.3	7.4	10.0	2.52	66.58	72.40
1966	31,698,000	530,307	232,945	297,362	16.7	7.3	9.4	2.33	66.87	72.85
1967	31,944,000	520,383	247,705	272,678	16.3	7.8	8.5	2.30	66.44	72.61
1968	32,426,000	524,174	244,115	280,059	16.2	7.5	8.6	2.24	67.04	73.55
1969	32,555,000	531,135	262,823	268,312	16.3	8.1	8.2	2.20	66.50	73.09
1970	32,526,000	545,973	266,799	279,174	16.8	8.2	8.6	2.22	66.62	73.33	5.0
1971	32,805,000	562,341	283,702	278,639	17.1	8.6	8.5	2.25	66.13	73.25
1972	33,068,000	575,725	265,250	310,475	17.4	8.0	9.4	2.24	67.32	74.17
1973	33,363,000	598,559	277,188	321,371	17.9	8.3	9.6	2.24	67.15	74.30
1974	33,691,000	621,080	277,085	343,995	18.4	8.2	10.2	2.26	67.80	74.64
1975	34,022,000	643,772	296,896	346,876	18.9	8.7	10.2	2.27	67.02	74.26	4.7
1976	34,362,000	670,140	304,057	366,083	19.5	8.8	10.7	2.31	66.92	74.55
1977	34,698,000	662,582	312,956	349,626	19.1	9.0	10.1	2.33	66.49	74.50
1978	35,010,000	666,336	325,104	341,232	19.0	9.3	9.7	2.30	66.36	74.53
1979	35,257,000	688,293	323,048	365,245	19.5	9.2	10.4	2.39	66.79	74.91	4.8
1980	35,578,000	692,798	350,203	342,595	19.5	9.8	9.6	2.42	66.01	74.44
1981	35,902,000	678,696	328,923	349,773	18.9	9.2	9.7	2.34	67.10	75.24
1982	36,227,000	702,351	334,869	367,482	19.4	9.2	10.1	2.38	67.24	75.20
1983	36,571,000	720,756	349,388	371,368	19.7	9.6	10.2	2.41	67.04	75.16
1984	36,914,000	699,041	364,883	334,158	18.9	9.9	9.1	2.36	66.84	74.97
1985	37,203,000	677,576	381,458	296,118	18.2	10.3	8.0	2.33	66.50	74.81	5.0
1986	37,456,000	634,748	376,316	258,432	16.9	10.0	6.9	2.21	66.76	75.13
1987	37,664,000	605,492	378,365	227,127	16.1	10.0	6.0	2.15	66.81	75.20
1988	37,862,000	587,741	370,821	216,920	15.5	9.8	5.7	2.12	67.15	75.67
1989	37,963,000	562,530	381,173	181,357	14.8	10.0	4.8	2.08	66.76	75.45
1990	38,119,000	545,817	390,343	155,474	14.3	10.2	4.1	2.04	66.23	75.24	6.2
1991	38,245,000	547,719	405,716	142,003	14.3	10.6	3.7	2.05	65.88	75.06	6.6
1992	38,365,000	515,214	394,729	120,485	13.4	10.3	3.1	1.91	66.47	75.48	7.2
1993	38,459,000	494,310	392,259	102,051	12.9	10.2	2.7	1.86	67.17	75.81	8.2
1994	38,544,000	481,285	386,398	94,887	12.5	10.0	2.5	1.78	67.50	76.08	9.0
1995	38,588,000	443,109	386,084	57,025	11.5	10.0	1.5	1.65	67.62	76.39	9.5
