Population and Society
Finland in Figures is an information package about Finland and Finns.
On this page
- Development of population
- Population structure on 31 December
- Age structure of population on 31 December
- Population and population projection by age group
- Vital statistics
- Live births and deaths
- Life expectancy
- Causes of death
- Migration
- Population by origin and language
- Population by language on 31 December
- Population by citizenship
- Finnish citizenships granted
- Asylum-seekers and refugee quota
- Families
- Families with children and the number of children
- Demographic dependency ratio by municipality
- Population data by region
- Population in the largest municipalities
- Development of selected offences
- Parliamentary elections
- Voting turnout in parliamentary elections
- European Parliament elections
- Municipal elections
- Presidential election
- County elections
Development of population
Population structure on 31 December
| 1900 | 1950 | 2000 | 2020 | 2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population, thousand | |||||
| Total | 2 656 | 4 030 | 5 181 | 5 534 | 5 548 |
| Males | 1 311 | 1 926 | 2 529 | 2 734 | 2 743 |
| Females | 1 345 | 2 104 | 2 652 | 2 800 | 2 805 |
| Age, % | |||||
| 0–14 | 35,1 | 30,0 | 18,1 | 15,6 | 15,4 |
| 15–64 | 59,6 | 63,4 | 66,9 | 61,7 | 61,6 |
| 65–84 | 5,2 | 6,4 | 13,5 | 19,9 | 20,2 |
| 85– | 0,1 | 0,2 | 1,5 | 2,8 | 2,8 |
| Average age, years | |||||
| Males | 26,3 | 28,6 | 37,7 | 42,1 | 42,3 |
| Females | 27,5 | 31,6 | 41,0 | 44,7 | 44,8 |
| Language 1), % | |||||
| Finnish | 86,8 | 91,1 | 92,4 | 86,9 | 86,5 |
| Swedish | 12,9 | 8,6 | 5,6 | 5,2 | 5,2 |
| Sami | 0,10 | 0,10 | 0,03 | 0,04 | 0,04 |
| Other | 0,3 | 0,2 | 1,9 | 7,8 | 8,3 |
| Marital status, % | |||||
| Single | 60,9 | 53,3 | 47,1 | 48,9 | 49,2 |
| Males | 63,0 | 55,6 | 51,1 | 52,8 | 53,1 |
| Females | 58,9 | 50,8 | 43,2 | 45,1 | 45,4 |
| Married 2) | 33,6 | 39,4 | 38,3 | 35,3 | 34,9 |
| Males | 34,0 | 41,2 | 39,2 | 35,7 | 35,3 |
| Females | 33,2 | 38,0 | 37,5 | 34,9 | 34,6 |
| Divorced and widowed 2) | 5,5 | 7,2 | 14,6 | 15,8 | 15,9 |
| Males | 3,0 | 3,2 | 9,7 | 11,6 | 11,6 |
| Females | 7,9 | 11,2 | 19,3 | 19,9 | 20,0 |
| Religion, % | |||||
| Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland | 3) 98,1 | 95,0 | 85,1 | 67,8 | 66,6 |
| Greek Orthodox Church | 4) 1,7 | 1,7 | 1,1 | 1,1 | 1,1 |
| Other | 0,2 | 0,5 | 1,1 | 1,7 | 1,8 |
| Population Register or unknown | - | 2,8 | 12,7 | 29,4 | 30,6 |
1) Finnish and Swedish are the official languages
2) In 2020–2021 incl. registered partnerships
3) Incl. other Lutheran churches
4) Incl. other Orthodox churches
Age structure of population on 31 December
Population and population projection by age group
Vital statistics
| 2000 | ‰ 1) | 2010 | ‰ 1) | 2020 | ‰ 1) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Live births | 56 742 | 11,0 | 60 980 | 11,4 | 46 463 | 8,4 |
| Deaths | 49 339 | 9,5 | 50 887 | 9,5 | 55 488 | 10,0 |
