Population growth in Malawi
Malawi: Population growth was 2.6% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Population growth in Malawi, 1961–2025
Source: World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), note: Derived from total population, publisher: UN Population Division. Measured in annual %.
Analysis
Malawi recorded 2.6% for population growth in 2025.
The figure is down 0.8% on the previous year and down 7.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, population growth in Malawi peaked at 5.4% in 1988 and was at its lowest, -1.2%, in 1994.
That places Malawi 23rd out of 215 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 65 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 2.4% | 2.4% | 2.5% | 9 |
| 1970s | 2.9% | 2.5% | 3.7% | 10 |
| 1980s | 4.2% | 3.7% | 5.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.9% | -1.2% | 3.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.6% | 2.4% | 3.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.8% | 2.7% | 2.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.6% | 2.6% | 2.6% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More climate change data for Malawi
- Population, total 22.22 million (2025)
- Urban population growth 4.4% (2025)
- Urban population 3.91 million (2025)
- Urban population 17.6% (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million 6.3% (2025)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 1.36 billion cubic meters (2022)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 8.4% (2022)
- Terrestrial protected areas 23.1% (2025)
- Terrestrial and marine protected areas 23.1% (2025)
- CPIA public sector management and institutions cluster average 3 1=low to 6=high (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is population growth in Malawi?
- Population growth in Malawi was 2.6% in 2025, according to World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), note: Derived from total population, publisher: UN Population Division.
- What is the highest population growth recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 5.4% in 1988.
- What is the lowest population growth recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was -1.2% in 1994.
- How does Malawi rank for population growth?
- Malawi ranks 23rd out of 215 countries with data for 2025.
- Is population growth rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), note: Derived from total population, publisher: UN Population Division, published as part of Population growth (annual %). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Annual population growth rate for year t is the exponential rate of growth of midyear population from year t-1 to t, expressed as a percentage. Population is based on the de facto definition of population, which counts all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship.