Sri Lanka Population 2024 (Live)

21,933,155

At the end of 2020, the Sri Lanka population is expected to reach 21.41 million people. Current projections show that the population will reach its peak around 2037 at 22.19 million people, after which the population will begin declining. By the end of the century, the population is expected to fall to 15.46 million people.

Population growth in Sri Lanka has been below 1.00% since 2000. From 2019 to 2020, the population grew by 0.42%, adding about 89,000 people to the population. The fertility rate of 2.21 children per woman is above the population replacement rate of 2.1 children per woman; however, Sri Lanka experiences a significant negative net migration that slows population growth. As the fertility rate continues to decline in the coming decades, population growth will slow further before the negative migration takes over to decrease the population.

Sri Lanka Population Growth

On the other hand, due to the large number of youngsters in the country, the marriage rates have only gotten higher in the last few decades. The great number of marriages have also resulted in a greater rate of births as well. The birth rate in Sri Lanka has risen in the last few years to around 17.04 births per population of 1000 people. This is also why the population in the 0-14 year old age bracket makes up 24.1% of the total population.

Sri Lanka is a developing country with a lot of potential to grow if it can utilize its large work force and provide job and development opportunities for them. The country is steadily growing and needs to utilize its resources more carefully to sustain its development for the future.

Sri Lanka Population Projections

The current annual growth rate of 0.35% is projected to come to a standstill by around the year 2035. After this, the population is expected to slowly start to decrease. The Sri Lankan population is predicted to be 21,084,042 by 2020, 21,474,701 by 2030, and 21,397,716 by 2040. The slow rate of increase, followed by the equally slow rate of decrease in the future should keep the population extremely steady over the years to come.

Population Rank
Growth Rate
2024 World Percentage
Land Area
61,860
The current population of Sri Lanka is 21,933,155 based on projections of the latest United Nations data. The UN estimates the July 1, 2024 population at 21,949,268.

Sri Lanka Growth Rate

Sri Lanka Population 2024 (Live)

Sri Lanka Population Clock

Sri Lanka Population (as of 3/11/2024)21,933,155
Next UN Estimate (July 1, 2024)21,949,268
Births per Day809
Deaths per Day452
Migrations per Day-212
Net Change per Day145
Population Change Since Jan. 110,295

Components of Population Change

One birth every 1.78 minutes
One death every 3.18 minutes
One emigrant every 6.8 minutes
Net gain of one person every 9.93 minutes

Sri Lanka Population Clock

City
2024 Population
Colombo648,034
Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia219,827
Moratuwa185,031
Jaffna169,102
Negombo137,223
Pita Kotte118,179
Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte115,826
Kandy111,701
Trincomalee108,420
Kalmunai100,171

Sri Lanka Area and Population Density

This island located in the Indian Ocean has approximately 65,610 square kilometers available within its borders. It has 1,340 kilometers of coastline. The amount of area available calculated in relation to the number of people residing in this country gives us an average population density of approximately 319 individuals per square kilometer.

Largest Cities in Sri Lanka

The most populated city in Sri Lanka is also the capital city as well as an ancient port. This city is Columbo, with a population of 648,034. In second place, is Mount Lavinia - a suburban area that features golden beaches and just over 219,000 individuals. In a close third place, Galkissa comes in with just over 215,000 residents.

Sri Lanka Population Density Map

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Year
Population
Growth Rate
Density (/km²)
Population Rank
Density Rank
202421,949,2680.27%3506138
202321,893,5790.29%3496138
202021,715,0790.3%3465839
201921,649,6640.32%3455839
201821,580,7100.34%3445840
201721,506,8130.38%3435840
201521,336,6970.64%3405740
201020,668,5570.99%3305739
200519,673,8660.94%3145437
200018,776,3710.65%2995238
199518,177,5721.11%2904936
199017,204,0941.34%2744834
198516,092,3381.49%2574533
198014,943,6451.81%2384531
197513,662,8731.98%2184431
197012,388,7692.34%1984329
196511,035,2242.44%1764335
19609,783,8712.26%1564436
19558,749,6271.95%1404538

Sri Lanka Population by Year (Historical)