| Natural population increase | 7 403 | 1,4 | 10 093 | 1,9 | -9 025 | -1,6 |
| Immigration | 16 895 | 3,3 | 25 636 | 4,8 | 32 898 | 5,9 |
| Emigration | 14 311 | 2,8 | 11 905 | 2,2 | 15 084 | 2,7 |
| Net immigration | 2 584 | 0,5 | 13 731 | 2,6 | 17 814 | 3,2 |
| Change in the population | 9 813 | 1,9 | 23 849 | 4,4 | 8 501 | 1,5 |
| Marriages 2) | ||||||
| Couples of opposite sex | 27 751 | 5,4 | 31 925 | 6,0 | 21 687 | 3,9 |
| Couples of same sex | . . | . . | . . | . . | 395 | 0,1 |
| Registered partnerships | . . | . . | 322 | 0,1 | . . | . . |
| Divorces 2) | ||||||
| Couples of opposite sex | 14 096 | 2,7 | 13 807 | 2,6 | 13 390 | 2,4 |
| Couples of same sex | . . | . . | . . | . . | 88 | 0,0 |
| Divorces from registered partnerships 2) | . . | . . | 64 | 0,0 | 69 | 0,0 |
1) Per thousand mean population
2) Marriages contracted and divorces where at least one of the spouses is living permanently in Finland
Live births and deaths
Life expectancy
| Age | 2000 | 2010 | 2020 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Males | Females | Males | Females | Males | Females | |
| Years | ||||||
| 0 v. | 74,1 | 81,0 | 76,7 | 83,2 | 79,0 | 84,6 |
| 10 v. | 64,6 | 71,4 | 67,0 | 73,5 | 69,3 | 74,8 |
| 20 v. | 54,8 | 61,5 | 57,2 | 63,6 | 59,5 | 64,9 |
| 30 v. | 45,4 | 51,7 | 47,8 | 53,8 | 49,9 | 55,1 |
| 40 v. | 36,1 | 42,1 | 38,3 | 44,0 | 40,4 | 45,3 |
| 50 v. | 27,3 | 32,7 | 29,3 | 34,6 | 31,2 | 35,7 |
| 60 v. | 19,2 | 23,7 | 21,1 | 25,5 | 22,6 | 26,4 |
| 70 v. | 12,1 | 15,2 | 13,8 | 17,0 | 14,9 | 17,8 |
| 80 v. | 6,6 | 8,2 | 7,6 | 9,4 | 8,4 | 10,1 |
Causes of death, 2020
| Cause of death | Deaths | % | Males | % | Females | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Diseases of the circulatory system | 18 496 | 33 | 9 541 | 34 | 8 955 | 33 |
| Neoplasms | 13 411 | 24 | 7 154 | 26 | 6 257 | 23 |
| Dementia, Alzheimer's disease | 10 673 | 19 | 3 495 | 12 | 7 178 | 26 |
| Accidents excl. alcohol poisonings | 2 213 | 4 | 1 457 | 5 | 756 | 3 |
| Diseases of the respiratory system | 1 749 | 3 | 1 130 | 4 | 619 | 2 |
| Alcohol related diseases and accidental poisoning by alcohol | 1 716 | 3 | 1 318 | 5 | 398 | 1 |
| Diseases of the digestive system | 1 359 | 2 | 621 | 2 | 738 | 3 |
| Suicides | 717 | 1 | 529 | 2 | 188 | 1 |
| COVID-19 virus infection | 558 | 1 | 282 | 1 | 276 | 1 |
| Other causes of death | 4 606 | 8 | 2 444 | 9 | 2 162 | 8 |
| Deaths total | 55 498 | 100 | 27 971 | 100 | 27 527 | 100 |
Migration
Population by origin and language, 2021
Population by language on 31 December
| 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| National languages, total | 5 126 173 | 5 112 648 | 5 100 946 | 5 090 199 | 91,7 |
| Finnish | 4 835 778 | 4 822 690 | 4 811 067 | 4 800 243 | 86,5 |
| Swedish | 288 400 | 287 954 | 287 871 | 287 933 | 5,2 |
| Sami | 1 995 | 2 004 | 2 008 | 2 023 | 0,0 |
| Foreign languages, total | 391 746 | 412 644 | 432 847 | 458 042 | 8,3 |
| Russian | 79 225 | 81 606 | 84 190 | 87 552 | 1,6 |
| Estonian | 49 691 | 49 427 | 49 551 | 50 232 | 0,9 |
