Demographics of the United Kingdom

The population of the United Kingdom was estimated at 69.3 million in 2024. It is the 21st most populated country in the world and has a population density of 285 people per square kilometre (740 people/mi2), with England having significantly greater density than Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Almost a third of the population lives in south east England, which is predominantly urban and suburban, with 9,089,736 people in the capital city, London, whose population density was 5,782 inhabitants per square kilometre (14,980/sq mi) in 2024.

The population of the UK has undergone demographic transition— from a typically pre-industrial population, with high birth and mortality rates and slow population growth, through a stage of falling mortality and faster rates of population growth, to a stage of low birth and mortality rates with, again, lower rates of growth. This growth through 'natural change' has been accompanied in the past three decades by growth through net immigration into the United Kingdom, which since 1999 has exceeded natural change.

The United Kingdom's high literacy rate of 99% at age 15 and above, is attributable to universal state education, introduced at the primary level in 1870 (Scotland 1872, free 1890) and at the secondary level in 1900. Parents are obliged to have their children educated from the ages of 5 to 16 years. In England, 16–17-year olds should remain in education, employment or training in the form of A-Levels, vocational training, and apprenticeships, until the age of 18.

The United Kingdom's population is predominantly White British (75.98% at the 2021 Census), but due to migration mostly from Commonwealth nations, Britain has become ethnically diverse. The second and third largest non-white racial groups are Asian British at 8.6% of the population, followed by Black British people at 3.71%.

The main language of the United Kingdom is British English. Scots is widely spoken in many parts of Scotland, as is Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic language. Cornish and Irish have been revived to a limited degree in Cornwall and Northern Ireland, but the predominant language in all these areas is English. Welsh is widely spoken as a first language in parts of North and West Wales, and to lesser extent in South East Wales, where English is the dominant first language.[citation needed]

History

Before the census, 200–1800

Roman Britain had an estimated population between 2.8 million and 3 million at the end of the second century AD. At the end of the fourth century, it had an estimated population of 3.6 million, of whom 125,000 consisted of the Roman army and their families and dependents. The urban population of Roman Britain was about 240,000 people at the end of the fourth century. Roman Britain's capital city, Londinium, is estimated to have had a population of about 60,000.

Following the Roman withdrawal from Britain, Germanic tribes from continental Europe such as the Angles, Saxons and Jutes began a period of significant migration to the southeastern part of the island, notably bringing their language, Old English. Nevertheless, the overall population is believed to have fallen precipitously due to political upheavals and plagues. By the time of the compilation of the Domesday Book in the eleventh century, there may have between 1.25 and 2 million people living in England. Though the Domesday Book did not count the English population, it has been regarded as one of the first attempts to produce a census of the country.

Between the years of 1086 and 1750, the English population fluctuated in size due to civil war, famines and plagues. By the end of the 13th century, the population was estimated to have reached between four and six million people. A combination of factors such as widespread famine and disease in the following century collapsed the population dramatically. An agricultural crisis in 1315 to 1322 and the Black Death in 1348 to 1350 collapsed the population by over a third of its pre-existing number, and the growth rate. In 1377, the population was estimated via a poll-tax of all people aged 14 and over, depending on the population amount of those under 14, to be around 2.2 million to 3.1 million.

Periods of instability over the 15th century, such as the Wars of the Roses, caused the population to increase at a slower pace. The general factors behind this were a high mortality rate due to war, fewer marriages within the population, late marriages (keeping fertility levels low) and a net emigration of English people out of the country. By the 16th century, the situation had changed due to political stability under the Tudor monarchy and little civil unrest, which would have resulted in a higher mortality rate. While this was overturned with the English Civil War in 17th century, it allowed the population to grow at a faster pace, causing the population of England to reach a pre-collapse total of 5.74 million by 1750.

