According to current projections, Zimbabwe’s population is expected to continue growing throughout the rest of the century. At the end of 2020, the population is estimated to be 14.86 million people and is expected to reach 30.96 million by 2099, more than double its current population.
Zimbabwe’s population growth rate is 1.48%, which is expected to slow significantly towards the end of the century, causing the population growth curve to flatten. Zimbabwe has a relatively high fertility rate of 3.63 children per woman. Despite a negative net migration, the fertility rate helps the population grow by 200,000 each year. The fertility rate also plays a huge role in keep Zimbabwe’s population young with a median age of 18.7 years old.
The population projecting to double in Zimbabwe exacerbates the country’s struggles, especially concerning poverty and unemployment, which are both significantly high.
The rate of population growth has been consistently on the rise since 2005, and it has been having positive impacts on Zimbabwe economically and politically. Although difficult to prove causation, foreign domestic investment, exports, inflation rate, and interest rate have all been moving in a healthy direction since the population has been growing at a healthy rate. The birth rate in Zimbabwe is roughly 3.75 children born per woman, which is a much more sustainable number than many surrounding nations- accounting for the 2019 annual growth rate of 2.27% and a population of 17,297,495.
The rate of growth in Zimbabwe is expected to decrease by roughly one percentage point over the next 30 years, although the population will still be growing substantially during that time. Current projections estimate that the growth rate will peak in 2020 at 2.3%, before gradually declining toward 1.39% in 2050. These predictions estimate that the population will be 17,680,465 in 2020, 21,526,861 in 2030, 25,625,981 in 2040, and 29,658,750 in 2050.
| Zimbabwe Population (as of 10/15/2024) | 16,724,937 |
| Last UN Estimate (July 1, 2024) | 16,634,400 |
| Births per Day | 1,361 |
| Deaths per Day | 341 |
| Migrations per Day | -166 |
| Net Change per Day | 854 |
| Population Change Since Jan. 1 | 245,952 |
Net increase of 1 person every 1.68 minutes
Population estimates based on interpolation of data from World Population Prospects
| One birth every 1.05 minutes | |
| One death every 4.22 minutes | |
| One emigrant every 8.67 minutes | |
| Net gain of one person every 1.68 minutes |
City | 2024 Pop. |
|---|---|
| Harare | 1,542,813 |
| Bulawayo | 699,385 |
| Chitungwiza | 340,360 |
| Mutare | 184,205 |
| Gweru | 146,073 |
| Epworth | 123,250 |
| Kwekwe | 99,149 |
| Kadoma | 79,174 |
| Masvingo | 76,290 |
| Chinhoyi | 61,739 |
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country in southern Africa with a surface area of 150,872 square miles (390,757 square kilometers). In combination with its relatively small size, its also relatively sparsely populated. When calculated with the 2019 population of 14.65 million people, the population density of Zimbabwe is 97.1 people per square mile (37.5 people per square kilometer), which ranks 142nd in the world.
Zimbabwe has a few significantly sized cities, with roughly 32% of the population living in urban areas. Two cities have populations over one million: Harare and Bulawayo with populations of 1,606,000 and 1,200,337, respectively. Harare is the capital of Zimbabwe and is also the cultural center of the country. Bulawayo, on the other hand, serves as the industrial center of Zimbabwe. Other much smaller cities with populations over 100,000 include Chitungwiza, Mutare, Epworth, and Gweru.
