On 1 January 2026, the EU population was estimated at 452.0 million inhabitants, 706 000 more than the previous year. This was the fifth consecutive year of population growth in the EU, following a decline in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since 2012, the negative natural change in the EU population (more deaths than births) has been compensated by positive net migration.
This information comes from data on population published by Eurostat today. This article presents a selection of findings from the more detailed Statistics Explained article on population and population change.
Source dataset: demo_gind
On 1 January 2026, the EU population was 8.0 million people higher than in 2016, and 16.0 million higher than in 2006.
Over a longer period, the population of the EU grew by 97.5 million people between 1960 (354.5 million) and 2026 (452.0 million). At the same time, the rate of population growth has slowed over recent decades. On average, the population increased by 3.0 million people per year in the 1960s and by 0.6 million per year in 2010s.
From 83.5 million in Germany to 0.6 million in Malta
The population of EU countries on 1 January 2026 ranged from 83.5 million in Germany to 0.6 million in Malta. The 5 most populous countries accounted for two-thirds of the EU’s population: Germany (18.5% of the EU population), France (15.3%), Italy (13.0%), Spain (11.0%) and Poland (8.0%).
Source dataset: demo_gind
Between 1 January 2025 and 1 January 2026, population increased in 16 EU countries. The highest growth rates were recorded in Malta (crude rate of total population change of +24.1 per 1 000 people), Cyprus (+13.7) and Luxembourg (+13.1). The sharpest rates of decline were recorded in Latvia (-8.3 per 1 000 people), Estonia (-6.8) and Hungary ( 5.4).
This article marks World Population Day, taking place on 11 July.