Which country has the largest population?

In 2025, just over 3 out of 10 people worldwide lived in either India or China, according to data published by the World Bank. India topped the list of the world’s most populous countries with a population of 1,463,865,525, followed by China with 1,406,585,000 people. Both India and China are the only countries in the world with populations exceeding one billion people. Their populations are considerably larger than those of other countries. India and China each have populations more than four times that of the United States, the third most populous country in the world. Collectively, the countries in the top ten — India, China, the United States, Indonesia, Pakistan, Nigeria, Brazil, Bangladesh, Russia and Ethiopia — are home to 57% of the world’s population. Among the top ten, five are located in Asia, two are located in Africa, and North America, South America, and Europe each have one representative.

Globally, 16 countries have populations over one hundred million people, while 79 countries have populations between 10 and 100 million people. A total of 61 countries have populations between one and 10 million. Meanwhile, 37 countries, all of which, except for Guyana, Bhutan, Luxembourg, Belize, and Andorra, are island nations, have populations under 1 million people.

Population trends vary across geographies and are influenced by a range of factors, such as public policy, economics, environmental factors, and armed conflict. You can learn more about population trends between 1950 and 2024 here.