According to current projections, Malawi’s population is expected to surpass 50 million people by 2058 and reach 66.21 million by the end of the century. With a current population of about 19.13 million for 2020, this means that Malawi’s population is expected to more than triple by 2099.
Malawi’s population grew 2.69% from 2019 to 2020, adding about 500,000 people to the population. While Malawi experiences negative net migration, the fertility rate of 4.25 births per woman helps boost the population growth.
Malawi’s rapid population growth will challenge the country’s ability to meet the needs of its people and its health, education, economic, and agricultural sectors. The rapid population growth will also lead to environmental degradation and faster depletion of resources, such as clean water, as well as create an even larger poverty problem.
| Malawi Population (as of 11/25/2023) | 21,148,423 |
| Last UN Estimate (July 1, 2023) | 20,931,751 |
| Births per Day | 1,859 |
| Deaths per Day | 378 |
| Migrations per Day | -16 |
| Net Change per Day | 1,464 |
| Population Change Since Jan. 1 | 481,656 |
Net increase of 1 person every 59 seconds
Population estimates based on interpolation of data from World Population Prospects
| One birth every 46 seconds | |
| One death every 3.82 minutes | |
| One emigrant every 90 minutes | |
| Net gain of one person every 59 seconds |
City | Population |
|---|---|
| Lilongwe | 646,750 |
| Blantyre | 584,877 |
| Mzuzu | 175,345 |
| Zomba | 80,932 |
| Kasungu | 42,555 |
| Mangochi | 40,236 |
| Karonga | 34,207 |
| Salima | 30,052 |
| Nkhotakota | 24,865 |
| Liwonde | 22,469 |
Malawi has a land area of almost 119,000 square kilometers, or 99th in the world, with an estimated population of 17.2 million. Malawi still has a fairly low population density of 129 people per square kilometer (86th in the world).
Malawi has a low urban population at only 16.45%, and there are just three cities in Malawi. The capital is Lilongwe (978,000 in 2014), while the largest city is Blantyre (1.9 million in 2014) -- the commercial capital -- and Mzuzu (1.7 million in the outskirts, 130,000 in the city).
Year | Population | Growth Rate | Density (km²) | Population Rank | Density Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | 3,240,318 | 1.9% | 34.37 | 90 | 112 |
| 1960 | 3,621,081 | 2.25% | 38.41 | 90 | 112 |
| 1965 | 4,089,097 | 2.46% | 43.37 | 90 | 113 |
| 1970 | 4,625,141 | 2.49% | 49.06 | 87 | 112 |
| 1975 | 5,280,965 | 2.69% | 56.01 | 84 | 113 |
| 1980 | 6,267,369 | 3.48% | 66.48 | 82 | 112 |
| 1985 | 7,625,078 | 4% | 80.88 | 78 | 104 |
| 1990 | 9,539,665 | 4.58% | 101.18 | 72 | 89 |
| 1995 | 10,112,816 | 1.17% | 107.26 | 73 | 87 |
| 2000 | 11,229,387 | 2.12% | 119.11 | 70 | 84 |
| 2005 | 12,755,648 | 2.58% | 135.30 | 69 | 78 |
| 2010 | 14,718,422 | 2.9% | 156.11 | 67 | 72 |
| 2015 | 16,938,942 | 2.85% | 179.67 | 66 | 73 |
| 2017 | 17,881,167 | 2.73% | 189.66 | 65 | 72 |
| 2018 | 18,367,883 | 2.72% | 194.82 | 65 | 72 |
| 2019 | 18,867,337 | 2.72% | 200.12 | 64 | 72 |
| 2020 | 19,377,061 | 2.7% | 205.53 | 63 | 70 |
| 2022 | 20,405,317 | 2.68% | 216.43 | 62 | 68 |
| 2023 | 20,931,751 | 2.65% | 222.02 | 62 | 66 |
Year | Population | Growth Rate | Density (km²) | Population Rank | Density Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 20,931,751 | 2.65% | 222.02 | 62 | 66 |
| 2024 | 21,475,962 | 2.62% | 227.79 | 62 | 65 |
| 2025 | 22,033,992 | 2.6% | 233.71 | 61 | 65 |
| 2030 | 24,944,243 | 2.51% | 264.58 | 60 | 56 |
| 2035 | 27,975,136 | 2.32% | 296.72 | 59 | 52 |
| 2040 | 31,059,544 | 2.11% | 329.44 | 58 | 47 |
| 2045 | 34,126,156 | 1.9% | 361.97 | 59 | 41 |
| 2050 | 37,159,300 | 1.72% | 394.14 | 56 | 41 |
| 2055 | 40,111,554 | 1.54% | 425.45 | 56 | 39 |
| 2060 | 42,963,917 | 1.38% | 455.71 | 53 | 37 |
| 2065 | 45,653,352 | 1.22% | 484.23 | 52 | 32 |
| 2070 | 48,166,813 | 1.08% | 510.89 | 50 | 31 |
| 2075 | 50,473,009 | 0.94% | 535.35 | 48 | 28 |
| 2080 | 52,543,916 | 0.81% | 557.32 | 45 | 26 |
| 2085 | 54,400,048 | 0.7% | 577.01 | 44 | 25 |
| 2090 | 56,005,998 | 0.58% | 594.04 | 44 | 25 |
| 2095 | 57,377,618 | 0.48% | 608.59 | 44 | 23 |
16.8
Total
16.7
Male
16.9
Female
There are people over age 18 in Malawi.
Year | Date |
|---|---|
| 1987 | 21 September 1987 |
| 1998 | 21 September 1998 |
| 2008 | 28 June 2008 |
| 2018 | 2018 |
Malawi has several ethnic groups, including the Chewa, Nyanja, Yao, Tumbuka, Lomwe, Sena, Tonga, Ngoni, and Ngonde. There are sizable populations of Europeans and Asians. The official language is Chichewa, spoken by 57% of the population although English, Chinyanja, Chiyao, and Chitumbuka are spoken by a large percentage of people. There are also several native languages, such as Malawian Lomwe, Kokola, Lambya, Ndali, and Nyakyusa-Ngonde.
The main religions are Christianity and Islam. There are no accurate estimates on the religious affiliation of Malawi's population, but it is estimated that 68% of the country is Christian while 25% is Muslim.
Malawi is one of the least developed countries in the world with an economy centered on agriculture and a population that is mostly rural. The government depends a great deal of outside aid. There is a low life expectancy in Malawi with a high infant mortality rate and a high prevalence of HIV/AIDS (12% of the population).
What we now know as Malawi was formed by various indigenous tribes to create what was then the "Kingdom of Maravi" in the 1500s. In the late 1800s, a Scottish explorer identified the land as something he wanted, developed a trade route to the country via a river, and the country came under British rule before the turn of the 20th century. The indigenous people revolted against the British and formed their own Congress by the 1950s. By the 60s, Malawi declared independence with a leader named Banda, who declared himself president for life.
Between 2002-2005, drought caused widespread death of crops that affected both the economy, food, and water supply. However, this didn't have a dramatic effect on the rate of population growth, which has stayed around 3% annually since 2000.