Population and Demographics of Italy
Population declining at 0.26% in 2024 · 24.62% aged 65 or older
In Italy, the 2024 age structure includes 11.89% children and 24.62% older adults, and the current annual rate is -0.26% rather than a static population. The medium projection reaches 51.89 million in 2050, placing the mid-century total 12.6% below 2024.
Population Over Time in Italy
Italy's population stood at 57.272M in 2000 and 59.343M in 2024, equivalent to a +3.6% change over that period. For 2050, the medium projection is 51.891M. That is a difference of about 7.45 million people from the 2024 estimate. The chart connects dated reference points only and should not be read as an annual interpolated series.
Age Structure and Sex Balance
Broad age shares place Italy in a older demographic position in 2024. The 65+ share is 24.62%, clearly above the 11.89% under-15 share, while 63.49% fall in the 15 to 64 band. Older adults outnumber children in these broad age bands.
Population by broad age group
The 2024 World Bank sex-share indicator gives Italy a female share of 51.1% and a male share of 48.9%. Females exceed males by 2.2 percentage points.
Female and male population share
Females made up 51.1% of the population in the World Bank's 2024 series, compared with 48.9% males.
What Is Shaping Population Change
In the latest harmonized estimates, Italy shows -0.26% population change and fertility of 1.2, within a population where the under-15 and 65-plus shares differ by 12.73 percentage points.
Italy's longer population series shows +3.6% change across 2000 to 2024, with the projection period then moving -12.6% from 2024 to 2050; the aggregate numbers are not used to manufacture a causal explanation.
2024 estimate for Italy. The world comparison value is 2.25 children per woman.
Italy vs. World
Relative to the 2024 world benchmarks, Italy's population change is lower than the global rate, its fertility is below the global level, and its population is older than the corresponding global median-age profile.
| Indicator | Italy | World | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual population change | -0.26% | +0.87% | 2024 |
| Total fertility rate | 1.2 | 2.25 | 2024 |
| Median age | 48 | 30.6 | 2024 |
Same-year comparability takes priority here. Growth, fertility and median age are all taken from the 2024 harmonized table for both Italy and the world.
Key Takeaways
At 59.343M, the 2024 population is paired with an annual change rate of -0.26%.
Broad age shares show 24.62% aged 65+ compared with 11.89% under 15; the 15 to 64 group accounts for 63.49%.
The 2024 female and male shares are 51.1% and 48.9% respectively.
The 2050 medium projection is 51.891M, 12.6% below the 2024 estimate.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the population of Italy?
The 2024 harmonized population estimate for Italy is 59,342,867 people.
Is the population of Italy growing or declining?
In the 2024 estimate, Italy's population is declining, with annual change of -0.26%.
What percentage of the population of Italy is aged 65 or older?
People aged 65 or older account for 24.62% of Italy's 2024 population in the UN WPP-based broad age data.
What is the projected population of Italy in 2050?
The UN World Population Prospects 2024 medium projection puts Italy's 2050 population at 51,891,099.
What is the fertility rate in Italy?
The 2024 harmonized fertility estimate for Italy is 1.2 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%.