Rwanda Population
Rwanda had an estimated population of 14,569,341 in mid-2025 (World Bank), making it the 76th most populous of 217 countries and territories, with 0.18% of everyone alive. The counter above projects that figure forward at the current growth rate of +2.17% a year.
Rwanda at a glance
How Rwanda's population is changing
Rwanda's population is growing fast: +2.17% a year, which works out to about +316,180 people per year, or +866 a day. Births (28.1 per 1,000) and deaths (5.9 per 1,000) alone would give +2.22% a year; net migration adds about 6,282 people a year (+0.04%). Roughly one in every 564 people on Earth lives in Rwanda.
Population of Rwanda since 1960
In 1960, Rwanda had 3,022,294 people. By 2025 that was 14,569,341 — 4.8× larger. The fastest growth came between 1995 and 2005, when the population rose by 60%.
| Year | Population | Change vs previous row |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 3,022,294 | — |
| 1970 | 3,980,669 | +31.7% |
| 1980 | 5,353,259 | +34.5% |
| 1990 | 7,375,307 | +37.8% |
| 2000 | 8,213,931 | +11.4% |
| 2010 | 10,317,553 | +25.6% |
| 2020 | 13,065,837 | +26.6% |
| 2025 | 14,569,341 | +11.5% |
Rwanda from 1800 to 2100
Modelled estimates put Rwanda at about 928,368 people in 1800; the UN estimates 14,569,349 in 2025 (16× 1800) and projects 32,779,350 for 2100 in its medium scenario. That is still 125% growth over the rest of this century.
| Year | Population | Kind |
|---|---|---|
| 1800 | 928,368 | modelled estimate |
| 1850 | 1,501,243 | modelled estimate |
| 1900 | 1,515,744 | modelled estimate |
| 1950 | 2,157,101 | UN estimate |
| 2000 | 8,213,936 | UN estimate |
| 2025 | 14,569,349 | UN projection |
| 2050 | 22,707,905 | UN projection |
| 2075 | 29,214,157 | UN projection |
| 2100 | 32,779,350 | 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 Rwanda
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 14,569,341. Dates and boundaries may differ. Overlapping entities are not summed.
| # | Place | Population | Definition | Share | Source / reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kigali | 1,483,711 | UN urban centre | 10.18% | UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025; 2025 annual estimate |
| 2 | Gisenyi | 172,357 | GeoNames settlement | 1.18% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 3 | Musanze | 155,984 | UN urban centre | 1.07% | UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025; 2025 annual estimate |
| 4 | Nyagatare | 100,000 | GeoNames settlement | 0.69% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 5 | Gitarama | 87,613 | GeoNames settlement | 0.60% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 6 | Butare | 62,823 | GeoNames settlement | 0.43% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 7 | Kibuye | 48,024 | GeoNames settlement | 0.33% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 8 | Rwamagana | 47,203 | GeoNames settlement | 0.32% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 9 | Kibungo | 46,240 | GeoNames settlement | 0.32% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 10 | Cyangugu | 43,866 | GeoNames settlement | 0.30% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
How Rwanda compares
Rwanda has almost the same population as Burundi (14,390,003).
| Rank | Country | Population | vs Rwanda | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #74 |  Guinea | 15,099,727 | +4% | compare → |
| #75 |  Benin | 14,814,460 | +2% | compare → |
| #77 |  Burundi | 14,390,003 | −1% | compare → |
| #78 |  Bolivia | 12,581,843 | −14% | compare → |
Compare Rwanda with any country →
Same region (Sub-Saharan Africa): Nigeria, Ethiopia, DR Congo, Tanzania, South Africa, Kenya.
Explore around Rwanda
Land neighbours (4)
DR Congo 112,832,473 · 7.7× the population · compare
Tanzania 70,545,865 · 4.8× the population · compare
Uganda 51,384,894 · 3.5× the population · compare- Burundi 14,390,003 · about the same population · compare
Rwanda's 4 neighbours together hold 249,153,235 people — 17.1× Rwanda's population. The most populous is DR Congo (112,832,473).
In its region
Rwanda is the 26th most populous of the 48 economies in Sub-Saharan Africa, holding 1.1% of the region's 1,321,654,217 people.
Rankings featuring Rwanda
Cities
Kigali, Gisenyi, Musanze, Nyagatare, Gitarama, Butare, Kibuye, Rwamagana — all Rwanda's cities on the map.
World population history · The world when you were born · Rwanda 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.