European Union - Population, total

The value for Population, total in European Union was 447,479,500 as of 2020. As the graph below shows, over the past 60 years this indicator reached a maximum value of 447,479,500 in 2020 and a minimum value of 356,906,100 in 1960.

Definition: Total population is based on the de facto definition of population, which counts all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship. The values shown are midyear estimates.

Source: (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects: 2019 Revision. (2) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (3) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (4) United Nations Statistical Division. Popu

See also:

Year Value
1960 356,906,100
1961 359,998,400
1962 363,200,500
1963 366,516,500
1964 369,850,200
1965 373,032,700
1966 376,039,100
1967 378,918,000
1968 381,605,400
1969 384,217,000
1970 386,322,900
1971 388,391,900
1972 390,995,000
1973 393,524,700
1974 395,949,400
1975 398,316,600
1976 400,473,500
1977 402,425,500
1978 404,271,800
1979 406,051,900
1980 407,875,800
1981 409,551,900
1982 410,895,600
1983 411,974,400
1984 412,931,300
1985 413,924,500
1986 415,076,400
1987 416,301,900
1988 417,653,100
1989 419,073,200
1990 420,478,000
1991 421,730,500
1992 422,963,900
1993 424,341,100
1994 425,399,100
1995 426,203,400
1996 426,896,900
1997 427,538,000
1998 428,109,900
1999 428,815,500
2000 429,328,600
2001 429,895,600
2002 430,882,000
2003 432,415,900
2004 434,040,300
2005 435,582,000
2006 436,998,000
2007 438,468,400
2008 439,876,700
2009 440,917,800
2010 441,532,400
2011 440,747,000
2012 441,395,900
2013 442,469,500
2014 443,576,700
2015 444,543,800
2016 445,487,700
2017 446,186,300
2018 446,915,100
2019 447,197,800
2020 447,479,500

Development Relevance: Increases in human population, whether as a result of immigration or more births than deaths, can impact natural resources and social infrastructure. This can place pressure on a country's sustainability. A significant growth in population will negatively impact the availability of land for agricultural production, and will aggravate demand for food, energy, water, social services, and infrastructure. On the other hand, decreasing population size - a result of fewer births than deaths, and people moving out of a country - can impact a government's commitment to maintain services and infrastructure.

Limitations and Exceptions: Current population estimates for developing countries that lack (i) reliable recent census data, and (ii) pre- and post-census estimates for countries with census data, are provided by the United Nations Population Division and other agencies. The cohort component method - a standard method for estimating and projecting population - requires fertility, mortality, and net migration data, often collected from sample surveys, which can be small or limited in coverage. Population estimates are from demographic modeling and so are susceptible to biases and errors from shortcomings in both the model and the data. In the UN estimates the five-year age group is the cohort unit and five-year period data are used; therefore interpolations to obtain annual data or single age structure may not reflect actual events or age composition. Because future trends cannot be known with certainty, population projections have a wide range of uncertainty.

Statistical Concept and Methodology: Population estimates are usually based on national population censuses. Estimates for the years before and after the census are interpolations or extrapolations based on demographic models. Errors and undercounting occur even in high-income countries. In developing countries errors may be substantial because of limits in the transport, communications, and other resources required to conduct and analyze a full census. The quality and reliability of official demographic data are also affected by public trust in the government, government commitment to full and accurate enumeration, confidentiality and protection against misuse of census data, and census agencies' independence from political influence. Moreover, comparability of population indicators is limited by differences in the concepts, definitions, collection procedures, and estimation methods used by national statistical agencies and other organizations that collect the data. The currentness of a census and the availability of complementary data from surveys or registration systems are objective ways to judge demographic data quality. Some European countries' registration systems offer complete information on population in the absence of a census. The United Nations Statistics Division monitors the completeness of vital registration systems. Some developing countries have made progress over the last 60 years, but others still have deficiencies in civil registration systems. International migration is the only other factor besides birth and death rates that directly determines a country's population growth. Estimating migration is difficult. At any time many people are located outside their home country as tourists, workers, or refugees or for other reasons. Standards for the duration and purpose of international moves that qualify as migration vary, and estimates require information on flows into and out of countries that is difficult to collect. Population projections, starting from a base year are projected forward using assumptions of mortality, fertility, and migration by age and sex through 2050, based on the UN Population Division's World Population Prospects database medium variant.

Aggregation method: Sum

Periodicity: Annual

General Comments: Relevance to gender indicator: disaggregating the population composition by gender will help a country in projecting its demand for social services on a gender basis.

Classification

Topic: Health Indicators

Sub-Topic: Population