Nepal Population
Nepal had an estimated population of 29,618,118 in mid-2025 (World Bank), making it the 52nd most populous of 217 countries and territories, with 0.36% of everyone alive. The counter above projects that figure forward at the current growth rate of −0.11% a year.
Nepal at a glance
How Nepal's population is changing
Nepal's population is roughly stable: −0.11% a year, which works out to about −32,918 people per year, or −90 a day. Births (19.0 per 1,000) and deaths (7.0 per 1,000) alone would give +1.20% a year; net migration removes about 364,699 people a year (−1.23%). Roughly one in every 277 people on Earth lives in Nepal.
Population of Nepal since 1960
In 1960, Nepal had 10,123,658 people. By 2025 that was 29,618,118 — 2.9× larger. The fastest growth came between 1985 and 1995, when the population rose by 27%.
| Year | Population | Change vs previous row |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 10,123,658 | — |
| 1970 | 12,436,190 | +22.8% |
| 1980 | 15,553,105 | +25.1% |
| 1990 | 19,524,573 | +25.5% |
| 2000 | 24,546,509 | +25.7% |
| 2010 | 27,341,952 | +11.4% |
| 2020 | 28,966,574 | +5.9% |
| 2025 | 29,618,118 | +2.2% |
Nepal from 1800 to 2100
Modelled estimates put Nepal at about 4,000,000 people in 1800; the UN estimates 29,618,120 in 2025 (7× 1800) and projects 31,831,439 for 2100 in its medium scenario. The population is projected to peak around 2067 at 35,799,863 and decline afterwards.
| Year | Population | Kind |
|---|---|---|
| 1800 | 4,000,000 | modelled estimate |
| 1850 | 4,352,082 | modelled estimate |
| 1900 | 5,116,267 | modelled estimate |
| 1950 | 8,396,610 | UN estimate |
| 2000 | 24,546,509 | UN estimate |
| 2025 | 29,618,120 | UN projection |
| 2050 | 34,642,021 | UN projection |
| 2075 | 35,502,919 | UN projection |
| 2100 | 31,831,439 | 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 Nepal
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 29,618,118. Dates and boundaries may differ. Overlapping entities are not summed.
| # | Place | Population | Definition | Share | Source / reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kathmandu | 3,231,516 | UN urban centre | 10.91% | UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025; 2025 annual estimate |
| 2 | Biratnagar | 398,453 | UN urban centre | 1.35% | UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025; 2025 annual estimate |
| 3 | Pātan | 299,283 | GeoNames settlement | 1.01% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 4 | Pokhara | 297,320 | UN urban centre | 1.00% | UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025; 2025 annual estimate |
| 5 | Birgañj | 268,273 | GeoNames settlement | 0.91% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 6 | Dhangaḍhi̇̄ | 204,788 | GeoNames settlement | 0.69% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 7 | Janakpur | 195,438 | GeoNames settlement | 0.66% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 8 | Butwāl | 195,054 | GeoNames settlement | 0.66% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 9 | Dharān | 173,096 | GeoNames settlement | 0.58% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 10 | Bharatpur | 161,441 | UN urban centre | 0.55% | UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025; 2025 annual estimate |
How Nepal compares
Nepal has almost the same population as Cameroon (29,879,337).
| Rank | Country | Population | vs Nepal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #50 |  Ivory Coast | 32,711,547 | +10% | compare → |
| #51 |  Cameroon | 29,879,337 | +1% | compare → |
| #53 |  Venezuela | 28,516,896 | −4% | compare → |
| #54 |  Niger | 27,917,831 | −6% | compare → |
Compare Nepal with any country →
Same region (South Asia): India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Maldives.
Explore around Nepal
Land neighbours (2)
India 1,463,865,525 · 49.4× the population · compare
China 1,406,585,000 · 47.5× the population · compare
Nepal's 2 neighbours together hold 2,870,450,525 people — 96.9× Nepal's population. The most populous is India (1,463,865,525).
In its region
Nepal is the 3rd most populous of the 6 economies in South Asia, holding 1.8% of the region's 1,692,252,900 people.
Rankings
Largest countries, fastest-growing, oldest populations, densest — all rankings.
Cities
Kathmandu, Biratnagar, Pātan, Pokhara, Birgañj, Dhangaḍhi̇̄, Janakpur, Butwāl — all Nepal's cities on the map.
World population history · The world when you were born · Nepal 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.