1996	38,618,000	428,203	385,496	42,707	11.1	10.0	1.1	1.58	68.12	76.57	10.2
1997	38,650,000	412,635	380,201	32,434	10.7	9.8	0.8	1.52	68.45	76.99	11.0
1998	38,666,000	395,619	375,354	20,265	10.2	9.7	0.5	1.44	68.87	77.34	11.6
1999	38,654,000	382,002	381,415	587	9.9	9.9	0.0	1.37	68.83	77.49	11.7
2000	38,649,000	378,348	368,028	10,320	9.8	9.5	0.3	1.35	69.74	78.00	12.1
2001	38,248,000	368,205	363,220	4,985	9.6	9.5	0.1	1.32	70.21	78.38	13.1
2002	38,218,531	353,765	359,486	-5,721	9.3	9.4	-0.1	1.25	70.40	78.80	14.4	6,587	24,532	-17,945
2003	38,190,608	351,072	365,230	-14,158	9.2	9.6	-0.4	1.22	70.50	78.90	15.8	7,048	20,813	-13,765
2004	38,173,835	356,131	363,522	-7,391	9.3	9.5	-0.2	1.23	70.70	79.20	17.1	9,495	18,877	-9,382
2005	38,157,055	364,383	368,285	-3,902	9.5	9.6	-0.1	1.24	70.80	79.40	18.5	9,364	22,242	-12,878
2006	38,125,479	374,244	369,686	4,558	9.8	9.7	0.1	1.27	70.90	79.60	18.9	10,802	46,936	-36,134
2007	38,115,641	387,873	377,226	10,647	10.2	9.9	0.3	1.31	71.00	79.70	19.5	14,995	35,480	-20,485
2008	38,135,876	414,499	379,399	35,100	10.9	10.0	0.9	1.39	71.30	80.00	19.9	15,275	30,140	-14,865
2009	38,167,329	417,589	384,940	32,649	10.9	10.1	0.9	1.40	71.50	80.10	20.2	17,424	18,620	-1,196
2010	38,529,866	413,300	378,478	34,822	10.7	9.8	0.9	1.38	72.10	80.60	20.6	15,246	17,360	-2,114
2011	38,538,447	388,416	375,501	12,915	10.1	9.7	0.3	1.30	72.40	80.90	21.2	15,524	19,858	-4,334
2012	38,533,299	387,858	384,788	3,070	10.1	10.0	0.1	1.30	72.70	81.00	22.3	14,583	21,200	-6,617
2013	38,495,659	369,576	387,312	-17,736	9.6	10.1	-0.5	1.26	73.10	81.10	23.4	12,199	32,103	-19,904
2014	38,478,602	375,160	376,467	-1,307	9.7	9.8	-0.1	1.29	73.80	81.60	24.2	12,330	28,080	-15,750
2015	38,437,239	369,308	394,921	-25,613	9.6	10.3	-0.7	1.29	73.60	81.60	24.6	12,330	28,080	-15,750
2016	38,432,992	382,257	388,009	-5,752	9.9	10.1	-0.2	1.36	73.90	81.90	25.0	13,475	11,970	1,505
2017	38,433,558	401,982	402,852	-870	10.5	10.5	-0.0	1.45	74.00	81.80	24.1	13,324	11,888	1,436
2018	38,411,148	388,178	414,200	-26,022	10.1	10.8	-0.7	1.44	73.80	81.70	26.4	15,461	11,849	3,612
2019	38,382,576	374,954	409,709	-34,755	9.8	10.7	-0.9	1.42	74.1	81.8	25.4	16,909	10,726	6,183
2020	38,268,000	355,000	477,000	-122,000	9.3	12.5	-3.2	1.38						7,000