In Scotland, population growth was not to the same extent as it was in England, which resulted in being significantly lower in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, which is often ascribed to similar factors halting it such as a high mortality rate, especially for infants, and later marriage and childbearing patterns. Ireland before the 19th century consistently had rapid population growth, which has been ascribed to higher fertility rates and earlier age of marriage than in England. The Plantation of Ulster in the 17th century also affected the population of Scotland, with an estimated 100,000 Scots migrating to Ulster. The Jacobite rebellion in 1745 also caused significant emigration. The estimated population total of Scotland in 1691 was 1.23 million.

The impetus to collect population data was reinforced due to food supply concerns and war against France in the late 18th century and the beginning of the early 19th century. In 1800, the Census Act was passed, authorising the first modern census in British history to be conducted.

Census established and the demographic transition, 1800–2000

The first Census in 1801 revealed that the population of Great Britain was 10.5 million. England's population was 8.3 million, Wales' population was 0.6 million, and Scotland had a population of 1.6 million. In Ireland, the population was between 4.5 and 5.5 million inhabitants. Since 1801, a census has been conducted almost every decade. In Ireland, it was conducted for the first time in 1821.

During the Industrial Revolution, the demographic transition started in the United Kingdom, going from a pre-industrial society demographically to an industrialised society. At the 1841 Census, the population of England and Wales was 15.9 million, having doubled in the space of 40 years. Ireland had 8.2 million and Scotland had 2.6 million. The slightly lower rate of growth for Scotland may be attributed to higher net emigration of Scottish people out of the nation, and two typhus epidemics in 1837 and 1847.

Factors often associated with the beginning of the demographic transition began to change dramatically as well, which contributed to the rapid increase. For example, child mortality decreased dramatically: the proportion of children born in London who died before the age of five decreased from 74.5% in 1730–1749, to 31.8% in 1810–1829. General mortality was thought to have declined as well, especially after 1850. This, as well as an increased birth rate, caused the English population to sustain itself[clarification needed] in the second phase of the transition from 1750 to 1870.

In the second half of the 19th century the population of England continued to grow quickly, from 16.8 million in 1851 to 30.5 million in 1901. This rapid growth was seen in the other constituent nations. In Wales, the population increased from 0.6 million in 1801, to 2 million in 1901. In Scotland, the population increased from 1.6 million in 1801, to 4.5 million in 1901. In contrast, the Great Irish Famine, which began in the 1840s, caused the deaths of 1 million Irish people, and caused well over a million to emigrate.

Mass emigration became entrenched as a result of the famine, and Ireland's population decreased rapidly, from 8.2 million in 1841 to 3.2 million in 1901. This massive population collapse did not affect Northern Ireland to the same extent, as it was more industrialised and urbanised. While the Northern Ireland population declined, it recovered by the beginning of the 20th century. This prolonged period of emigration and net population decline in Irish history was not reversed until the middle of the 20th century.

The total fertility rate of the UK population declined from 4.88 children per woman in 1871, to 2.4 by 1921, representing a transition to the third stage of the demographic transition. Traditional means of birth control, such as abstinence and withdrawal, facilitated the collapse of the birth rate. By the 1930s, this was hastened by more modern methods of contraception, which were beginning to gain increased acceptance. From 1840 to 1930 there was a net emigration of English people out of the country, which scaled back population growth.

During the first half of the 20th century, the United Kingdom began to approach the fourth stage of the demographic transition. The deaths of troops in the First World War, coupled with the 1918 influenza outbreak, are estimated to have totalled over 900,000 deaths in the United Kingdom. This reduced the male population of the Lost Generation and altered the sex ratio, which slowed the growth rate of the population. By the end of the Second World War, the fourth stage transition was completed. There was a low but fluctuating birth rate, a low death rate and a slower population growth rate. The British Nationality Act 1948 allowed many people from the British Empire's colonies to migrate to the country, being classed in nationality as the same as a native of the United Kingdom. This law, while an unintentional side-effect, led to the start of modern immigration to the United Kingdom.

