Up until 2020, the Czech Republic’s population had experienced several periods of growth and decline. In 2020, the population stands at about 10.71 million people. While the Czech Republic is projected to experience a few years of growth, its population is expected to peak at 10.76 million people in 2026 and then decline in the years following. By the end of the century, the Czech Republic’s population is projected to be 10.27 million people.
The Czech Republic is currently growing at a rate of 0.18%. The fertility rate is relatively low at 1.64 births per woman which is also well below the population replacement rate of 2.1 births.
The Czech Republic’s low fertility rates and declining population lead to an increasingly aging population. The median age in the Czech Republic is now 43.2 years, ten years older than it was in 1980. The aging population will lead to an unmet demand for qualified workers, less of economic competitiveness, and weakening of innovative industries.
Today, the Czech Republic has one of the lowest fertility rates in the world, well below replacement value, and growth is now entirely driven by immigration. The country is currently growing at a very slow 0.1% a year and there hasn't bee significant net change in the population for quite some time.
The slow growth rate of the Czech Republic is so close to zero and even slowing so that the population is projected to begin decreasing by 2022. The decrease in population will be about as slow as the growth has been and it is unlikely that the country will see any significant changes in their numbers in the near future. Current projections state that the population of the Czech Republic will be 10,633,424 in 202, 10,528,196 in 2030, 10,254,847 in 2040, and 10,054,302 in 2050.
| Czech Republic Population (as of 10/15/2024) | 10,703,573 |
| Last UN Estimate (July 1, 2024) | 10,735,900 |
| Births per Day | 247 |
| Deaths per Day | 316 |
| Migrations per Day | -236 |
| Net Change per Day | -305 |
| Population Change Since Jan. 1 | -87,840 |
Net decrease of 1 person every 4.72 minutes
Population estimates based on interpolation of data from World Population Prospects
| One birth every 5.83 minutes | |
| One death every 4.55 minutes | |
| One emigrant every 6.1 minutes | |
| Net loss of one person every 4.72 minutes |
City | 2024 Pop. |
|---|---|
| Prague | 1,165,581 |
| Brno | 369,559 |
| Ostrava | 313,088 |
| Pilsen | 164,180 |
| Olomouc | 101,268 |
| Liberec | 97,770 |
| Ceske Budejovice | 96,053 |
| Hradec Kralove | 95,195 |
| Usti nad Labem | 94,105 |
| Pardubice | 88,741 |
Located in central Europe, the hilly country of the Czech Republic is landlocked and surrounded by Germany, Poland, Slovakia, and Austria. The Czech Republic covers a total surface area of 30,450 square miles (78,865 square kilometers), which ranks 118th in the world in terms of size. The country's population density is 347 people per square mile (134 people per square kilometer), which ranks 62nd in the world.
3 out of every 4 people living in the Czech Republic live within, or very close to, a metropolitan area. The capital and largest city of the Czech Republic is Prague with an estimated 1.3 million people, with a metropolitan population of 2.7 million. Prague is not only the capital of the Czech Republic, but is also widely considered a European capital because of its culture, arts, industry, architecture, and history. Other major cities include Brno (386,000 city, 730,000 metro) and Ostrava (305,000 city, 1.1 million metro).