Current vital statistics

[21]

Number of births from January–October 2019 = 318,700 (10.0‰)

Number of births from January–October 2020 = 302,800 (9.5‰)

Number of deaths from January–October 2019 = 341,300 (10.7‰)

Number of deaths from January–October 2020 = 356,700 (11.2‰)

Natural increase from January–October 2019 = -22,600 (-0.7‰)

Natural increase from January–October 2020 = -53,900 (-1.7‰)

Life expectancy

Period	Life expectancy in Years	Period	Life expectancy in Years
1950–1955	61.4	1985–1990	70.7
1955–1960	65.9	1990–1995	71.2
1960–1965	68.3	1995–2000	72.7
1965–1970	69.8	2000–2005	74.6
1970–1975	70.3	2005–2010	75.6
1975–1980	70.4	2010–2015	77.0
1980–1985	70.7

Source: UN World Population Prospects[22]

Structure of the population

[23][24]

Structure of the population (01.07.2012) (estimates, excluding civilian aliens within the country, but including civilian nationals temporarily outside the country) :

Age group	Male	Female	Total	%
Total	18 651 441	19 882 348	38 533 789	100
0-4	1 058 874	1 005 069	2 063 943	5,36
5-9	945 643	897 723	1 843 366	4,78
10-14	974 509	925 506	1 900 015	4,93
15-19	1 158 367	1 108 267	2 266 634	5,88
20-24	1 394 761	1 341 393	2 736 154	7,10
25-29	1 623 072	1 575 546	3 198 618	8,30
30-34	1 602 736	1 558 622	3 161 358	8,20
35-39	1 470 751	1 432 822	2 903 573	7,54
40-44	1 231 083	1 209 751	2 440 834	6,33
45-49	1 196 548	1 192 952	2 389 500	6,20
50-54	1 369 258	1 414 996	2 784 254	7,23
55-59	1 404 141	1 522 140	2 926 281	7,59
60-64	1 163 935	1 350 684	2 514 619	6,53
65-69	675 573	861 584	1 537 157	3,99
70-74	529 739	776 722	1 306 461	3,39
75-79	424 407	720 249	1 144 656	2,97
80-84	278 428	566 126	844 554	2,19
85-89	115 213	311 388	426 601	1,11
90-94	28 565	91 223	119 788	0,31
95-99	4 614	18 265	22 879	0,06
100+	224	1 320	1 544	<0,01

Age group	Male	Female	Total	Percent
0-14	2 979 026	2 828 298	5 807 324	15,07
15-64	13 615 652	13 707 173	27 322 825	70,91
65+	2 056 763	3 346 877	5 403 640	14,02

Structure of the population (30.06.2015) (estimates) :

Age Group	Male	Female	Total	%
Total	18 607 417	19 847 159	38 454 576	100
0-4	982 639	928 662	1 911 301	4.97
5-9	1 047 830	996 205	2 044 035	5.32
10-14	924 671	877 780	1 802 451	4.69
15-19	1 028 884	979 585	2 008 469	5.22
20-24	1 257 703	1 209 498	2 467 201	6.42
25-29	1 464 438	1 417 040	2 881 478	7.49
30-34	1 647 147	1 602 930	3 250 077	8.45
35-39	1 561 396	1 522 202	3 083 598	8.02
40-44	1 354 899	1 329 476	2 684 375	6.98
45-49	1 166 358	1 160 878	2 327 236	6.05
50-54	1 211 294	1 238 398	2 449 692	6.37
55-59	1 386 303	1 489 816	2 876 119	7.48
60-64	1 256 035	1 443 985	2 700 020	7.0
65-69	917 893	1 147 725	2 065 618	5.37
70-74	501 311	716 224	1 217 535	3.17
75-79	426 059	715 629	1 141 688	2.97
80-84	287 908	573 415	861 323	2.24
85+	184 649	497 711	682 360	1.77

Age group	Male	Female	Total	Percent
0-14	2 955 140	2 802 647	5 757 787	14.97
15-64	13 334 457	13 393 808	26 728 265	69.51
65+	2 317 820	3 650 704	5 968 524	15.52

Demographic statistics

Breslau's Age Pyramid in 1691 according to Edmund Halley

Birth and death rates of Poland in 1950-2008

Population pyramid of Poland in 2017

Demographic statistics according to the World Population Review in 2019.[25]

• One birth every 2 minutes
• One death every 1 minutes
• Net loss of one person every 7 minutes
• One net migrant every 53 minutes

Demographic statistics according to the CIA World Factbook, unless otherwise indicated.[20]

Population

38,420,687 (July 2018 est.)

