Bhutan vs Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka has 27.3× the population of Bhutan: 21,756,000 vs 796,682, a gap of 21.0 million. Bhutan is growing faster (+0.65% vs −0.73% a year), adding about 5,175 people a year against −159,415. At these source-year rates the modelled relative population gap is narrowing, but too slowly to close within two centuries. Sri Lanka is the older society: 12.5% aged 65+ against 6.6% in Bhutan. Sri Lanka is 17.3× as densely populated (356.2 vs 20.6 people per km²). People in Sri Lanka live 4.4 years longer on average (77.7 vs 73.3).
Country/territory population bases: World Bank 2025 (Bhutan) and 2025 (Sri Lanka); growth years 2025 / 2025. Annual source values, not live counts; years may differ. Growth is national, not local.
Bhutan vs Sri Lanka — side by side
| Population | 796,6822025 | 21,756,0002025 |
|---|---|---|
| Growth rate / yr | +0.65%2025 | −0.73%2025 |
| Births per 1,000 | 12.52024 | 10.12024 |
| Deaths per 1,000 | 6.12024 | 7.82024 |
| Children per woman | 1.452024 | 1.952024 |
| Life expectancy | 73.3 yrs2024 | 77.7 yrs2024 |
| Aged 0–14 | 20.4%2025 | 21.7%2025 |
| Aged 65+ | 6.6%2025 | 12.5%2025 |
| Density | 20.6 /km²2023 | 356.2 /km²2023 |
| Area | 38,390 km²2023 | 65,610 km²2023 |
| Urban population | 43.4%2025 | 20.5%2025 |
| Net migration / yr | +4552025 | -30,7242025 |
| GDP per capita | $4,4932025 | $5,0022025 |
| Country population rank (available records) | #165 | #62 |
| Base / world population (World Bank 2025) | 0.01% | 0.26% |
Highlighted cell = the higher value (not "better"). Small print under each value is its own data year. Source: World Bank; country/territory population bases may have different years. These are not live counts.
Population since 1960
World Bank population history (not the separate UN WPP timeline). Bhutan: 3.6× from 1960 to 2025; Sri Lanka: 2.3× from 1960 to 2025. Left: absolute population. Right: each series indexed to its own first available year = 100; baseline years may differ.
More comparisons
Region: South Asia · rankings
Bhutan: Bhutan vs India, Bhutan vs Bangladesh, Bhutan vs Nepal, Bhutan vs Sri Lanka, Bhutan vs Comoros, Bhutan vs Solomon Islands, Bhutan vs Guyana, Bhutan vs Luxembourg.
Sri Lanka: Sri Lanka vs India, Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh, Sri Lanka vs Nepal, Sri Lanka vs Burkina Faso, Sri Lanka vs Malawi, Sri Lanka vs Zambia, Sri Lanka vs Chad, Sri Lanka vs Kazakhstan.
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This page is a structured reference entry. Its sources, geographic definition and reference dates determine what the figures mean; it is not independent reporting about the causes of change. Read the accompanying explanation before comparing different places or vintages.