Year | Population | Change | Density (/km²) | Population Rank | Density Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 10,735,900 | 0.34% | 139 | 89 | 89 |
| 2023 | 10,809,700 | 0.49% | 140 | 87 | 89 |
| 2020 | 10,550,100 | -0.04% | 137 | 88 | 89 |
| 2019 | 10,554,900 | 0.06% | 137 | 87 | 89 |
| 2018 | 10,548,900 | 0.07% | 137 | 86 | 87 |
| 2017 | 10,541,300 | 0.09% | 136 | 86 | 86 |
| 2015 | 10,524,400 | 0.11% | 136 | 85 | 86 |
| 2010 | 10,464,000 | 0.36% | 135 | 80 | 82 |
| 2005 | 10,280,200 | 0.08% | 133 | 79 | 80 |
| 2000 | 10,236,800 | -0.15% | 133 | 75 | 77 |
| 1995 | 10,312,000 | 0.02% | 134 | 70 | 72 |
| 1990 | 10,302,000 | -0.01% | 133 | 66 | 69 |
| 1985 | 10,305,100 | 0.06% | 133 | 60 | 64 |
| 1980 | 10,275,400 | 0.48% | 133 | 57 | 64 |
| 1975 | 10,030,800 | 0.46% | 130 | 56 | 61 |
| 1970 | 9,801,250 | 0.19% | 127 | 54 | 56 |
| 1965 | 9,706,850 | 0.34% | 126 | 49 | 50 |
| 1960 | 9,541,600 | 0.54% | 124 | 45 | 46 |
| 1955 | 9,289,420 | 0.82% | 120 | 39 | 43 |
Year | Population | Change | Density (/km²) | Population Rank | Density Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 10,735,900 | 0.34% | 139 | 89 | 89 |
| 2025 | 10,609,200 | 0.11% | 137 | 92 | 90 |
| 2030 | 10,425,100 | -0.35% | 135 | 94 | 94 |
| 2035 | 10,266,000 | -0.31% | 133 | 96 | 97 |
| 2040 | 10,107,200 | -0.31% | 131 | 96 | 101 |
| 2045 | 9,965,090 | -0.28% | 129 | 96 | 104 |
| 2050 | 9,825,540 | -0.28% | 127 | 97 | 107 |
| 2055 | 9,659,900 | -0.34% | 125 | 101 | 112 |
| 2060 | 9,451,250 | -0.44% | 122 | 103 | 113 |
| 2065 | 9,209,100 | -0.52% | 119 | 106 | 115 |
| 2070 | 8,972,730 | -0.52% | 116 | 109 | 117 |
| 2075 | 8,776,580 | -0.44% | 114 | 109 | 119 |
| 2080 | 8,627,730 | -0.34% | 112 | 109 | 120 |
| 2085 | 8,513,350 | -0.27% | 110 | 109 | 120 |
| 2090 | 8,418,480 | -0.22% | 109 | 110 | 120 |
| 2095 | 8,328,820 | -0.21% | 108 | 110 | 119 |
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe that was formerly Bohemia. Bordered by Slovakia, Austria, Germany, and Poland, the Czech Republic is the 116th largest country in the world by area.
On July 5, 2016, the Czech Republic registered its short-form name, Czechia (pronounced CHECK-iya). Politicians wanted to change the name to make it easier for companies and sports teams to use it on their products. Additionally, they wanted an easier version of the name for English speakers. Both Czechia and the Czech Republic are correct when referring to the country.
64% of the Czech Republic's population is Czech, followed by Moravians (5%), Slovaks (1.4%), Poles (0.4%) and Germans (0.2%). At the last census in 2011, "nationality" was optional and about 26% left this blank. It's estimated that the Czech Republic is home to 250,000 Romani people, as well as 440,000 foreigners, the largest group being Ukranian (140,000) followed by Slovak, Vietnamese, Russian and Polish.
The Nazis almost completely destroyed the Jewish population in the region, which dropped from 118,000 in 1930 to just 4,000 in 2005.
The country has one of the least religious populations globally with the third-highest percentage of atheists (34%) after China and Japan. The Czech people have historically been considered indifferent toward religion in general. A poll in 2010 found that just 16% of Czechs say they do believe in a God, which is the lowest rate among all European Union countries.
While part of the economy of the European Union, the Czech Republic uses its currency, the Czech koruna, and has a fairly stable economy on its own. The Czech economy is highly dependent upon their exports, and services like high tech engineering, electronics, automotive, and machine-building account for 60% of their GDP. The industry sector makes up most of the remainder of their economy. Agriculture makes up a small 2.5% of the nation's GDP and includes products like cereals, vegetable oils, and hops. The government in the Czech Republic is a unitary parliamentary constitutional republic, which means that there is both a president in charge of the state and a prime minister that leads the government.
Evidence of prehistoric human settlements in the region date back to the Paleolithic era, and the modern-day Czech Republic has been inhabited and conquered by many groups over its long history. About 1.4 million people from Czechoslovakia fought in World War 1, and by 1938, the country was 10th in world industrial production. It was eventually occupied by Germany and later peacefully divided into the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic in 1993.