Chad Population 2024 (Live)

18,672,479

According to current projections, Chad’s population is expected to increase for the remainder of the century. As of 2020, the population is 16.43 million people and is expected to increase to 61.5 million by 2099. Chad’s population is projected to surpass 50 million people by 2076.

The population of Chad is growing relatively fast at a rate of 3.00% from 2019 to 2020. This added about 479,000 people to the population. This rate has slowly decreased over the years as the fertility rate has also decreased. Despite this, the fertility rate in Chad is still one of the highest in the world at 5.80 births per woman.

Unfortunately, Chad is one of the poorest countries in the world. Chad’s major problems, including a high risk of floods and droughts, widespread poverty, and frequent civil war, can all be exacerbated by rapid population growth.

Population Rank
Growth Rate
2024 World Percentage
Land Area
1,259,200
The current population of Chad is 18,672,479 based on projections of the latest United Nations data. The UN estimates the July 1, 2024 population at 18,847,148.

Chad Growth Rate

Chad Population 2024 (Live)

Chad Population Clock

Chad Population (as of 3/11/2024)18,672,479
Next UN Estimate (July 1, 2024)18,847,148
Births per Day2,175
Deaths per Day596
Migrations per Day-5
Net Change per Day1,574
Population Change Since Jan. 1111,754

Components of Population Change

One birth every 40 seconds
One death every 2.42 minutes
One emigrant every 288 minutes
Net gain of one person every 55 seconds

Chad Population Clock

City
2024 Population
N'Djamena721,081
Moundou135,167
Sarh102,528
Abeche74,188
Kelo42,533
Koumra36,263
Pala35,466
Am Timan28,885
Bongor27,770
Mongo27,763

Its largest city and capital, N'Djamena, has an estimated population of just under 1 million. Only 26% of the country's people live in urban areas, but almost half are under the age of 15. Chad has an unevenly distributed population, with the highest density in the Logone Occidental Region and the capital. The capital is virtually the only urban area in Chad.

Chad Population Density Map

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Year
Population
Growth Rate
Density (/km²)
Population Rank
Density Rank
202418,847,1483.17%1567209
202318,278,5683.21%1567209
202016,644,7013.21%1370211
201916,126,8663.35%1371211
201815,604,2103.44%1271211
201715,085,8843.38%1272211
201514,140,2743.52%1173211
201011,894,7273.52%974210
200510,005,0123.91%881213
20008,259,1373.69%787214
19956,888,8563.4%592215
19905,827,0693.24%594215
19854,967,5902.42%497216
19804,408,2301.54%4100216
19754,084,1102.18%399216
19703,667,3941.91%3102215
19653,336,3381.95%3101214
19603,028,6881.9%2100214
19552,756,1691.87%298214

Chad Population by Year (Historical)

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Year
Population
Growth Rate
Density (/km²)
Population Rank
Density Rank
202418,847,1483.17%1567209
202519,425,9603.14%1566208
203022,460,3932.94%1863205
203525,729,8902.76%2062201
204029,202,5292.56%2361197
204532,800,5552.35%2660195
205036,452,0352.13%2958191
205540,122,1751.94%3255190
206043,728,7101.74%3551188
206547,234,9901.55%3848184
207050,619,0921.39%4046181
207553,791,0471.22%4343178
208056,711,6111.06%4541174
208559,351,0600.91%4740171
209061,650,8000.76%4940170
209563,579,3460.62%5039168

Chad Population by Year (Projections)

Chad Population Pyramid 2024

Chad Median Age

16.1

Total

15.6

Male

16.5

Female

Chad Population by Age

There are people over age 18 in Chad.

Census Years

Year
Date
20192019
200920 June 2009
19938 April 1993

Chad Population Pyramid

Chad is a landlocked country in Central Africa with many regions. Lake Chad, which the country is named for, is the largest wetland in the country, which also has a desert zone, an arid belt and a fertile savanna zone. Chad is bordered by Nigeria, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Sudan, Libya, and Niger and it is the 5th largest country by size in Africa.

Chad Demographics

Chad has over 200 ethnic and linguistic groups.The people of Chad are usually classified according to their geographic region. The Sara live in the south and represent the largest ethnic group. In the Sahel, sedentary people live with nomadic ones like the Arabs, who are the second largest ethnic group. Nomads, particularly the Toubous, live in the north.

The largest ethnic groups, based on the 1993 census, were: Sara (28%), Arab (12%), Mayo-Kebbi (11%), Kanem-Bornou (9%), Ouaddai (9%), Hadjarai (7%), Tandjile (7%), Daza (6%) and Fitri-Batha (5%).

Chad Religion, Economy and Politics

The country of Chad is pretty divided in terms of religion with 51.8% practicing Islam, 43.8% practicing some form of Christianity, and the remaining 4.4% being atheist, agnostic, or practicing something else. Within the Muslim community, 58% are Sunni, 11% are Shia, 4% Ahmadi, and 23% are nondenominational. Of the Christians, 54% are Protestant and 46% are Catholic.

Chad is one of the most corrupt and poorest countries on earth and most of its people are impoverished and live as herders and farmers. The Fund for Peace considers Chad a failed state. Polygamy is very common in Chad with 39% of women in such a union. It is also sanctioned by law. Violence against women is common in Chad, as is female genital mutilation. Despite being prohibited, more than 45% of women undergo the procedure, which is more common among certain ethnic groups like the Arabs. The life expectancy in Chad is just 47 years old.

Chad Population History

The land of present-day Chad was conquered by Rabih al-Zubayr from Sudan in the late 1800s, but his reign was short-lived and the French took control of the area in 1913. Chad fought with the French during World War II, but after the war, the country began to experience some civil unrest and several political parties began to form, which eventually ousted the president and rendered the central government completely ineffective in the early 1980s, but they settled into democracy by the 90s. In the early 2000s, Chad experienced a sudden rush of immigration from Sudan due to the fighting in Darfur.

Chad Population Rank 2024
Country Age
Area (km²)
1,284,000
2024 Growth Rate
Capital
GDP (IMF '23)
$12.60
GDP (UN '22)
$16.80 Bn

Chad - General Info

Sources