Spanish Speaking Countries 2025
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5 Countries with the Most Spanish Speakers
Country | # of Spanish Speakers↓ | Official Language | Official Language Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Mexico | 127M | De facto | Academia Mexicana de la Lengua |
 | Colombia | 51.7M | De jure | Academia Colombiana de la Lengua |
 | Argentina | 45.8M | De facto | Academia Argentina de Letras |
 | Spain | 43.5M | De jure | Real Academia Española |
 | United States | 41.3M | Significant | Academia Norteamericana de la Lengua Española |
 | Venezuela | 32.8M | De jure | Academia Venezolana de la Lengua |
 | Peru | 29.2M | De jure | Academia Peruana de la Lengua |
 | Chile | 19.1M | De facto | Academia Chilena de la Lengua |
 | Ecuador | 15.3M | De jure | Academia Ecuatoriana de la Lengua |
 | Guatemala | 13.8M | De jure | Academia Guatemalteca de la Lengua |
 | Cuba | 11.2M | De jure | Academia Cubana de la Lengua |
 | Dominican Republic | 10.4M | De jure | Academia Dominicana de la Lengua |
 | Bolivia | 10.1M | De jure | Academia Boliviana de la Lengua |
 | Honduras | 9.6M | De jure | Academia Hondureña de la Lengua |
 | Nicaragua | 6.8M | De jure | Academia Nicaragüense de la Lengua |
 | El Salvador | 6.3M | De jure | Academia Salvadoreña de la Lengua |
 | Costa Rica | 5.2M | De jure | Academia Costarricense de la Lengua |
 | Paraguay | 5.2M | De jure | Academia Paraguaya de la Lengua Española |
 | Panama | 4.1M | De jure | Academia Panameña de la Lengua |
 | Uruguay | 3.4M | De facto | Academia Nacional de Letras |
 | Puerto Rico | 3.2M | De jure | Academia Puertorriqueña de la Lengua Española |
 | Equatorial Guinea | 1.3M | De jure | Academia Ecuatoguineana de la Lengua Española |
 | Philippines | 689K | Regional | |
 | Curacao | 185.2K | Official | |
 | Belize | 165.3K | Significant | |
 | Aruba | 100K | Official | |
 | Andorra | 40K | Significant | |
 | Gibraltar | 25.5K | Significant |
- Official languages can be classified as either de jure or de facto.
- A de jure (Latin for “by law”) language is one that is legally declared by the state to be an official language of the country.
- A de facto (Latin for “in fact”) laguage is one that is a country’s official language in actual practice whether it is legally declared to be or not.
- For example, Mexico has no legally designated (de jure) official language, but Spanish is the primary language used by both the government and the overwhelming majority of Mexican citizens, making it Mexico’s undisputed de facto official language.
- Note that de jure is not to be confused with the French du jour, which means “of the day”.
- Each country’s governing body is a division of the Association of Academies of the Spanish Language (ASALE),
- In the Caribbean Netherlands, the official language is a Spanish-based Creole known as Papiamento, which is the local variant spoken in the region.
The Spanish language is spoken in countries throughout the world. It is the majority language across 20 states and territories. This means that it is used as the primary language for communication across most of the population. Official documents are written in Spanish in these countries and territories, and it is taught to children in schools. Across these nations, there are over 442,000,000 people that speak Spanish.
Mexico is the Spanish-speaking nation with the highest population. As of 2014, Mexico has a population of over 120 million residents. It is the only country with a population of over 100 million that is primarily Spanish-speaking. Many Spanish-speaking countries are located around the world, most being located in South America, Latin America, and Europe.
All of the nations and territories that have Spanish as their majority language are (in alphabetical order): Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, Spain, Uruguay, Venezuela
Some nations have minority populations of Spanish-speaking residents. While Spanish isn’t the official language in these areas, most printed and broadcast media are also available in Spanish. The United States, while a primarily English-speaking country, has the largest population of Spanish-speaking residents among these nations. About 23% of the total population – or 52 million people – speak Spanish.
In addition to the United States, Andorra, Belize, and Gibraltar also have large populations of Spanish-speaking residents.
Spanish has also influenced creole languages spoken in areas around the world. Papiamento, which is based on Spanish, is spoken in Aruba, the Caribbean Netherlands, and Curacao. Chavacano is another Spanish-based creole language that is spoken throughout parts of the Philippines by over 600,000 people.