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Year
Population
Growth Rate
Density (/km²)
Population Rank
Density Rank
202421,949,2680.27%3506138
202522,000,2460.26%3516238
203022,186,9700.17%3546539
203522,278,7450.08%3556639
204022,263,893-0.01%3556940
204522,112,321-0.14%3537044
205021,814,985-0.27%3487444
205521,394,260-0.39%3417445
206020,889,752-0.48%3337445
206520,323,834-0.55%3247546
207019,694,118-0.63%3147649
207518,999,945-0.71%3037750
208018,241,133-0.81%2917954
208517,425,401-0.91%2788257
209016,560,059-1.01%2648558
209515,645,483-1.13%2498864

Sri Lanka Population by Year (Projections)

Sri Lanka Population Pyramid 2024

Sri Lanka Median Age

33.7

Total

32.3

Male

35.1

Female

Sri Lanka Population by Age

There are people over age 18 in Sri Lanka.

Census Years

Year
Date
20222022
201221 March 2012
200117 July 2001

Sri Lanka Population Pyramid

Sri Lanka may seem like a small island lying southeast of India. It is growing at a rate of 0.913% annually and houses people from many different ethnicities and religions, which gives the country a multi-cultural and multi-ethnic identity.

Sri Lanka Demographics

Sri Lanka hosts a dynamic age structure that includes a very large age bracket of 25-54 year old individuals dominating the country. Around 42.6% of the population lies in that age bracket. Even though Sri Lanka is a developing economy, such a large working population is allowing it to pursue development projects and create a large number of jobs that can utilized by its inhabitants. This is not only helping many people to support their families, but is also helping Sri Lanka’s economy grow steadily in the last few years.

Moreover, the median age of people in Sri Lanka is estimated to be 31.1 years, with the median age of men being 30.1 years while females have a median age of 32.2 years. Furthermore, Sri Lanka has a high life expectancy of 75.94 years, with a male life expectancy at 72.43 years and female life expectancy at 79.59 years. This is also why 9.1% of the country's population is in the 54-65 year age bracket, while 8.1% of its population is above the age of 65. An estimate of the number of deaths each year in the Sri Lanka lies at 5.96 deaths per a population of 1000 people.

Sri Lanka is a country of multiple ethnicities, but the two most prominent are the Sinhalese and the Sri Lankan Tamils. The Sinhalese make up around 75% of the total population and are concentrated in the central and southwestern parts of the country. The Tamils make up around 11.9% of the total population and are thus the largest minority present in the country.

Sri Lanka Religion, Economy and Politics

The Sinhalese are predominantly Buddhist, and thus it is the major religion in the country, followed by Hinduism, which is actively practiced by the Tamils. The next most popular religion is Christianity, especially among the Burgher population.

The World Happiness Report gives some insight into the quality of life, as well as a couple additional features of living that some might not often think about. Overall, Sri Lanka rates life quality at 4.4, ranking at 116th in comparison to the countries of the world.

In terms of improved drinking water and sanitation access, 95.6% of the population has improved access to drinking water and 95.1% have improved access to sanitation facilities.

The national expenditure of 3.5% GDP on healthcare results in a physician density of .88 per 1,000 individuals and 3.6 beds per 1,000 residents in terms of hospital bed availability.

Sri Lanka Population History

From the 1500s-1800s Sri Lanka was going from the control of one European country to another, from the Portuguese to the Dutch, to the British. In 1948, Sri Lanka finally got its independence and formed its first government.

The country has seen a couple of cyclones in the 1900s, each which has killed thousands. There were also many civil and religious issues during the 20th century that led to many riots, terrorist attacks, and countless deaths. Unfortunately, this still plagues the country today.

Sri Lanka has had more than its fair share of natural disasters in the 21st century, with flooding in 2003 killing hundreds and leaving thousands homeless, an undersea earthquake in 2004 that killed over 30,000, and flooding that affected millions in 2011.

Sri Lanka Population Rank 2024
Area (km²)
65,610
2024 Growth Rate
Capital
GDP (IMF '23)
-
GDP (UN '22)
$76.19 Bn

Sri Lanka - General Info

Sources