Carlisle's 2026 population is now estimated at 74,027. In 2001, the population of Carlisle was 70,300. Carlisle experienced a decrease of -509 residents over the past year, marking an annual decline of -0.11%.
Carlisle is a city that is located in Cumbria in the North West region of England. The city has a population of 108,400 people.
Its area covers over 400 square miles (>1,000 square kilometers), making it England’s largest city by area. Much of the land, however, is rural and is not urbanized. The population density is about 251 people per square mile.
In addition to being a city, Carlisle has also been designated as a non-metropolitan district. Carlisle achieved city status in 1974 and since that time, has experienced a steadily growing population.
The majority of Carlisle’s inhabitants are white, accounting for 97.6% of the total population. There are also small populations of South Asian, Mixed, Black and Chinese residents. The city has grown more diverse since the 2001 UK Census, when over 99% of the population identified as white.
Over 80% of the population reported that they were Christian during the census. Other religious groups include Muslim, Buddhist, and Hindu. Eleven percent of the people do not have a religion, while almost 8% chose not to answer.
Over 20% of the residents in Carlisle work in the retail and wholesale industry, with 15.9% working in the manufacturing industry.
The population of Carlisle going back to the early 1800s has primarily seen growth. Population numbers began to grow from the initial population of approximately 32,825 residents in 1801. This number had doubled by 1871.
There was a 1.1% decrease between 1991 and 2001. However, a 6.6% rise in population between 2001 and 2011 shows that Carlisle will continue to experience population growth in the years to come.
| City | 2026 Pop. ↓ | Growth |
|---|---|---|
| London | 9,927,020 | 0.88% |
| Manchester | 2,853,370 | 0.73% |
| Birmingham | 2,724,410 | 0.73% |
| Glasgow | 1,730,280 | 0.66% |
| Southampton | 974,131 | 0.76% |
| Liverpool | 935,328 | 0.68% |
| Newcastle upon Tyne | 839,947 | 0.68% |
| Nottingham | 825,506 | 0.75% |
| Sheffield | 762,277 | 0.73% |
| Bristol | 725,939 | 0.82% |
| Belfast | 656,593 | 0.71% |
| Brighton | 637,322 | 0.77% |
| Leicester | 579,755 | 0.77% |
| Edinburgh | 568,163 | 0.82% |
| Bournemouth | 530,872 | 0.76% |
| Leeds | 516,298 | 1.01% |
| Cardiff | 498,999 | 0.73% |
| Coventry | 458,904 | 0.95% |
| Middlesbrough | 400,118 | 0.65% |
| Stoke-on-Trent | 399,450 | 0.66% |
| Bradford | 368,485 | 1.01% |
| Reading | 358,252 | 0.75% |
| Sunderland | 351,353 | 0.63% |
| Preston | 340,779 | 0.69% |
| Birkenhead | 338,036 | 0.61% |
| Kingston upon Hull | 330,607 | 0.64% |
| Newport | 326,945 | 0.66% |
| Swansea | 322,374 | 0.67% |
| Derby | 264,430 | 1% |
| Portsmouth | 248,748 | 1% |
| Plymouth | 240,297 | 1% |
| Wolverhampton | 221,754 | 1.01% |
| Aberdeen | 212,300 | 1% |
| York | 210,620 | 1.01% |
| Norwich | 199,245 | 1.01% |
| Peterborough | 179,349 | 1.01% |
| Gloucester | 163,212 | 1.01% |
| Oxford | 161,662 | 1% |
| Cambridge | 149,155 | 1% |
| Blackpool | 145,007 | 1% |
| Exeter | 127,709 | 1.01% |
| Chelmsford | 119,468 | 1.01% |
| Lincoln | 107,434 | 1.01% |
| Bath | 106,009 | 1.01% |
| St Albans | 88,448 | 1.01% |
| Chester | 87,881 | 1% |
| Paisley | 77,250 | 1% |
| Canterbury | 64,495 | 1.02% |
| Scarborough | 61,866 | 1% |
| Dunfermline | 54,640 | 1.01% |
| Torquay | 51,320 | 1% |
| Winchester | 48,818 | 1.01% |
| Inverness | 47,060 | 1% |
| Salisbury | 46,332 | 1% |
| Stirling | 37,670 | 1% |
| Dumfries | 33,290 | 1% |
| Chichester | 31,881 | 1.01% |
| Elgin | 24,080 | 0.99% |
| Sudbury | 23,835 | 1.01% |