In the 1960s, there was also major social change in the United Kingdom. Liberalisation of society led to the Abortion Act 1967, which legalised abortion in the United Kingdom for the first time, and the Divorce Reform Act 1969, which made divorce easier. Between these years, the population fluctuated: from the 1950s onwards the population increased through natural growth. By the mid-1970s, the population decreased due to emigration, which took net migration to a negative, and deaths exceeded births.[dubious – discuss] For the first time in 1973, the birth rate of the country fell below replacement level. By the 1980s, the decline of population growth had recovered to an extent due to a reversal of net emigration.

In the 1990s, international migration began to contribute more to population growth. In 1998, this overtook natural increase as the main cause of growth. Liberalisation of immigration rules under the Blair government allowed a rapid increase of the number of migrants arriving, quadrupling the number from a net migration rate of 50,000 a year, to 200,000 a year[when?].

Modern century, 2000–present

By the beginning of the 21st century, the population of the United Kingdom was 59,113,000 people. In each constituent nation, the population of England was 49,449,700, Scotland had a population of 5,064,200, Wales had a population of 2,910,200 and Northern Ireland a population of 1,689,300. The rapid increase in international migration at the end of the 20th century brought greater heterogenisation to the British population in ethnicity, race and country of birth.

In 2001, the White British population was registered to be 88.52% of the total population. In 2011, this proportion of the population had dropped to 81.88%. Other ethnic groups rose by 50% of their respective total population in 2001, or doubled entirely.

Such rapid immigration growth boosted population growth in the United Kingdom. In 2011, the population was around 63 million people.

Population

The population of the UK in the last recorded census in 2011 was 63 million, of whom 31 million were male and 32 million female. The 2011 census recorded the population of England as 53.0 million, Scotland as 5.3 million, Wales as 3.1 million, and Northern Ireland as 1.8 million. At the last recorded population estimate, it was estimated that the UK population was at a total of 67,081,234 people.

There are 13 urban areas that exceed 500,000 inhabitants: they are centred on London, Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds and Bradford, Southampton and Portsmouth, Sheffield, Liverpool, Leicester, Manchester, Belfast, Bristol, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Nottingham.

1020304050607018301860189019201950198020102040millionUnited Kingdom Total Population -60-40-2002040608018301860189019201950198020102040Natural change (per 1000)Crude migration change (per 1000)United Kingdom Population Change

‰year51015202530354018301860189019201950198020102040brith ratedeath rateCrude birth and death rate

Population by constituent country

• Population across constituent countries over time
• England
• Scotland
• Wales
• Northern Ireland

Population change over time

The following table shows the total UK population estimated at census dates. Pre 1901 figures include the whole of Ireland, whereas from 1901 onwards only the population of Northern Ireland is included.

Population density calculated on:

• Pre–1901: 243,820 km2 total land area for the current United Kingdom plus 70,273 km2 land area of the current Republic of Ireland.
• Post–1901: its current boundaries.

Future projections

The UK government first began publishing population projections for the country in the 1920s under the Government Actuary's Department (GAD) which were mainly produced to be used for long-term financial estimates for pensions and other schemes of social insurance. However, since the Second World War, population projections have taken an expanded role in all areas of influencing government policy. The GAD produced population projections every year from 1955 to 1979 and then switched it to every 2 years up to 1991. The Office for National Statistics took control of producing population projections for the country in 2006.

The British Office for National Statistics' 2016-based National Population Projections indicated that, if recent trends continue, the UK's population would increase by 3.6 million between mid-2016 and mid-2026. This represents an average annual growth rate of 0.5%. Over the same period, the population of England is projected to grow by 5.9%; for Wales, this figure is 3.1%, while for Scotland and Northern Ireland the figures are 3.2% and 4.2% respectively. These projections did not allow for any possible effects of the UK leaving the European Union.

Fertility

Since 1838 it has been compulsory to register a birth or death in the United Kingdom.

Official data on the fertility rate of the country was first made available in 1938, However, it is possible to estimate the total fertility rate (TFR) from 1541 onwards.

The fertility rate of the United Kingdom before the 19th century remained at around 5 children per woman. This rate has been falling since 1870, when the country began into transition into the third stage of the demographic transition. This transition represents the change in reproductive strategy from how many children a mother 'needs' to how many she 'wants', and a substitution of quality over quantity in the offspring produced. From the 1880s onwards, the birth rate began to decline rapidly from its previous levels. In England the rate declined by 44% between 1875 and 1920.