38,476,269 (July 2017 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years: 14.8% (male 2,924,077 /female 2,762,634)

15-24 years: 10.34% (male 2,040,043 /female 1,932,009)

25-54 years: 43.44% (male 8,431,045 /female 8,260,124)

55-64 years: 13.95% (male 2,538,566 /female 2,819,544)

65 years and over: 17.47% (male 2,663,364 /female 4,049,281) (2018 est.)

0-14 years: 14.76% (male 2,919,353/female 2,757,923)

15-24 years: 10.7% (male 2,113,358/female 2,003,033)

25-54 years: 43.48% (male 8,447,418/female 8,283,757)

55-64 years: 14.21% (male 2,586,097/female 2,880,031)

65 years and over: 16.86% (male 2,560,847/female 3,924,452) (2017 est.)

0–14 years: 14.8% (male 2,931,732/female 2,769,021)

15–64 years: 71.7% (male 13,725,939/female 13,863,103)

65 years and over: 13.5% (male 1,971,763/female 3,202,131) (2010 est.)

Median age

total: 41.1 years. Country comparison to the world: 44th

male: 39.4 years

female: 42.8 years (2018 est.)

total: 40.7 years. Country comparison to the world: 47th

male: 39 years

female: 42.4 years (2017 est.)

total: 38.5 years

male: 36.8 years

female: 40.3 years (2011 est.)

Birth rate

9.3 births/1,000 population (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 202nd

9.5 births/1,000 population (2017 est.)

Death rate

10.5 deaths/1,000 population (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 29th

10.4 deaths/1,000 population (2017 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.36 children born/woman (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 214th

Population growth rate

-0.16% (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 206th

-0.13% (2017 est.)

Net migration rate

-0.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2017 est.) Country comparison to the world: 124th

Mother's mean age at first birth

27.4 years (2014 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 4.4 deaths/1,000 live births. Country comparison to the world: 182nd

male: 4.8 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 4 deaths/1,000 live births (2017 est.)

total: 6.42 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 7.12 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 5.67 deaths/1,000 live births (2012 est.)

Dependency ratios

total dependency ratio: 43.9 (2015 est.)

youth dependency ratio: 21.4 (2015 est.)

elderly dependency ratio: 22.5 (2015 est.)

potential support ratio: 4.5 (2015 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 77.9 years

male: 74.1 years

female: 82 years (2018 est.)

total population: 75.85 years

male: 71.88 years

female: 80.06 years (2010 est.)

total population: 76.25 years

male: 72.31 years

female: 80.43 years (2012 est.)

Urbanization

urban population: 60.1% of total population (2018)

rate of urbanization: -0.25% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write (2015 est.)

total population: 99.8%

male: 99.9%

female: 99.7% (2015 est.)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

total: 16 years

male: 16 years

female: 17 years (2013)

Unemployment, youth ages 15–24

total: 17.7%. Country comparison to the world: 74th

male: 17.4%

female: 18% (2016 est.)

total: 20.8%

male: 20.7%

female: 20.9% (2015 est.)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female

under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female

15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female

total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2012 est.)

Population distribution

Population concentrated in the southern area around Krakow and the central area around Warsaw and Lodz, with an extension to the northern coastal city of Gdansk

Ethnic groups

Polish 96.9%, Silesian 1.1%, German 0.2%, Ukrainian 0.1%, other and unspecified 1.7% note: represents ethnicity declared first (2011 est.)

