Population, total in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe: Population, total was 16.95 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Population, total in Zimbabwe, 1960–2025
Source: World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN).
Analysis
Zimbabwe recorded 16.95 million for population, total in 2025. That is the highest value across all 66 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.9% on the previous year and up 17.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, population, total in Zimbabwe peaked at 16.95 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 3.81 million, in 1960.
Zimbabwe ranks 73rd of 215 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 4.41 million | 3.81 million | 5.06 million | 10 |
| 1970s | 5.98 million | 5.22 million | 6.65 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 8.52 million | 7.04 million | 9.86 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 10.99 million | 10.14 million | 11.78 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 12.46 million | 11.89 million | 13.14 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 14.31 million | 13.36 million | 15.27 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.22 million | 15.53 million | 16.95 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Zimbabwe
More climate change data for Zimbabwe
- Population growth 1.9% (2025)
- Urban population growth 3.4% (2025)
- Urban population 6.86 million (2025)
- Urban population 40.5% (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million 9.6% (2025)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 4.91 billion cubic meters (2022)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 40.0% (2022)
- Terrestrial protected areas 28.3% (2025)
- Terrestrial and marine protected areas 28.3% (2025)
- CPIA public sector management and institutions cluster average 2.9 1=low to 6=high (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is population, total in Zimbabwe?
- Population, total in Zimbabwe was 16.95 million in 2025, according to World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest population, total recorded in Zimbabwe?
- The highest recorded value was 16.95 million in 2025.
- What is the lowest population, total recorded in Zimbabwe?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.81 million in 1960.
- How does Zimbabwe rank for population, total?
- Zimbabwe ranks 73rd out of 215 countries with data for 2025.
- Is population, total rising or falling in Zimbabwe?
- Over the last ten years it is up 17.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Zimbabwe data come from?
- The figures come from World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Population, total. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
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.