The decline has been attributed to a number of factors, including biological, technological, societal socio-economic reasons and cultural trends. The Industrial Revolution led to large scale movements of people to high density urban population centres; income per capita rose significantly especially in the last half of the 19th century, while economic growth improved the livelihoods of the working and middle classes. This growth in the standard of living led also reduced mortality rates (which had been in decline since the early 18th century) and especially in infant mortality. The decline of child labour at the same time meant there was less economic need for a large number of children. Educational standards improved during the same time period, which gave children more economical potential.

The increasing number of women in the workforce in the 19th century also contributed to the birth rate decline.

Improvements in nutrition, which are linked to biological factors such as a decline in lactation, have also been cited as a potential factor in the decline of the fertility rate. Technological developments also began to have an effect; contraceptives became more usable in the latter half of the 19th century due to developments in the production of rubber. Abortion, while illegal, was also used, though the extent is unknown.

A decline in religious adherence during the 19th century (despite a shortage of data) has also been considered as a reason. While there is debate among demographers as to the relative importance of these factors, it is generally accepted that the combined effect was that mothers could begin to invest more time and nurture 'quality' into their offspring rather than having an increased 'quantity' of children, and that this led to the decrease of the total fertility rate.

By 1914, the birthrate was around 2.88 children per woman, but by 1918 this had collapsed by almost 50% due to World War One and sank to 2.03 children. In the post-World War One period, while the birthrate initially boomed reaching a peak of 3.08 children in 1920, this was followed by a rapid decline and had slumped to historic lows by the 1930s, for the first time in the country's history falling below a replacement level fertility rate. The rate did not recover until the end of the Second World War in 1945.

In the post-World War Two period, the fertility rate of the country boomed once again, reaching levels not seen since the late 19th century. This peaked in 1964, with a TFR of 2.95. However, by 1973, the fertility rate of the country again dropped below replacement levels, and has continued to decline until the present day.

It is said that the sub-replacement level fertility rate is not viewed by the government as a major issue. Little incentive has been provided to increase the birth rate throughout the UK's post war period. Compared to other countries in Western Europe, the United Kingdom's rate remains relatively high.

Family planning policies were enacted during the 1970s as a result of the rapid population growth during the 1960s. The 1973 NHS Reorganisation Act is one example: this Act made family planning advice and supplies available to the public. With previous liberalising acts such as the Abortion Act and the Divorce Reform Act, and scientific developments such as increased access to contraceptive methods such as the contraceptive pill, it is generally accepted that these social changes contributed to the decline of the fertility rate below replacement level in the latter half of the 20th century. With these changes also, pre-marital conceptions fell to 1950 levels by the late 1970s. This decline in the birth rate follows a similar pattern to other European countries.

The government's position was explained in 1984 at the UN Conference on Population in Mexico;

The United Kingdom government does not pursue a population policy in the sense of actively trying to influence the overall size of the population, its age structure, or the components of change except in the field of immigration. Nor has it expressed a view about the size of population, or the age structure, that would be desirable... The current level of births has not been the cause of general anxiety. The prevailing view is that decisions about fertility and childbearing are for people themselves to make, but that it is proper for government to provide individuals with the information and the means necessary to make their decisions effective. To this end, the government provides assistance with family planning as part of the National Health Service. The ageing of the population does raise social and economic issues. However, it is believed that these will prove manageable; and also, to a degree, that society will adapt...’

In 2003, Right to Request was setup which allowed the parents of small children to request flexible working times which included shorter working hours for parents to care for their children. However, a report in 2006 found that its impact was negligible as mothers tended to switch employers to get reduced hours regardless.

Migration in the late 1990s and 2000s led to the overall total fertility rate of the country rising by 0.1% between 2004 and 2011.