Languages

Polish (official) 98.2%, Silesian 1.4%, other 1.1%, unspecified 1.3% note: data represents the language spoken at home; shares sum to more than 100% because some respondents gave more than one answer on the census; Poland ratified the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in 2009 recognizing Kashub as a regional language, Czech, Hebrew, Yiddish, Belarusian, Lithuanian, German, Armenian, Russian, Slovak, and Ukrainian as national minority languages, and Karaim, Lemko, Romani (Polska Roma and Bergitka Roma), and Tatar as ethnic minority languages (2011 est.)

Religions

Catholic 87.2% (includes Roman Catholic 86.9% and Greek Catholic, Armenian Catholic, and Byzantine-Slavic Catholic .3%), Orthodox 1.3% (almost all are Polish Autocephalous Orthodox), Protestant 0.4% (mainly Augsburg Evangelical and Pentecostal), other 0.4% (includes Jehovah's Witness, Buddhist, Hare Krishna, Gaudiya Vaishnavism, Muslim, Jewish, Mormon), unspecified 10.8% (2012 est.)

Nationalities

97.10% of the people of Poland claim sole or partial Polish nationality, and 98.19% declare that they speak Polish at home (2011). Among minority groups, the largest numbers of respondents claimed Silesian nationality, followed by Kashubian, German, Ukrainian and Belarusian.[26] The statistics on Ukrainians do not include recently arrived migrant workers, which a report by the National Bank of Poland estimated at around 1 million in 2015.[27]

Largest metropolitan and urban areas

Population numbers by database

Area	ESPON [28]	Eurostat LUZ [29]	Ministry of Regional Development[30]	United Nations [31]	Demographia.com[32]	Citypopulation.de[33]	Scientific study by T. Markowski[34]	Scientific study by Swianiewicz, Klimska [35]
Katowice (Katowice urban area)	3,029,000[36](5,294,000)	2,710,397	3,239,200	3,069,000	2,500,000	2,775,000	2,746,000	2,733,000
Warsaw	2,785,000	2,660,406	2,680,600	2,194,000	2,030,000	2,375,000	2,631,900	2,504,000
Kraków	1,236,000	1,264,322	1,227,200	818,000	750,000	Not listed	1,257,500	1,367,000
Łódź	1,165,000	1,163,516	1,061,600	974,000	950,000	1,060,000	1,178,000	1,129,000
Gdańsk	993,000	1,105,203	1,220,800	854,000	775,000	No data	1,098,400	1,210,000
Poznań	919,000	1,018,511	1,227,200	No data	600,000	No data	1,011,200	846,000
Wrocław	861,000	1,031,439	1,136,900	No data	700,000	No data	1,029,800	956,000
Szczecin	721,000	878,314	724,700	No data	500,000	No data	No data	755,806

