Central African Republic Flag

Central African Republic

Population

5,756,840

Estimated as of Oct 22, 2026View source
Population rank
118th
Share of world
0.07%
Annual change
+185,7022.20%

Population of Central African Republic

010M20M30M40M50M60M70M20265.8M2050 projection10.6M↑ 84% from 202619601980200020202040206020802100

Source: United Nations — World Population Prospects (2024 Revision)

95% prediction interval

Current population estimate: 5,756,840. 2050 projection: 10,616,752.Use the arrow keys on the chart to inspect individual years.

Historical population estimates for Central African Republic. Annual change is shown as a percentage.
20265,698,9842.20%118
20255,513,2821.87%121
20205,026,6281.66%124
20194,944,7031.35%124
20184,878,6571.78%123
20174,793,5111.69%124
20154,629,3200.60%123
20104,492,9950.94%121
20054,288,8102.27%119
20003,833,4162.75%124

Showing 10 of 19 years.

Population by City

Bangui is home to 865,084 people, 15.18% of Central African Republic's population.

City population800K300K100K
Bangui 865.1KBimbo 348.8KPaoua 346.2KBegoua 264.1KBambari 244.3KBerberati 203.5KMbaiki 196.2KBouar 187.8KBossangoa 178.6K
Largest cities by 2026 population and share of the national population.
1Bangui865.1K15.18%
2Bimbo348.8K6.12%
3Paoua346.2K6.07%
4Begoua264.1K4.63%
5Bambari244.3K4.29%
6Berberati203.5K3.57%
7Mbaiki196.2K3.44%
8Bouar187.8K3.30%
9Bossangoa178.6K3.13%
10Carnot160.0K2.81%

Central African Republic by the Numbers

Estimated as of Oct 22, 2026

Population
Central African Republic is home to an estimated 5,756,840 people, the 118th largest population in the world.
Daily change
Central African Republic has a net population change of approximately 512 people per day, driven by 698 births, 143 deaths, and net emigration of 43 people.
Share of world
Central African Republic makes up 0.07% of the world's population and 0.36% of Africa's.
Density
9.1 people per km² of land (23.7 per mi²), ranking 218th among countries and territories.
Urban living
44.55% of people live in urban areas.

Central African Republic Demographics

Age & longevity

MaleFemale95–99 years, male: 295–99 years, female: 1090–94 years, male: 7090–94 years, female: 21585–89 years, male: 72485–89 years, female: 1,31180–84 years, male: 2,99180–84 years, female: 4,41375–79 years, male: 7,69475–79 years, female: 10,35270–74 years, male: 16,11770–74 years, female: 22,24265–69 years, male: 24,63865–69 years, female: 36,69560–64 years, male: 31,54860–64 years, female: 50,52155–59 years, male: 38,96755–59 years, female: 60,36550–54 years, male: 42,16850–54 years, female: 60,01545–49 years, male: 50,07845–49 years, female: 68,79240–44 years, male: 64,43540–44 years, female: 91,00435–39 years, male: 93,05735–39 years, female: 125,68830–34 years, male: 140,13430–34 years, female: 171,16225–29 years, male: 208,34425–29 years, female: 239,47320–24 years, male: 285,00620–24 years, female: 298,98415–19 years, male: 352,46215–19 years, female: 350,96410–14 years, male: 407,29110–14 years, female: 399,4305–9 years, male: 432,0235–9 years, female: 425,0000–4 years, male: 546,8330–4 years, female: 537,779100+95–9990–9485–8980–8475–7970–7465–6960–6455–5950–5445–4940–4435–3930–3425–2920–2415–1910–145–90–4200K200K400K400K

Hover or tap an age group to see exact counts. Use the up and down arrow keys to inspect age groups.

Median age

15.6 yrs

World: 31

Life expectancy

58.2 yrs

World: 73.8

Male

48.16%

Female

51.84%

Life expectancy 56Life expectancy 60.1

Ethnicity

28.8%

Baya

  • Baya28.8%
  • Banda22.9%
  • Mandjia9.9%
  • Sara7.9%
  • M'Baka-Bantu7.9%
  • Arab-Fulani (Peuhl)6%
  • Mbum6%
  • Ngbanki5.5%
  • Zande-Nzakara3%
  • Other2.1%
Data notes

Source estimate: 2003 est.

Religion

89%

Christian, the largest religion

  • Christian89%
  • Muslim9%
  • folk religion1%
  • unaffiliated1%
Data notes

Source estimate: 2020 est.

Christian: Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant 48%, Other 1%

Related Pages

Sources

  1. World Population Prospects (2024 Revision) - United Nations population estimates and projections.
  2. World Population Prospects (2024 Revision) - Central African Republic United Nations Graphs/Profiles
  3. World Bank / UN World Urbanization Prospects - 2025: Urban population (% of total population), using national definitions.
  4. Direction Générale de la Statistiques, des Etudes Economiques et Sociales