Population and Demographics of Ireland
An aging population · 15.89% aged 65 or older in 2024
The UN medium outlook puts Ireland at 5.97 million people in 2050, while annual population change stands at +1.12%. Compared with 2000, the 2024 population is 38.2% larger, showing the scale of the longer shift.
Population Over Time in Ireland
Ireland's population stood at 3.803M in 2000 and 5.255M in 2024, equivalent to a +38.2% change over that period. The UN medium projection places 2050 at 5.970M, about 13.6% above the 2024 reference point. The chart connects dated reference points only and should not be read as an annual interpolated series.
Age Structure and Sex Balance
Ireland has a maturing demographic profile in the 2024 broad age data. The under-15 share is 18.56% and the 65-and-older share is 15.89%, with 65.55% aged 15 to 64. The youngest and oldest broad age groups are relatively close in size.
Population by broad age group
In the World Bank 2024 series, females account for 50.5% of Ireland's population and males 49.5%. Females exceed males by 1.0 percentage points.
Female and male population share
Females made up 50.5% of the population in the World Bank's 2024 series, compared with 49.5% males.
What Is Shaping Population Change
Population is moving +1.12% annually in Ireland, where fertility is estimated at 1.6, with age composition adding a 2.67-point gap between children and older adults.
The historical series puts Ireland's 2000-to-2024 population change at +38.2%, with the projection period then moving +13.6% from 2024 to 2050; the aggregate numbers are not used to manufacture a causal explanation.
2024 estimate for Ireland. The world comparison value is 2.25 children per woman.
Ireland vs. World
The world comparison highlights three contrasts for Ireland. Annual change is +1.12% versus +0.87% globally, fertility is 1.6 versus 2.25, and median age is 39 versus 30.6 years.
| Indicator | Ireland | World | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual population change | +1.12% | +0.87% | 2024 |
| Total fertility rate | 1.6 | 2.25 | 2024 |
| Median age | 39 | 30.6 | 2024 |
All three comparison rows use 2024 values from the same harmonized country table. That table attributes its demographic series to UN World Population Prospects 2024, so no different-year values are mixed into this comparison.
Key Takeaways
The 2024 total is 5,255,017 people. Annual change in the same harmonized table is +1.12%.
The 2024 age structure is 18.56% under 15, 65.55% aged 15 to 64 and 15.89% aged 65 or older.
The World Bank 2024 sex-share series is 50.5% female and 49.5% male.
The 2050 medium projection is 5.970M, 13.6% above the 2024 estimate.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the population of Ireland?
The 2024 harmonized population estimate for Ireland is 5,255,017 people.
Is the population of Ireland growing or declining?
In the 2024 estimate, Ireland's population is growing, with annual change of +1.12%.
What percentage of the population of Ireland is aged 65 or older?
People aged 65 or older account for 15.89% of Ireland's 2024 population in the UN WPP-based broad age data.
What is the projected population of Ireland in 2050?
The UN World Population Prospects 2024 medium projection puts Ireland's 2050 population at 5,970,042.
What is the fertility rate in Ireland?
The 2024 harmonized fertility estimate for Ireland is 1.6 children per woman.
Sources & methodology
This profile uses United Nations World Population Prospects 2024 as the primary framework for globally comparable population, age, fertility and projection data. The World Bank is the primary source for the female population share. Some country values were accessed through secondary retrieval interfaces that republish or organize UN data; those interfaces are identified below as secondary and are not treated as the original statistical publishers.
View sources used for this page
Primary global framework for the population estimates and projections.
Harmonized 2024 country table based on UN World Population Prospects 2024.
Harmonized broad age shares based on UN World Population Prospects 2024.
Harmonized reference for the 2000 population point.
Harmonized 2050 country projection based on UN World Population Prospects 2024.
Used for the 2024 female share; the male share is calculated as the remainder to 100%.