Year | Population | Change | Density (/km²) | Population Rank | Density Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 16,634,400 | 1.73% | 43 | 74 | 171 |
| 2023 | 16,340,800 | 1.68% | 42 | 74 | 171 |
| 2020 | 15,526,900 | 1.67% | 40 | 74 | 170 |
| 2019 | 15,271,400 | 1.58% | 39 | 74 | 170 |
| 2018 | 15,034,500 | 1.5% | 39 | 74 | 171 |
| 2017 | 14,812,500 | 1.45% | 38 | 74 | 172 |
| 2015 | 14,399,000 | 1.51% | 37 | 73 | 171 |
| 2010 | 13,356,500 | 1.36% | 35 | 71 | 170 |
| 2005 | 12,483,400 | 0.97% | 32 | 70 | 173 |
| 2000 | 11,892,100 | 1.62% | 31 | 66 | 171 |
| 1995 | 10,974,600 | 1.6% | 28 | 64 | 168 |
| 1990 | 10,137,300 | 3.14% | 26 | 69 | 167 |
| 1985 | 8,686,810 | 4.29% | 22 | 71 | 168 |
| 1980 | 7,041,300 | 2.92% | 18 | 75 | 171 |
| 1975 | 6,098,660 | 3.18% | 16 | 79 | 173 |
| 1970 | 5,215,920 | 3.19% | 13 | 79 | 175 |
| 1965 | 4,458,460 | 3.2% | 12 | 82 | 177 |
| 1960 | 3,809,390 | 3.14% | 10 | 86 | 176 |
| 1955 | 3,263,220 | 3.18% | 8 | 89 | 179 |
Year | Population | Change | Density (/km²) | Population Rank | Density Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 16,634,400 | 1.73% | 43 | 74 | 171 |
| 2025 | 16,950,800 | 1.77% | 44 | 74 | 170 |
| 2030 | 18,610,300 | 1.89% | 48 | 73 | 166 |
| 2035 | 20,409,100 | 1.86% | 53 | 70 | 164 |
| 2040 | 22,250,100 | 1.74% | 58 | 68 | 160 |
| 2045 | 24,102,400 | 1.61% | 62 | 67 | 157 |
| 2050 | 25,866,400 | 1.42% | 67 | 65 | 153 |
| 2055 | 27,563,900 | 1.28% | 71 | 65 | 149 |
| 2060 | 29,129,000 | 1.11% | 75 | 63 | 147 |
| 2065 | 30,625,000 | 1.01% | 79 | 62 | 144 |
| 2070 | 32,010,400 | 0.89% | 83 | 61 | 141 |
| 2075 | 33,302,300 | 0.79% | 86 | 61 | 137 |
| 2080 | 34,440,000 | 0.67% | 89 | 61 | 133 |
| 2085 | 35,387,600 | 0.54% | 91 | 61 | 131 |
| 2090 | 36,154,200 | 0.43% | 93 | 60 | 127 |
| 2095 | 36,739,700 | 0.32% | 95 | 59 | 125 |
20.5
Total
20.3
Male
20.6
Female
There are people over age 18 in Zimbabwe.
Year | Date |
|---|---|
| 2022 | August 2022 |
| 2012 | 27 August 2012 |
| 2002 | 27 August 2002 |
| 1992 | 18 August 1992 |
Bantu-speaking ethnic groups account for 98% of Zimbabwe's population. The largest group is the Shona, comprising 70%, followed by the Ndebele at 20%. The Ndebele are descendants of the Zulu migrations during the 19th century and the tribes with which they intermarried. It's estimated that about 1 million Ndebele have left Zimbabwe in the last 5 years. There are also other Bantu ethnic groups, including Venda, Tonga, Shangaan, Nambya and Kalanga.
White Zimbabweans account for less than 1% of the country's population, and most are of British origin with small numbers of Greek, Portuguese, French and Dutch. In 1975, the white population reached a peak of 4.3%. Mixed race people account for 0.5% of the population.
Christianity is by far the dominant religion in Zimbabwe, with 69.2% professing to be Protestant, and 8.0% practicing Catholicism, and 6.9% nondenominational Christian- totaling 84.1% of the population. The next most common belief in Zimbabwe is no belief at all- with 10.2% of the population declaring themselves Atheist or agnostic. The remaining 5.7% of the population either practice a traditional African religion or are Muslim.
In 2006, Zimbabwe had the lowest life expectancy in the world, and an alarming HIV rate. It's estimated 14% of people between 15-49 are infected, with 21% of women infected with HIV. The access to clean drinking water has been improved for 96.1% of the population. In terms of improved sanitation facility access, only 85.2% has improved access. 94.5% of the population is literate, with a national expenditure of 5.3% of the GDP. 37.9% of the population in Zimbabwe lives in extreme poverty.
What we know as Zimbabwe today, began its formation when refugees fleeing Zulu violence or migrating from Boer moved to the land from the south in the 1830s. Around the same time, Europeans began exploring and expressing interest in the region. Zimbabwe was declared a British colony in 1889, bringing an influx of European settlers. Zimbabwe became an independent country under the rule of the white minority in 1965 causing civil and international outrage. Zimbabwe gained full independence in 1980.
The people of Zimbabwe have long experienced poverty, and it came to a head in the early 2000s when a state of disaster was declared due to food shortages. In 2005, the government lead an initiative to "clean up" the country, by destroying the dwellings of its poorest citizens, leaving 700,000 people homeless in 2005.