In 2012, the UK's total fertility rate (TFR) was 1.92 children per woman, below the replacement rate, which in the UK is 2.075. In 2001, the TFR was at a record low of 1.63, but it then increased every year until it reached a peak of 1.96 in 2008, before decreasing again. In 2012 and 2013, England and Wales's TFR decreased to 1.85. In Scotland however TFR was lower: it decreased from 1.75 in 2010 to 1.67 in 2012. Northern Ireland has the highest TFR in the UK, standing at 2.02 in 2010 and 2.03 in 2012.

1234518301860189019201950198020102040Total fertility rateUnited Kingdom TFR

• Birth statistics
• Mean age of mother by birth order in England and Wales
• Mean age of parents at birth in England and Wales
• Stillbirth rate in England and Wales
• Live births by age group in England and Wales
• Percentage of women childless by age 30 in England and Wales by mother's year of birth
• Average number of children by year of birth of the mothers in England and Wales
• Percentage of births born outside of wedlock in England and Wales
• Conception rate per 1000 women by age groups in England and Wales
• Teenage conception rate per 1000 women in England and Wales

Mother's mean age at first birth

The first available data on when a mother gives birth for the first time was in 1920.

The reduction of the total fertility rate of the United Kingdom has also had an effect on the mean age in which a mother gives birth to her first child.

The age in which a mother gives birth to her first child has changed depending on the time period, but since the 1970s the age in which someone gives birth has been trending upwards.

Family size

The reduction of the fertility rate has also had an effect on the general family size of mothers in the United Kingdom, with the two being interlinked with each other. The family size of the average UK family can be estimated for a "completed family size" (CFS), which is an estimate of the amount of children a woman has birthed by the end of her childbearing years.

Family size within the UK has shifted towards two or one children in recent decades, rather than in the past when larger family sizes were more prominent and sought after. This pattern is similar to other European countries, where couples are having fewer children. Increasingly, there are also more couples who are completely childless; this has been increasing since the 1950s.

Life expectancy

Life expectancy has increased in the United Kingdom since the 18th century due to precipitate declines in child mortality, see below, and from relatively minor improvements in healthcare. A life expectancy of 40, the historical norm, does not mean that person is likely to die at 40 years old but rather when he or she is very old or very young; much in line with a bathtub curve.

At the start of the 20th century, the life expectancy at birth was only 45.6 years.

By 1950, life expectancy at birth had risen to 68.6 years. During the latter half of the century, further factors influenced the increase of life expectancy: diseases and the improvement of healthcare in the 1950s, decline in smoking in the mid-1970s and improvements in treating heart disease in the 1990s contributed to its decline.

At the start of the 21st century, the life expectancy at birth was 77.8 years.

In 2011 the life expectancy at birth of the UK was around 80.4 years, but the rate of increase has been stalling. Potential factors behind this may be austerity measures imposed in the beginning of the 2010s, which coincidentally since then mortality rates have slowed down in decline or older people dying off at faster rates than expected. On the topic of austerity measures, Professor Richard Faragher has said that "It is possible to have high or rising life expectancy during austerity, as is the case in Japan. Similarly, you can have rising life expectancy despite high levels of inequality – this was the case in Britain from 1900–1950." but noted that austerity measures to social services like the NHS, especially social care support for the elderly may be causing a stalling of life expectancy increase due to a decreased quality of life for older generations.

Infant mortality

Infant mortality has been on the decline since the Second Industrial Revolution, although the majority of the decline came around from the start to the end of the 20th century. In raw terms for example, infant mortality in England sat around 151 deaths to 1000 live births in 1901 but by the end of the century it had plummeted down to only 6 deaths per 1000 births.

There are two general lines of thought which are usually taken from into analysing the decline of infant mortality rates, the first line of thought comes from social historians, who ascribe the decline of infant mortality to social phenomenons of the time such as the need for a healthy population for the sake of the nation's fighting capabilities and political issues surrounding women. The second line of thought comes from demographers themselves which more or less ascribe the decline of infant mortality itself more to the general decline of mortality altogether in the society than any particular reason why.