Demographics by town

	City	Voivodeship	Inhabitants May 20, 2002	Inhabitants December 31, 2006	Inhabitants December 31, 2010	Inhabitants December 31, 2019
1	Warsaw	Masovian	1,671,670	1,702,139	1,720,398	1,790,658
2	Kraków	Lesser Poland	758,544	756,267	756,183	779,115
3	Łódź	Łódź	789,318	760,251	737,098	679,941
4	Wrocław	Lower Silesia	640,367	634,630	632,996	642,869
5	Poznań	Greater Poland	578,886	564,951	551,627	534,813
6	Gdańsk	Pomeranian	461,334	456,658	456,967	470,907
7	Szczecin	Western Pomeranian	415,399	409,068	405,606	401,907
8	Bydgoszcz	Kuyavia-Pomeranian	373,804	363,468	356,177	348,190
9	Lublin	Lublin	357,110	353,483	348,450	339,784
10	Białystok	Podlaskie	291,383	294,830	295,198	297,554
11	Katowice	Silesia	327,222	314,500	306,826	292,774
12	Gdynia	Pomerania	253,458	251,844	247,324	246,348
13	Częstochowa	Silesian	251,436	245,030	238,042	220,433
14	Radom	Masovian	229,699	225,810	222,496	211,371
15	Toruń	Kuyavia-Pomerania	211,243	207,190	205,312	201,447
16	Sosnowiec	Silesia	232,622	225,030	217,638	199,974
17	Rzeszów	Subcarpathia	160,376	165,578	178,227	196,208
18	Kielce	Świętokrzyskie	212,429	207,188	203,804	194,852
19	Gliwice	Silesia	203,814	198,499	195,472	178,603
20	Zabrze	Silesia	195,293	190,110	186,913	172,360
21	Olsztyn	Warmia-Masuria	173,102	174,941	176,463	171,979
22	Bielsko-Biała	Silesia	178,028	176,453	175,008	170,663
23	Bytom	Silesia	193,546	186,540	181,617	165,263
24	Zielona Góra	Lubusz	118,293	138,512	117,699	141,222
25	Rybnik	Silesia	142,731	141,388	141,410	138,098
26	Ruda Śląska	Silesia	150,595	145,471	142,950	137,360
27	Opole	Opole	129,946	127,602	125,710	128,035
28	Tychy	Silesia	132,816	130,492	129,386	127,590
29	Gorzów Wielkopolski	Lubusz	125,914	125,504	125,394	123,609
30	Płock	Masovian	128,361	127,224	126,061	119,425
31	Dąbrowa Górnicza	Silesia	132,236	129,559	127,431	119,373
32	Elbląg	Warmia-Masuria	128,134	126,985	126,049	119,317
33	Wałbrzych	Lower Silesia	130,268	124,988	120,197	111,356
34	Włocławek	Kuyavia-Pomerania	121,229	119,256	116,914	109,883
35	Tarnów	Lesser Poland	119,913	116,967	114,635	108,470
36	Chorzów	Silesia	117,430	113,978	112,697	107,807
37	Koszalin	Western Pomerania	108,709	107,693	107,948	107,048
38	Kalisz	Greater Poland	109,498	108,477	106,664	100,246
39	Legnica	Lower Silesia	107,100	105,186	103,892	99,350
40	Grudziądz	Kuyavia-Pomerania	99,943	99,244	98,757	94,368
41	Jaworzno	Silesia	96,791	95,771	94,831	91,115
42	Słupsk	Pomerania	100,376	98,092	96,665	90,681
43	Jastrzębie-Zdrój	Silesia	96,821	94,716	92,622	88,743
44	Nowy Sącz	Lesser Poland	84,421	84,487	84,537	83,794
45	Jelenia Góra	Lower Silesia	88,866	86,503	84,023	79,061
46	Siedlce	Masovian	76,686	77,051	76,303	78,185
47	Mysłowice	Silesia	75,642	75,063	75,501	74,618
48	Konin	Greater Poland	82,177	80,471	78,670	73,522
49	Piła	Greater Poland	75,197	74,720	74,550	73,139
50	Piotrków Trybunalski	Łódź	80,923	78,954	77,669	73,090

Demographics by voivodeship

Inhabitants of voivodeships (2008, according to GUS)
Lower Silesian	19 947	2 887 059	-0,04
Kuyavian-Pomeranian	17 972	2 067 918	+0,07
Lublin	25 122	2 161 832	-0,15
Lubusz	13 998	1 008 926	0,00
Łódź	18 219	2 548 861	-0,20
Lesser Poland	15 183	3 287 136	+0.22
Masovian	35 558	5 204 495	+0,26
Opole	9412	1 033 040	-0,31
Subcarpathian	17 846	2 099 495	+0,03
Podlaskie (Demographics)	20 187	1 191 470	-0,07
Pomeranian	18 310	2 219 512	+0,32
Silesian	12 334	4 645 665	-0.12
Świętokrzyskie	11 710	1 272 784	-0,20
Warmian-Masurian	24 173	1 427 073	+0,03
Greater Poland	29 827	3 397 617	+0.26
West Pomeranian	22 892	1 692 957	+0,04
Poland	312 679	38 135 876	+0,05

