Demographics & population — Sri Lanka
Population size, age structure, migration, ethnicity, language, education, and health indicators.
Profile updated 2026-06-02
Population overview
- Population
22,889,201
- Population Growth Rate
0.89%
- Urban Population
15.100000
- Population in Major Urban Areas
COLOMBO (capital) 693,000; Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital) 126,000
Age & family
- Age Structure
24.350000
- Median Age
31.400000
- Birth Rate - births/1,000 population
17
- Death Rate - deaths/1,000 population
6.01
- Total Fertility Rate - children born/woman
2.15
- Contraceptive Prevalance Rate - female 12-49
68%
- Contraceptive Prevalence Rate - female 12-49
68%
- Mean Age for Mother's First Birth (age 25-49)
22.6
- Mother's mean age at first birth
22.6
- Sex Ratio at Birth - male/female
1.040000
Migration
- Net Migration Rate - migrant(s)/1,000 population
-1.74
Ethnicity & language
- Ethnic Groups
Sinhalese 74%, Tamil 18%, Moor 7%, Burgher, Malay, and Vedda 1%
- Nationality Noun
Sri Lankan(s)
Education
- Literacy - total population
90.7%
- Literacy - male
94.8%
- Literacy - female
90%
- Literacy Definition
age 15 and over can read and write
- Education Expenditures - percent of GDP
1.7%
- Total School Life Expectancy - (primary to tertiary)
14.000000
Health & living conditions
- Life Expectancy at Birth
76.150000
- Infant Mortality Rate
9.240000
- Infant Mortality Rate - total deaths/1,000 live births
9.240000
- Maternal Mortality Rate - deaths/100,000 live births
35
- Physicians Density - physicians/1,000 population
.49
- Hospital Bed Density - beds/1,000 population
3.1
- Health Expenditures - percent of GDP
3.4%
- Major Infectious Diseases - degree of risk
high
- Obesity - adult prevalence rate
5.1%
- Drinking Water Source - percent of urban population improved
99.100000
- Sanitation Facility Access - percent of urban population improved
82.900000
- Underweight - percent of children under five years
21.6%