Physical unfitness during the Boer War came into national prominence as many recruits came back to be too medically unfit for service. With this, In 1904, the Report of the Inter-Departmental Committee on Physical Deterioration was published which listed large amounts of details of the failings of the British population, and for that matter government, in sustaining a healthy population.

The current rate of infant mortality in the United Kingdom is roughly around 3.82 deaths per 1,000 live births.

Age structure

Interlinked with fertility and mortality, the age structure of the United Kingdom has varied with how rates of fertility and mortality have changed throughout the country's history. Over the last two centuries, the United Kingdom has undergone a 'demographic transition', that is to say a transition from a high birth rate, high mortality rate society to a low birth rate, low mortality rate society, as a result of transitioning from an agrarian society to an industrialised one.

Before the 18th century, the United Kingdom retained an age structure universal to societies in the first stage of the transition theory, with high fertility rates and high mortality rates. In the late 18th century, the Industrial Revolution began, kickstarting the country's transition into the second phase: mortality rates declined but birth rates stayed at the same level; by 1870, the country had begun to transition into the third phase: the birth rate declined from around 5 children per woman to below replacement level in the 1930s. The fourth phase of the transition began in the 1960s, when the fertility rate rose, and peaked during the middle of the decade, but then collapsed by 1973 to below the replacement rate. Since then, the rate has not risen to an above replacement level fertility rate; this has resulted in a population which is currently ageing: in 2007, for the first time in the country's history, there were more people over the age of 60 than there were under the age of 16.

Peaks and bands within the population represent different periods in which people were born, for example, a large peak of people aged 70–74, born following the Second World War, and a wide band for those aged 50–59, born during the 1960s baby boom. Those aged 80 and upwards would have been born in the 1930s baby dearth when the birth rate was below replacement level. On the younger band of the population there is a noticeable gap between the ages of 14 and 20, this due to a lower number of children being born at the beginning of the 21st Century (and a subsequent lower TFR), however in the following years the birth rate rose during the 2010s and a 'broadening' of the pyramid began for those in the younger years. In relation to the sex ratio of the country, there are more women than men in the older bands of the population, reflecting the higher life expectancies of women in the population. There were estimated to be over half a million people (556,270) aged 90 and over living in the UK in 2015, up from 194,670 people in 1985, and there were estimated to be 14,570 centenarians and 850 people aged 105 or over.In the younger bands there are more men than women because there are slightly more boys born each year than girls. The Office for National Statistics has also wrote in their mid-2016 report on population projections that the median age of the British population was 40 years of age, and that this will continue to rise with an ageing population and a below-replacement level fertility level not refilling the population. This will make the number of people aged 85 and over double from 1.6 million in mid-2016 to 3.2 million in mid-2041.

Geographically, the demographic ageing of the population is not evenly spread, as people in rural areas are typically older than those living in metropolitan areas, such as Greater London.

1. 0 – 14 years (17.6%)
2. 15 – 24 years (11.5%)
3. 25 – 54 years (39.7%)
4. 55 – 64 years (12.7%)
5. 65+ years (18.5%)

• Population pyramids of each constituent country
• England England (2020 estimate)
• Scotland Scotland (2020 estimate)
• Wales Wales (2020 estimate)
• Northern Ireland (2020 estimate)

• Age brackets as a percentage of the total population in local authorities in 2021
• Under 15 years oldLess than 15%15 to 18%18 to 20%Above 20%
• 16 to 64 years old (working age)Less than 60%60 to 65%65 to 70%Above 70%
• Above the age of 65 years old5 to 15%15 to 20%20 to 25%25% and above

Urbanisation and population density

Population density

The United Kingdom is one of the most densely populated countries in Europe; in 2020 it was the 8th most densely populated country.

The current largest urban areas are listed below:

Urbanisation

Rapid urbanisation began with the onset of the Industrial Revolution in the mid to late 18th century, shifting jobs and more importantly people away from rural Britain's dominance at the time which was primarily agricultural, to manufacturing jobs within urban areas which started to spring up. In 1750, an estimated total of around only 1 million people lived in some sort of urban area such as a town or city, which was around 1/6th of the estimated total population but a century later this had risen to 8 million people in 1850, equating to just over half of the nation.