Immigration

Immigration to Poland has only picked up recently after 2014, when unemployment started falling and more workforce was needed. Most migration is temporary, with workers arriving for 3 to 12 months and then returning home with the earned money. Some of them stay long enough to acquire permanent and long-term stay permits (table below), but the actual amount of migrants in Poland is far higher. On June 4 GUS published an estimate[37] of foreigners residing in Poland as of 31 December 2019, which amounted to 2,106,101 people, the biggest groups being citizens of Ukraine (1,351,418), Belarus (105,404), Germany (77,073), Moldova (37,338), Russia (37,030), India (33,107), Georgia (27,917), Vietnam (27,386), Turkey (25,049), China (23,838) and 360,541 people representing all other nationalities.

Foreign population in Poland in 2019.

Largest groups of foreign residents[38]

Nationality	Population (2020)
Ukraine	233,828
Belarus	27,929
Germany	21,019
Russia	12,815
Vietnam	11,699
India	10,174
Italy	8,485
China	8,234
Georgia	6,860
United Kingdom	6,336
Spain	5,889
France	5,690
Bulgaria	5,362
Turkey	4,948
Romania	4,450
Armenia	3,366
Moldova	3,030
United States	2,593
Netherlands	2,505
Sweden	2,477
Lithuania	2,390
Czech Republic	2,313
Nepal	2,257
Slovakia	2,240
Hungary	2,196

Work permits issued each year by country of citizenship[39]

Country	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019
Ukraine	26,315	50,465	106,223	192,547	238,334	330,495
Belarus	1,834	2,037	4,870	10,518	19,233	27,130
Nepal	402	596	1,211	7,075	19,912	9,175
Moldova	1,027	1,488	2,844	3,792	6,035	8,341
India	1,242	1,425	1,772	3,938	8,362	8,063
Georgia	225	88	142	398	2,752	7,438
Bangladesh	283	319	721	2,412	8,341	6,986
Philippines	246	179	249	733	2,057	6,317
Uzbekistan	1,060	1,433	836	1,409	2,634	6,309
Vietnam	2,369	732	439	658	1,313	3,367
Azerbaijan	103	116	193	1,336	3,302	3,183
Turkey	689	550	672	1,228	1,481	2,936
Russia	654	579	1,008	1,433	1,903	2,862
Indonesia	94	75	111	148	352	2,023
China	2,133	1,288	1,205	1,179	1,473	1,935
South Korea	301	153	150	219	720	1,838
Kazakhstan	126	74	112	321	803	1,689
Tajikistan	103	59	98	353	868	1,323
Kyrgyzstan	133	42	19	81	654	1,283
Pakistan	274	184	187	427	1,065	911
Serbia	613	650	804	878	930	911
Sri Lanka	16	42	42	73	302	835
Kosovo	40	24	88	640	522	740
Thailand	211	212	291	348	376	625
United States	505	544	391	405	479	560
Ethiopia	2	1	0	17	328	505
Mongolia	52	51	36	139	261	499
Brazil	97	113	247	354	458	458
Armenia	363	140	156	181	281	433
Egypt	155	134	127	172	246	364
Others	1,996	1,993	2,150	2,214	2,991	5,204
Total	43,663	65,786	127,394	235,626	328,768	444,738

Most immigrants are hired using short-term work registrations, which are an easier way for employers to hire foreigners, than work permits, and only apply to workers from 6 former CIS countries.[40][41] Between 2007 and 2017, they figured as "Declaration of intention to entrust work to a foreigner", though it led to numerous abuses, since after submitting the statement, employers were not obliged to report whether the foreigner had come, and whether he had taken the job. Migrants would sometimes take up different work than previously indicated, use the permit to move to Western Europe, or not arrive at all. On 1 January 2018, it was replaced by "Declaration of entrusting work to a foreigner". Since then, employers are obliged to report the fact that the migrant has taken up employment. The change limits the comparability of the data from the previous periods.[42]

