Demographics & population — Bulgaria
Population size, age structure, migration, ethnicity, language, education, and health indicators.
Profile updated 2026-06-02
⚡ Demographics & population at a glance
Population size, age structure, migration, ethnicity, language, education, and health indicators. Key figure for Bulgaria: 6,966,899
Immigration rules and fees change frequently — confirm current requirements on official government or embassy websites.
Population overview
- Population
6,966,899
- Population Growth Rate
-0.81%
- Urban Population
- Population in Major Urban Areas
SOFIA (capital) 1.174 million
Age & family
- Age Structure
- Median Age
- Birth Rate - births/1,000 population
9
- Death Rate - deaths/1,000 population
14.31
- Total Fertility Rate - children born/woman
1.43
- Contraceptive Prevalance Rate - female 12-49
69.2%
- Contraceptive Prevalence Rate - female 12-49
69.2%
- Mean Age for Mother's First Birth (age 25-49)
26.2
- Mother's mean age at first birth
26.2
- Sex Ratio at Birth - male/female
Migration
- Net Migration Rate - migrant(s)/1,000 population
-2.86
Ethnicity & language
- Ethnic Groups
Bulgarian 83.9%, Turk 9.4%, Roma 4.7%, other 2% (including Macedonian, Armenian, Tatar, Circassian)
- Language Note
The official language is Bulgarian, and nearly all inhabitants speak it. About half of the Turkish population speaks Turkish as its mother tongue. Bulgarian is a Slavic language that uses an alphabet first developed in the ninth century by Cyril and Methodise. English is now the most popular language for children to study, followed by German and French.
- Nationality Noun
Bulgarian(s)
Education
- Literacy - total population
98.2%
- Literacy - male
99.1%
- Literacy - female
98.2%
- Literacy Definition
Age 15 and over can read and write
- Education Expenditures - percent of GDP
4.1%
- Total School Life Expectancy - (primary to tertiary)
Health & living conditions
- Life Expectancy at Birth
- Infant Mortality Rate
- Infant Mortality Rate - total deaths/1,000 live births
- Maternal Mortality Rate - deaths/100,000 live births
11
- Physicians Density - physicians/1,000 population
3.76
- Hospital Bed Density - beds/1,000 population
6.6
- Health Expenditures - percent of GDP
7.6%
- Obesity - adult prevalence rate
23.7%
- Drinking Water Source - percent of urban population improved
- Sanitation Facility Access - percent of urban population improved
- Underweight - percent of children under five years
1.6%
