Mauritania Flag

Mauritania

Population

5,506,745

Estimated as of Oct 22, 2026View source
Population rank
123rd
Share of world
0.07%
Annual change
+146,2542.90%

Population of Mauritania

05M10M15M20M25M30M35M40M20265.5M2050 projection9.4M↑ 71% from 202619601980200020202040206020802100

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

95% prediction interval

Current population estimate: 5,506,745. 2050 projection: 9,415,598.Use the arrow keys on the chart to inspect individual years.

Historical population estimates for Mauritania. Annual change is shown as a percentage.
20265,461,3192.90%123
20255,315,0652.93%124
20204,600,1312.96%126
20194,467,7083.00%127
20184,337,6853.02%127
20174,210,6003.03%127
20153,965,9593.18%128
20103,390,9652.90%132
20052,939,0592.38%136
20002,613,4412.48%136

Showing 10 of 19 years.

Population by City

Nouakchott is home to 1,637,012 people, 29.97% of Mauritania's population.

City population1M700K200K
Nouakchott 1.6MNouadhibou 194.7KKiffa 79.8KZouerate 69.0KKaedi 61.9KSelibabi 46.7KRosso 45.8KGuerou 40.5KNema 40.0KAioun 39.6K
Largest cities by 2026 population and share of the national population.
1Nouakchott1.6M29.97%
2Nouadhibou194.7K3.57%
3Kiffa79.8K1.46%
4Zouerate69.0K1.26%
5Kaedi61.9K1.13%
6Selibabi46.7K0.86%
7Rosso45.8K0.84%
8Guerou40.5K0.74%
9Nema40.0K0.73%
10Aioun39.6K0.72%

Mauritania by the Numbers

Estimated as of Oct 22, 2026

Population
Mauritania is home to an estimated 5,506,745 people, the 123rd largest population in the world.
Daily change
Mauritania has a net population change of approximately 402 people per day, driven by 496 births, 78 deaths, and net emigration of 16 people.
Share of world
Mauritania makes up 0.07% of the world's population and 0.34% of Africa's.
Density
5.3 people per km² of land (13.7 per mi²), ranking 222nd among countries and territories.
Urban living
61.49% of people live in urban areas.

Mauritania Demographics

Age & longevity

MaleFemale100+ years, male: 11100+ years, female: 2195–99 years, male: 10595–99 years, female: 19690–94 years, male: 60790–94 years, female: 99385–89 years, male: 2,47785–89 years, female: 3,52980–84 years, male: 6,54580–84 years, female: 8,74275–79 years, male: 13,22775–79 years, female: 16,63470–74 years, male: 22,84770–74 years, female: 27,40465–69 years, male: 34,77565–69 years, female: 40,45160–64 years, male: 47,15860–64 years, female: 54,46755–59 years, male: 61,18055–59 years, female: 70,35550–54 years, male: 75,08050–54 years, female: 87,65745–49 years, male: 91,11745–49 years, female: 106,45740–44 years, male: 113,90440–44 years, female: 129,80535–39 years, male: 138,45635–39 years, female: 154,82530–34 years, male: 166,77630–34 years, female: 182,73125–29 years, male: 198,72425–29 years, female: 212,34320–24 years, male: 244,59520–24 years, female: 250,96415–19 years, male: 302,34115–19 years, female: 297,83910–14 years, male: 348,70810–14 years, female: 339,7925–9 years, male: 386,6995–9 years, female: 377,7650–4 years, male: 426,8050–4 years, female: 416,233100+95–9990–9485–8980–8475–7970–7465–6960–6455–5950–5445–4940–4435–3930–3425–2920–2415–1910–145–90–4200K200K

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

Median age

18.5 yrs

World: 31

Life expectancy

69.2 yrs

World: 73.8

Male

49.11%

Female

50.89%

Life expectancy 67.1Life expectancy 71.2

Ethnicity

40%

Black Moors (Haratines - Arabic-speaking descendants of African origin who are or were enslaved)

  • Black Moors (Haratines - Arabic-speaking descendants of African origin who are or were enslaved)40%
  • White Moors (Beydane - descendants of the Bani Hassan tribe)30%
  • Sub-Saharan Mauritanians (non-Arabic speaking, largely resident in or originating from the Senegal River Valley)30%
Data notes

Source estimate: est.

Sub-Saharan Mauritanians (non-Arabic speaking, largely resident in or originating from the Senegal River Valley): including Halpulaar, Fulani, Soninke, Wolof, and Bambara ethnic groups

Religion

100%

Muslim (official), the largest religion

  • Muslim (official)100%
Data notes

Source estimate: 2020 est.

Related Pages

Sources

  1. World Population Prospects (2024 Revision) - United Nations population estimates and projections.
  2. World Population Prospects (2024 Revision) - Mauritania United Nations Graphs/Profiles
  3. World Bank / UN World Urbanization Prospects - 2025: Urban population (% of total population), using national definitions.
  4. Open Data for Africa