Work registrations by country of citizenship

Country	2018	2019	2020
Ukraine	1,446,304	1,475,923	1,329,491
Belarus	62,805	66,045	78,905
Moldova	36,742	39,414	45,281
Georgia	28,008	45,137	44,270
Russia	6,718	11,262	19,246
Armenia	1,648	2,302	2,406
Total	1,582,225	1,640,083	1,519,599

Since January 2018, employers may hire foreigners on a seasonal work permit, used specifically for agricultural and tourism-related work.[43] In 2020, 60,8% of hired foreigners were women, 42% were under 35 years old, and most worked in Poland from 31 to 90 days.[44] The vast majority of migrants comes from Ukraine, as well as Belarus, Moldova and Georgia, since the law doesn't require the employer to look for potential Polish workers before hiring a foreigner from said countries.

Seasonal work permits by country of citizenship

Country	2018	2019	2020
Ukraine	119,926	129,683	135,482
Belarus	607	659	625
Moldova	359	380	342
Georgia	199	302	291
Uzbekistan	3	66	122
Mexico	0	1	120
Philippines	15	78	78
Albania	1	0	62
Russia	45	79	62
Indonesia	0	3	44
Others	35	97	175
Total	121,436	131,446	137,403

Ethnic groups

Map of at least 10% non-Polish areas

Population background	%	Population[45]
European	98.6	37,962,000
European Union	98.2	37,813,000
Ethnic Polish (including Silesians and Kashubians)	97.7	37,602,000
Other EU member states (primarily German)	0.5	211,000
European Other (primarily Ukrainian and Belarusian)	0.4	149,000
Other background (primarily Vietnamese and Chechen)	0.1	29,000
Mixed or unspecified background	1.4	521,000
Total population	100	38,512,000

Religions

Religion in Poland in 2015 conducted by the Central Statistical Office (GUS)[46]

  Catholicism (92.9%)

  Eastern Orthodoxy (0.7%)

  Jehovah's Witnesses (0.3%)

  Protestant (0.2%)

  No religion (3.1%)

  Unanswered (2.7%)

  Other religion (0.1%)

Languages

Polish 97.8%, other and unspecified 2.2% (2002 census)

See also

• Health in Poland
• Polish diaspora

Notes

1. In fertility rates, 2.1 and above is a stable population and has been marked blue, 2 and below leads to an aging population and the result is that the population decreases.

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41. https://psz.praca.gov.pl/web/urzad-pracy/-/8180211-oswiadczenia-o-powierzeniu-wykonywania-pracy-cudzoziemcowi-wpisane-do-ewidencji-oswiadczen-obowiazujace-od-2018-r-
42. https://stat.gov.pl/obszary-tematyczne/ludnosc/migracje-zagraniczne-ludnosci/sytuacja-demograficzna-polski-do-roku-2019-migracje-zagraniczne-ludnosci,16,1.html
43. https://www.gov.pl/web/rodzina/zezwolenie-na-prace-sezonowa1
44. https://psz.praca.gov.pl/web/urzad-pracy/-/8180228-zezwolenia-na-prace-sezonowa-cudzoziemca
45. Główny Urząd Statystyczny (January 2013). Ludność. Stan i struktura demograficzno-społeczna [Narodowy Spis Powszechny Ludności i Mieszkań 2011] (PDF) (in Polish). Główny Urząd Statystyczny. Retrieved 12 December 2014.
46. GUS. "Infographic - Religiousness of Polish inhabitiants". stat.gov.pl. Retrieved 2019-06-17.

External links

• Central Statistical Office for the Republic of Poland
• Commonwealth of Diverse Cultures: Poland's Heritage
• CIA World Factbook 2004
• Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights
• Poland - Population and ethnic composition
• Armenians in Poland
• Poland's president expresses regret over 1947 Akcja Wisla
• INTEREG