While this mass urbanisation affected pre-existing cities to a large degree such as London, smaller and 'newer' towns were in particular effected by the re-distribution of the population and exploded in raw population growth. Cities such as Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield and Newcastle for example had an explosive expansion in population numbers around the middle of the 19th century due to the industrial expansion of said cities bringing jobs and again people in for work. London during the 19th century become noted as the 'premier city' of the world, being the most populated city from 1825 to 1900 and being the first city in Europe and one of the first in the world to reach the figure of one million inhabitants, and then 5 million inhabitants. This urbanisation in the 19th century has had two phases. This mass influx of the population into the cities resulted in a centralisation of the population into the inner city areas however by the time of the late 19th century and early 20th century when technological advancements in transport kicked off allowing cities to expand their 'peripherals' from the inner areas to create large scale 'city regions' of their own. London in particular during the 19th century had the majority of its population within the city living in the inner centre, however by the 20th century a massive expansion of 'Outer London' began which slowly became larger in population size by the middle of the century than Inner London.

By the end of the 20th century the figure of urbanisation was 80% of the country. Importance in population size however of the capital declined during the latter half of the 20th century. By the end of the 20th century, London's ranking on the most populated cities of the world had fallen down to not even being in the top 20.

The current classification of an 'urban' area, also termed as a 'built-up area' (BUA) in the 2011 census, is a settlement which takes variables from both numerical population numbers and population density; in population numbers this is roughly more than or 10,000 people living in an area. Anything below that is classified as 'rural', having several levels of distinction to define a rural town and fringe, village or hamlet which is usually taken from population density figures. These areas are then defined within 'output areas' (OA's) themselves, which are geographic areas of the United Kingdom. The population which resides within classified 'urban' areas was 84.4% of total population in 2022 and the annual rate of urbanisation change is estimated to be around 0.8% between 2020 and 2025.

Vital statistics

Statistics since 1838

Sources:

Notable events in British demographics:

• 1849, 1854, 1866 – Major cholera outbreaks
• 1890-1895 – Russian Flu
• 1914-1918 – First World War
• 1918-1919 – Spanish Flu epidemic
• 1939-1945 – Second World War
• 1946-64 – Post-World War II baby boom
• 1967 – Abortion Act came into force
• 2020-2023 – COVID-19 pandemic

In 2023, 208,877 (31.8%) of all live births were to non-UK-born mothers in England and Wales. 37.3% of live births were to parents where either one or both were born outside the UK.

Current vital statistics

NumberDate-200,0000200,000400,000600,000800,0001,000,0001,200,000190019241948197219962020BirthsDeathsNatural ChangeUnited Kingdom Natural Population Change

Total fertility rates by region

Total fertility rate by local authority district

Structure of the population

Births in England and Wales by place of birth of parents

Parents' country of birth:

Social issues

Marriage, divorce, families and household types

Marriage and divorce

In 2004, 58% of births were conceived within a married couple, 35% by non-married couples registered by both parents and 7% by non-married mothers who registered the birth alone.

This varied from each constituent nation, Wales for example had the highest births outside of marriage at 51% in 2004, In England this percentage was 42% and in Scotland 47%. Northern Ireland had the lowest of 35% in 2004.

• Number of marriages in the United Kingdom 1887–2016
• Opposite sex marriage rate over time in England and Wales
• Number of divorces in England and Wales 1858–2020
• Opposite sex divorce rate in England and Wales
• Median age at divorce in England and Wales
• Culmulative percentage of marriages ending in divorce by year of marriage in England and Wales

• Age structure of population groups relating to marriage
• Never Married
• Married or in Civil partnership
• Divorced or dissolved Civil partnership
• Widowed or surviving member of Civil partnership

Household and family type

• Type of households out of total households in 2021
• Family types out of total families in 2021
• Percentage of age group living with parents in 2021

Sexual orientation

Out of the 600,000 people in the UK that applied to go to university through UCAS in 2020, 7.2%, or 40,000, described themselves as LGBT on their application form. UCAS estimates this to be a rate 2.5 times higher than the overall UK population. The UCAS report in collaboration with Stonewall also found LGBT students were more likely to come from disadvantaged backgrounds (compared to those who identified as heterosexual or didn't specify), have a disability (compared to non-LGBT students) and have a mental health condition (compared to non-LGBT students).

