Demographics & population — Madagascar
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 Madagascar: 26,955,737
Immigration rules and fees change frequently — confirm current requirements on official government or embassy websites.
Population overview
- Population
26,955,737
- Population Growth Rate
2.65%
- Urban Population
- Population in Major Urban Areas
ANTANANARIVO (capital) 1.987 million
Age & family
- Age Structure
- Median Age
- Birth Rate - births/1,000 population
34
- Death Rate - deaths/1,000 population
7.1
- Total Fertility Rate - children born/woman
4.36
- Contraceptive Prevalance Rate - female 12-49
39.9%
- Contraceptive Prevalence Rate - female 12-49
39.9%
- Mean Age for Mother's First Birth (age 25-49)
19.5
- Mother's mean age at first birth
19.5
- Sex Ratio at Birth - male/female
Ethnicity & language
- Ethnic Groups
Malayo-Indonesian (Merina and related Betsileo), Cotiers (mixed African, Malayo-Indonesian, and Arab ancestry - Betsimisaraka, Tsimihety, Antaisaka, Sakalava), French, Indian, Creole, Comoran
- Nationality Noun
Malagasy (singular and plural)
Education
- Literacy - total population
68.9%
- Literacy - male
75.5%
- Literacy - female
62.5%
- Literacy Definition
age 15 and over can read and write
- Education Expenditures - percent of GDP
2.7%
- 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
240
- Physicians Density - physicians/1,000 population
.16
- Hospital Bed Density - beds/1,000 population
.2
- Health Expenditures - percent of GDP
4.1%
- Major Infectious Diseases - degree of risk
very high
- Obesity - adult prevalence rate
1.6%
- Drinking Water Source - percent of urban population improved
- Sanitation Facility Access - percent of urban population improved
- Underweight - percent of children under five years
36.8%