Ireland Flag

Ireland

Population

5,371,527

Estimated as of Oct 22, 2026View source
Population rank
125th
Share of world
0.06%
Annual change
+48,9111.27%

Population of Ireland

5M10M15M20M25M95% prediction intervalProjected peak20265.4M2050 projection6M↑ 11% from 202619601980200020202040206020802100

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

Current population estimate: 5,371,527. 2050 projection: 5,970,042.Use the arrow keys on the chart to inspect individual years.

Historical population estimates for Ireland. Annual change is shown as a percentage.
20265,356,9501.27%125
20255,308,0391.27%125
20204,982,6061.00%125
20194,933,4911.25%125
20184,872,5561.30%124
20174,810,2611.19%123
20154,702,4870.62%121
20104,559,0801.87%119
20054,155,2841.79%122
20003,802,5851.04%126

Showing 10 of 19 years.

Population by City

Dublin is home to 1,327,053 people, 24.77% of Ireland's population.

City population1M500K200K
Dublin 1.3MCork 232.3KLimerick 108.1KGalway 90.1KWaterford 64.9KDrogheda 46.4KDundalk 46.1KSwords 41.8KBray 34.1KNaas 30.0K
Largest cities by 2026 population and share of the national population.
1Dublin1.3M24.77%
2Cork232.3K4.34%
3Limerick108.1K2.02%
4Galway90.1K1.68%
5Waterford64.9K1.21%
6Drogheda46.4K0.87%
7Dundalk46.1K0.86%
8Swords41.8K0.78%
9Bray34.1K0.64%
10Naas30.0K0.56%

Ireland by the Numbers

Estimated as of Oct 22, 2026

Population
Ireland is home to an estimated 5,371,527 people, the 125th largest population in the world.
Daily change
Ireland has a net population change of approximately 129 people per day, driven by 144 births, 103 deaths, and net immigration of 88 people.
Share of world
Ireland makes up 0.06% of the world's population and 0.72% of Europe's.
Density
77.8 people per km² of land (201.4 per mi²), ranking 140th among countries and territories.
Urban living
64.59% of people live in urban areas.

Ireland Demographics

Age & longevity

MaleFemale100+ years, male: 173100+ years, female: 75995–99 years, male: 2,04295–99 years, female: 5,20990–94 years, male: 9,59290–94 years, female: 17,56485–89 years, male: 27,02885–89 years, female: 37,72280–84 years, male: 54,95280–84 years, female: 65,38475–79 years, male: 85,11775–79 years, female: 93,52970–74 years, male: 108,17070–74 years, female: 114,49265–69 years, male: 129,12065–69 years, female: 135,05060–64 years, male: 146,88260–64 years, female: 153,06355–59 years, male: 164,33055–59 years, female: 166,61950–54 years, male: 184,97950–54 years, female: 189,60445–49 years, male: 202,19545–49 years, female: 211,90040–44 years, male: 185,31340–44 years, female: 201,10135–39 years, male: 162,42035–39 years, female: 168,69330–34 years, male: 156,56330–34 years, female: 154,06825–29 years, male: 172,44225–29 years, female: 167,27420–24 years, male: 183,98920–24 years, female: 177,31515–19 years, male: 192,60215–19 years, female: 184,34310–14 years, male: 178,27410–14 years, female: 169,8645–9 years, male: 162,6905–9 years, female: 155,9770–4 years, male: 142,9030–4 years, female: 135,648100+95–9990–9485–8980–8475–7970–7465–6960–6455–5950–5445–4940–4435–3930–3425–2920–2415–1910–145–90–4100K100K

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

Median age

40.2 yrs

World: 31

Life expectancy

82.9 yrs

World: 73.8

Male

49.50%

Female

50.50%

Life expectancy 81Life expectancy 84.9

Ethnicity

76.6%

Irish

  • Irish76.6%
  • Other White9.9%
  • Unspecified6.4%
  • Asian3.3%
  • Other1.7%
  • Black1.5%
  • Irish travelers0.6%
Data notes

Source estimate: 2022 est.

Religion

69%

Roman Catholic, the largest religion

  • Roman Catholic69%
  • None13%
  • Unspecified7.6%
  • Other Christian4.2%
  • Church of Ireland2.7%
  • Other1.9%
  • Muslim1.5%
Data notes

Source estimate: 2022 est.

Related Pages

Sources

  1. World Population Prospects (2024 Revision) - United Nations population estimates and projections.
  2. World Population Prospects (2024 Revision) - Ireland United Nations Graphs/Profiles
  3. World Bank / UN World Urbanization Prospects - 2025: Urban population (% of total population), using national definitions.
  4. Ireland Central Statistics Office
  5. 2016 Preliminary Census Results