Gabon Population
Gabon had an estimated population of 2,593,130 in mid-2025 (World Bank), making it the 142nd most populous of 217 countries and territories, with 0.03% of everyone alive. The counter above projects that figure forward at the current growth rate of +2.11% a year.
Gabon at a glance
How Gabon's population is changing
Gabon's population is growing fast: +2.11% a year, which works out to about +54,752 people per year, or +150 a day. Births (27.1 per 1,000) and deaths (6.2 per 1,000) alone would give +2.09% a year; net migration adds about 1,116 people a year (+0.04%). Roughly one in every 3,168 people on Earth lives in Gabon.
Population of Gabon since 1960
In 1960, Gabon had 512,316 people. By 2025 that was 2,593,130 — 5.1× larger. The fastest growth came between 2005 and 2015, when the population rose by 39%.
| Year | Population | Change vs previous row |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 512,316 | — |
| 1970 | 595,846 | +16.3% |
| 1980 | 748,389 | +25.6% |
| 1990 | 983,734 | +31.4% |
| 2000 | 1,275,572 | +29.7% |
| 2010 | 1,719,879 | +34.8% |
| 2020 | 2,322,539 | +35.0% |
| 2025 | 2,593,130 | +11.7% |
Gabon from 1800 to 2100
Modelled estimates put Gabon at about 158,227 people in 1800; the UN estimates 2,593,131 in 2025 (16× 1800) and projects 6,903,323 for 2100 in its medium scenario. That is still 166% growth over the rest of this century.
| Year | Population | Kind |
|---|---|---|
| 1800 | 158,227 | modelled estimate |
| 1850 | 294,784 | modelled estimate |
| 1900 | 369,735 | modelled estimate |
| 1950 | 472,843 | UN estimate |
| 2000 | 1,275,578 | UN estimate |
| 2025 | 2,593,131 | UN projection |
| 2050 | 4,084,539 | UN projection |
| 2075 | 5,605,452 | UN projection |
| 2100 | 6,903,323 | UN projection |
Country live/base figures use World Bank estimates; this historical/future chart uses a separate UN series and need not match the World Bank base in overlapping years. Before 1950: HYDE 3.3 / Gapminder reconstructions via Our World in Data — historical modelling, not censuses. 1950–2023: UN World Population Prospects 2024. 2024–2100: UN medium projection. Open the time machine to see the whole map in any year.
Largest listed places in Gabon
10 records sorted by displayed base population. Definitions vary (province/administrative unit, UN urban centre or GeoNames settlement); this is not a harmonised city ranking. Shares use World Bank 2025 country population 2,593,130. Dates and boundaries may differ. Overlapping entities are not summed.
| # | Place | Population | Definition | Share | Source / reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Libreville | 921,216 | UN urban centre | 35.53% | UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025; 2025 annual estimate |
| 2 | Franceville | 294,863 | UN urban centre | 11.37% | UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025; 2025 annual estimate |
| 3 | Moanda | 115,714 | UN urban centre | 4.46% | UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025; 2025 annual estimate |
| 4 | Port-Gentil | 101,485 | UN urban centre | 3.91% | UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025; 2025 annual estimate |
| 5 | Owendo | 95,313 | GeoNames settlement | 3.68% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 6 | Oyem | 90,307 | UN urban centre | 3.48% | UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025; 2025 annual estimate |
| 7 | Ntoum | 62,445 | GeoNames settlement | 2.41% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 8 | Lambaréné | 46,605 | GeoNames settlement | 1.80% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 9 | Mouila | 43,342 | GeoNames settlement | 1.67% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 10 | Akanda | 41,524 | GeoNames settlement | 1.60% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
How Gabon compares
Gabon has almost the same population as Botswana (2,562,122).
| Rank | Country | Population | vs Gabon | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #140 |  Jamaica | 2,837,077 | +9% | compare → |
| #141 |  Gambia | 2,822,093 | +9% | compare → |
| #143 |  Botswana | 2,562,122 | −1% | compare → |
| #144 |  Lesotho | 2,363,325 | −9% | compare → |
Compare Gabon with any country →
Same region (Sub-Saharan Africa): Nigeria, Ethiopia, DR Congo, Tanzania, South Africa, Kenya.
Explore around Gabon
Land neighbours (3)
Cameroon 29,879,337 · 11.5× the population · compare
Republic of the Congo 6,484,437 · 2.5× the population · compare
Equatorial Guinea 1,938,431 · 1.3× smaller · compare
Gabon's 3 neighbours together hold 38,302,205 people — 14.8× Gabon's population. The most populous is Cameroon (29,879,337).
In its region
Gabon is the 38th most populous of the 48 economies in Sub-Saharan Africa, holding 0.2% of the region's 1,321,654,217 people.
Rankings featuring Gabon
Cities
Libreville, Franceville, Moanda, Port-Gentil, Owendo, Oyem, Ntoum, Lambaréné — all Gabon's cities on the map.
World population history · The world when you were born · Gabon when you were born · Time machine · Embed this live counter on your site
About these numbers
Population, growth, birth and death rates, migration, density, age structure, life expectancy, fertility and GDP per capita come from the World Bank Indicators API (latest available year shown beside each figure). The live counter applies the annual growth rate continuously from 1 July 2025 — a model, not a measurement. City populations are the latest census or official estimate held by GeoNames and are not projected. Sub-city units are folded into their parent city.
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Read this country carefully
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.