For the first time, the 2021 United Kingdom census included a question on sexual orientation. Results for Scotland are expected to be published from spring 2024 onwards.

Gender identity

In the 2021 United Kingdom census, in England and Wales, 262,000 people (0.5%) answered that their gender identity was different from their sex assigned at birth, including 0.10% who identified as a trans man, 0.10% as a trans woman, and 0.06% as non-binary. 1% of people aged 16 to 24 years said that their gender identity was different from their sex assigned at birth.

Abortion

Abortion in the United Kingdom (however not Northern Ireland) was officially decriminalised under the Abortion Act 1967, allowing women for the first time to get an abortion under numerous medical grounds outlined within the act. Previously, this was outlawed under the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 and then the updated Infant Life (Preservation) Act 1929 which only permitted an abortion if the death of a child was "done in good faith for the purpose only of preserving the life of the mother".

In 2020, the number of conceptions which led to an abortion was around 25.3%

Health

General health

Death rate and cause

• Leading causes of death for males
• Leading causes of death for females

Health issues

• Variety of health issues in graphs
• Obesity rates from 1975 to 2016
• Smoking rates from 1974 to 2020
• Percentage of the public who consume alcohol weekly from 2005 to 2017
• Suicide rate in England and Wales per 100,000 people from 1981 to 2020
• Suicide rates regionally in 2020
• Total deaths to drug misuse in England and Wales
• Drug misuse crude death rate regionally in 2019

Disability

Employment and income

The unemployment rate for the youth age bracket of 15–24 was 11.2% in 2019 – 13% for males and 9.2% for females.

• Unemployment rate 1881–2017
• Percentage of labour force working in each (broad) sector
• UK employment by broad industry sector
• UK employment by public or private sector
• Average weekly earnings over time (seasonally adjusted)
• Average household income 1977–2021
• Percentage of young people who are not in education, employment or training (NEET)
• Economically inactive percentage of population in local authorities in 2021
• Gross disposable household income (GDHI) across the UK mapped in 2020
• The Median Individual Disposable income as of 2018
• The Median Gross Household Income as of 2018

Method of transportation to work

• Population pyramids of Method of transportation to work groups in 2021
• Drive car to work
• Work from or at home

Migration

Historical and present net numbers

Migration to the UK has varied through its history. Irish migration from the Great Famine predominated during the 19th century. Additionally Jewish migration from Russia also arrived famously into Bethnal Green in London.

Starting from the 1950s onwards, following on from the British Nationality Act 1948 which de jure allowed the migration of upwards 800,000,000 British subjects who were now British citizens in law, modern mass migration to the United Kingdom began. During this decade West Indians from the Caribbean, those from Jamaica and St Vincent and the Grenadines, Dominica so on began to arrive.

During the middle of the 1960s to the 1970s, migration flipped in origin to the majority of those arriving being of South Asian origin from the Indian sub-continent. Immigration restrictions, in response to the ever increasing number arriving, were introduced, such as the Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1962, Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1968 and the Immigration Act 1971.

Through the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s, net migration to the United Kingdom was often negative in terms of numbers, with more people leaving the country, than entering in total.

Since 1994, net migration in numbers has been in the positives, with more people entering the country, rather than leaving. Migration increased fourfold following the election of Tony Blair in 1997, immigration restrictions were undone such as the primary purpose rule.

In 2004, along with Ireland and Sweden, Britain was one of the only countries within the EU to not implement 'transitional controls' on migration flows from the newly joined A8 countries from Eastern Europe. Around 453,000 immigrants, which has been revised upwards in recent years, from these new counties were estimated in 2015 to have migrated to the UK.

United Kingdom migration data