| Arabic | 29 462 | 31 920 | 34 282 | 36 466 | 0,7 |
| English | 20 713 | 22 052 | 23 433 | 25 638 | 0,5 |
| Somali | 20 944 | 21 920 | 22 794 | 23 656 | 0,4 |
| Farsi, Persian | 13 017 | 14 118 | 15 105 | 16 432 | 0,3 |
| Kurdish | 14 054 | 14 803 | 15 368 | 15 850 | 0,3 |
| Chinese | 12 407 | 13 064 | 13 778 | 14 780 | 0,3 |
| Albanian | 10 990 | 11 806 | 12 664 | 13 830 | 0,2 |
| Vietnamese | 10 440 | 11 094 | 11 562 | 12 310 | 0,2 |
| Total | 5 517 919 | 5 525 292 | 5 533 793 | 5 548 241 | 100 |
Population by citizenship
| Country of citizenship | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | Increase of population 2020–2021, % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finland | 5 260 347 | 5 257 663 | 5 254 876 | 5 251 777 | -0,1 |
| Foreign countries total | 257 572 | 267 629 | 278 917 | 296 464 | 6,3 |
| Estonia | 51 456 | 50 860 | 50 866 | 51 805 | 1,8 |
| Russia | 28 747 | 28 528 | 28 866 | 30 049 | 4,1 |
| Iraq | 13 078 | 13 943 | 14 708 | 15 075 | 2,5 |
| China | 9 230 | 9 825 | 10 458 | 11 405 | 9,1 |
| India | 5 730 | 6 751 | 7 237 | 8 245 | 13,9 |
| Thailand | 7 632 | 7 772 | 7 851 | 7 925 | 0,9 |
| Sweden | 7 996 | 7 983 | 8 041 | 7 921 | -1,5 |
| Afghanistan | 6 198 | 6 666 | 7 059 | 7 686 | 8,9 |
| Vietnam | 5 941 | 6 350 | 6 630 | 7 237 | 9,2 |
| Syrian Arab Republic | 6 016 | 6 579 | 6 915 | 7 203 | 4,2 |
| Ukraine | 4 593 | 5 126 | 5 837 | 7 202 | 23,4 |
| Others | 110 955 | 117 246 | 124 449 | 134 711 | 8,2 |
| Total | 5 517 919 | 5 525 292 | 5 533 793 | 5 548 241 | 0,3 |
Finnish citizenships granted
Persons permanently resident in Finland
| Country of previous citizenship | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Russia | 2 758 | 1 766 | 1 946 | 1 546 | 1 161 |
| Iraq | 742 | 621 | 589 | 602 | 744 |
| Somalia | 957 | 856 | 583 | 541 | 436 |
| Estonia | 705 | 541 | 658 | 516 | 370 |
| Syrian Arab Republic | 118 | 118 | 299 | 205 | 360 |
| Sweden | 212 | 210 | 248 | 196 | 282 |
| Afghanistan | 469 | 339 | 309 | 264 | 227 |
| Thailand | 261 | 249 | 281 | 304 | 209 |
| Ukraine | 281 | 202 | 255 | 220 | 171 |
| Iran | 309 | 244 | 205 | 156 | 155 |
| Others | 5 407 | 4 065 | 4 276 | 3 266 | 2 528 |
| Total | 12 219 | 9 211 | 9 649 | 7 816 | 6 643 |
Asylum-seekers and refugee quota
| 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asylum-seekers | 32 477 | 5 647 | 5 047 | 4 548 | 4 550 | 3 209 |
| Decisions on asylum 1) | ||||||
| Asylum granted | 1 112 | 4 586 | 2 528 | 1 852 | 2 073 | 2 066 |
| Residence permit granted 2) | 767 | 3 159 | 1 256 | 888 | 888 | 566 |
| No asylum or residence permit granted 3) | 1 307 | 14 282 | 3 996 | 1 976 | 2 875 | 1 196 |
| Family reunification | ||||||
| Positive decisions | 986 | 1 179 | 2 080 | 1 752 | 1 531 | 1 360 |
| Negative decisions | 406 | 283 | 619 | 745 | 613 | 350 |
| Refugee quota | 1 050 | 750 | 750 | 750 | 750 | 750 |
1) Decisions of the Finnish Immigration Service
2) Incl. residence permits granted on the basis of humanitarian and subsidiary protection
