Demographics & population — Guatemala
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 Guatemala: 18,255,216
Immigration rules and fees change frequently — confirm current requirements on official government or embassy websites.
Population overview
- Population
18,255,216
- Population Growth Rate
1.49%
- Population Distribution
the vast majority of the populace resides in the southern half of the country, particularly in the mountainous regions; more than half of the population lives in rural areas
- Urban Population
- urban population: 53.1%
- of total population rate of urbanization: 2.59% annual rate of change
- Population in Major Urban Areas
3.095 million GUATEMALA CITY (capital)
- Population: Male/Female
- male: 9,050,684
- female: 9,204,532
Age & family
- Age Structure
- years: 31.5% (male 2,925,079/female 2,819,927) 15-64
- years: 63.2% (male 5,688,500/female 5,839,958) 65
- years and over: 5.4% (male 437,105/female 544,647)
- Median Age
- total: 24.8
- years male: 24.2
- years female: 25.4 years
- Birth Rate - births/1,000 population
21
- Death Rate - deaths/1,000 population
4.9
- Total Fertility Rate - children born/woman
2.52
- Gross reproduction rate
1
- Contraceptive Prevalance Rate - female 12-49
60.6%
- Contraceptive Prevalence Rate - female 12-49
60.6%
- Currently married women (ages 15-49)
57.2%
- Mean Age for Mother's First Birth (age 25-49)
20.6
- Mother's mean age at first birth
20.6
- Sex Ratio at Birth - male/female
- at birth: 1.05
- male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.04
- male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97
- male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8
- male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female
Migration
- Net Migration Rate - migrant(s)/1,000 population
-1.6
- Demographic profile
Guatemala is a predominantly poor country that struggles in several areas of health and development, including infant, child, and maternal mortality, malnutrition, literacy, and contraceptive awareness and use.
The country's large indigenous population is disproportionately affected.
Guatemala is the most populous country in Central America and has the highest fertility rate in Latin America.
It also has the highest population growth rate in Latin America, which is likely to continue because of its large reproductive-age population and high birth rate.
Almost half of Guatemala's population is under age 19, making it the youngest population in Latin America.
Guatemala's total fertility rate has slowly declined during the last few decades due in part to limited government-funded health programs.
However, the birth rate is still more close to three children per woman and is markedly higher among its rural and indigenous populations.
Guatemalans have a history of emigrating legally and illegally to Mexico, the United States, and Canada because of a lack of economic opportunity, political instability, and natural disasters.
Emigration, primarily to the United States, escalated during the 1960 to 1996 civil war and accelerated after a peace agreement was signed.
Thousands of Guatemalans who fled to Mexico returned after the war, but labor migration to southern Mexico continues.
Ethnicity & language
- Ethnic Groups
Mestizo (mixed Indigenous-Spanish - in local Spanish called Ladino) 56%, Maya 41.7%, Xinca (Indigenous, non-Maya) 1.8%, African descent 0.2%, Garifuna (mixed West and Central African, Island Carib, and Arawak) 0.1%, foreign 0.2%
- Language Note
Spanish (official) 69.9%, Maya languages 29.7% (Q'eqchi' 8.3%, K'iche 7.8%, Mam 4.4%, Kaqchikel 3%, Q'anjob'al 1.2%, Poqomchi' 1%, other 4%), other 0.4% (includes Xinca and Garifuna); note - the 2003 Law of National Languages officially recognized 23 indigenous languages, including 21 Maya languages, Xinca, and Garifuna
- Nationality Noun
- Guatemalan(s) adjective: Guatemalan
Education
- Literacy - total population
83.3%
- Literacy - male
87.7%
- Literacy - female
79.3%
- Literacy Definition
age 15 and over can read and write
- Education Expenditures - percent of GDP
3.1%
- Total School Life Expectancy - (primary to tertiary)
- total: 11
- years male: 11
- years female: 10 years
Health & living conditions
- Life Expectancy at Birth
- total population: 73.5
- years male: 71.5
- years female: 75.6 years
- Infant Mortality Rate
- total: 25 deaths/1,000
- live births male: 28.1 deaths/1,000
- live births female: 21.7 deaths/1,000 live births
- Infant Mortality Rate - total deaths/1,000 live births
- total: 25 deaths/1,000
- live births male: 28.1 deaths/1,000
- live births female: 21.7 deaths/1,000 live births
- Maternal Mortality Rate - deaths/100,000 live births
96
- Physicians Density - physicians/1,000 population
1.24
- Hospital Bed Density - beds/1,000 population
.4
- Health Expenditures - percent of GDP
6.5%
- Major Infectious Diseases - degree of risk
- high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A,
- and typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria
- Obesity - adult prevalence rate
21.2%
- Tobacco Use
- total: 10.9%
- male: 20.1%
- female: 1.6%
- Alcohol consumption per capita
- total: 1.63
- liters of pure alcohol beer: 0.9
- liters of pure alcohol wine: 0.05
- liters of pure alcohol spirits: 0.68
- liters of pure alcohol other alcohols: 0.01 liters of pure alcohol
- Drinking Water Source - percent of urban population improved
- urban: 97.9%
- of population rural: 92.2%
- of population total: 95%
- urban: 2.1%
- of population rural: 8%
- of population total: 5% of population
- Sanitation Facility Access - percent of urban population improved
- urban: 90.4%
- of population rural: 66.3%
- of population total: 78.8%
- urban: 9.6%
- of population rural: 33.7%
- of population total: 21.2% of population
- Underweight - percent of children under five years
14.4%
