China population, 1960 to 2024
China population stood at 1.41B in 2024, down 0.1% on the previous period.
China had 1.41 billion people in 2024, down 0.1 percent from 1.41 billion in 2023. In 1960, the first year shown, the count was 667.1 million.
How it is measured
The figures come from the World Bank's World Development Indicators (indicator SP.POP.TOTL): the midyear de facto population, counting all residents regardless of citizenship or legal status. National censuses anchor the series every decade or so; the years between are interpolated with birth, death, and migration data, aligned with the UN World Population Prospects. That is why the line is smooth rather than jagged: it is an estimate series pinned to census benchmarks.
What the curve shows
The shape here is the demographically interesting one: China's population peaked at 1.41 billion in 2021 and has declined since, to 1.41 billion. Population decline compounds the same way growth does, and it arrives with an older age structure, which is why a falling line concerns economists more than the raw numbers suggest.
Who is counted?
How can there be a figure for every year?
Make this chart yours.
Open it in the editor with the data already loaded. Brand it, animate it, embed it.