Demographics & population — Japan
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 Japan: 123,201,945
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Population overview
- Population
123,201,945
- Population Growth Rate
-0.43%
- Population Distribution
all primary and secondary regions of high population density lie on the coast; one-third of the population resides in and around Tokyo on the central plain (Kanto Plain)
- Urban Population
- urban population: 92%
- of total population (2023) rate of urbanization: -0.25% annual rate of change
- Population in Major Urban Areas
37.194 million TOKYO (capital), 19.013 million Osaka, 9.569 million Nagoya, 5.490 million Kitakyushu-Fukuoka, 2.937 million Shizuoka-Hamamatsu, 2.666 million Sapporo
- Population: Male/Female
- male: 59,875,269
- female: 63,326,676
Age & family
- Age Structure
- years: 12.1% (male 7,701,196/female 7,239,389) 15-64
- years: 58.4% (male 36,197,840/female 35,777,966) 65
- years and over: 29.5% (male 15,976,233/female 20,309,321)
- Median Age
- total: 49.9
- years male: 48.3
- years female: 51.3 years
- Birth Rate - births/1,000 population
7
- Death Rate - deaths/1,000 population
11.9
- Total Fertility Rate - children born/woman
1.4
- Gross reproduction rate
1
- Contraceptive Prevalance Rate - female 12-49
39.8%
- Contraceptive Prevalence Rate - female 12-49
39.8%
- Currently married women (ages 15-49)
46.8%
- Mean Age for Mother's First Birth (age 25-49)
30.7
- Mother's mean age at first birth
30.7
- Sex Ratio at Birth - male/female
- at birth: 1.06
- male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.06
- male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01
- male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79
- male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female
Migration
- Net Migration Rate - migrant(s)/1,000 population
.7
Ethnicity & language
- Ethnic Groups
Japanese 97.5%, Chinese 0.6%, Vietnam 0.4%, South Korean 0.3%, other 1.2% (includes Filipino, Brazilian, Nepalese, Indonesian, American, and Taiwanese)
- Language Note
Japanese
- Nationality Noun
- Japanese (singular and plural) adjective: Japanese
Education
- Literacy Definition
Age 15 and over can read and write
- Education Expenditures - percent of GDP
3.4%
- Total School Life Expectancy - (primary to tertiary)
- total: 15
- years male: 15
- years female: 15 years
Health & living conditions
- Life Expectancy at Birth
- total population: 85.2
- years male: 82.3
- years female: 88.2 years
- Infant Mortality Rate
- total: 1.9 deaths/1,000
- live births male: 2 deaths/1,000
- live births female: 1.7 deaths/1,000 live births
- Infant Mortality Rate - total deaths/1,000 live births
- total: 1.9 deaths/1,000
- live births male: 2 deaths/1,000
- live births female: 1.7 deaths/1,000 live births
- Maternal Mortality Rate - deaths/100,000 live births
4
- Physicians Density - physicians/1,000 population
2.48
- Hospital Bed Density - beds/1,000 population
13
- Health Expenditures - percent of GDP
10.9%
- Obesity - adult prevalence rate
4.3%
- Tobacco Use
- total: 20.1%
- male: 30.1%
- female: 10%
- Alcohol consumption per capita
- total: 8.36
- liters of pure alcohol beer: 1.35
- liters of pure alcohol wine: 0.29
- liters of pure alcohol spirits: 1.63
- liters of pure alcohol other alcohols: 5.09 liters of pure alcohol
- Drinking Water Source - percent of urban population improved
- NA total: 99.1%
- NA total: 0.1% of population
- Sanitation Facility Access - percent of urban population improved
- NA total: 99.9%
- NA total: 0.1% of population