3) Change in the statistical practice from the beginning of 2015
Families, 2020
| Family type | All families | Average size of family | Families with children aged 0–17 | Families with children aged 0–6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 1 467 653 | 2,7 | 556 052 | 258 921 |
| Married couple 1) with children | 387 981 | 4,0 | 314 483 | 145 628 |
| Cohabiting couples 2) with children | 123 544 | 3,7 | 111 944 | 69 303 |
| Mother with children | 152 417 | 2,6 | 110 017 | 40 519 |
| Father with children | 34 275 | 2,3 | 19 608 | 3 471 |
| Married couple 1) without children | 539 038 | 2,0 | . | . |
| Cohabiting couples of opposite sex without children | 230 398 | 2,0 | . | . |
1) Incl. registered partnerships
2) Incl. same-sex spouses, of which one is the confirmed mother
Families with children and the number of children
A family with underage children is a family comprising at least one child aged under 18 living at home
| Families with children | Total | 1 child | 2 children | 3 children | 4+ children |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 612 627 | 268 369 | 230 758 | 85 025 | 28 475 |
| 2010 | 582 360 | 254 551 | 222 596 | 76 860 | 28 353 |
| 2020 | 556 052 | 238 258 | 218 750 | 71 378 | 27 666 |
| % | 100 | 42,8 | 39,3 | 12,8 | 5,0 |
| Number of children | Total | 1 child | 2 children | 3 children | 4+ children |
| 2000 | 1 116 687 | 268 369 | 461 516 | 255 075 | 131 727 |
| 2010 | 1 064 470 | 254 551 | 445 192 | 230 580 | 134 147 |
| 2020 | 1 020 884 | 238 258 | 437 500 | 214 134 | 130 992 |
| % | 100 | 23,3 | 42,9 | 21,0 | 12,8 |
Demographic dependency ratio by municipality, 2021
Regional division as on 1 January 2022
Population data by region
| Region | Population 31.12. | Increase of population, % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regional division as on 1 January 2022 | 2020 | 2021 | 2020–2021 |
| Uusimaa | 1 702 678 | 1 714 741 | 0,7 |
| Southwest Finland | 481 403 | 483 477 | 0,4 |
| Satakunta | 215 416 | 214 281 | -0,5 |
| Kanta-Häme | 170 577 | 170 213 | -0,2 |
| Pirkanmaa | 522 852 | 527 478 | 0,9 |
| Päijät-Häme | 205 771 | 205 124 | -0,3 |
| Kymenlaakso | 162 812 | 161 391 | -0,9 |
| South Karelia | 126 921 | 126 107 | -0,6 |
| South Savo | 132 702 | 131 688 | -0,8 |
| North Savo | 248 265 | 248 363 | 0,0 |
| North Karelia | 163 537 | 163 281 | -0,2 |
| Central Finland | 272 617 | 272 683 | 0,0 |
| South Ostrobothnia | 192 150 | 191 762 | -0,2 |
| Ostrobothnia | 175 816 | 176 041 | 0,1 |
| Central Ostrobothnia | 67 988 | 67 915 | -0,1 |
| North Ostrobothnia | 413 830 | 415 603 | 0,4 |
| Kainuu | 71 664 | 71 255 | -0,6 |
| Lapland | 176 665 | 176 494 | -0,1 |
| Åland | 30 129 | 30 344 | 0,7 |
| Whole country | 5 533 793 | 5 548 241 | 0,3 |
Population in the largest municipalities
| Municipality 1) | Population | Increase of population | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31.12.2021 | 2020–2021 | % | ||
| 1. | Helsinki | 658 457 | 1 537 | 0,2 |
| 2. | Espoo | 297 132 | 4 336 | 1,5 |
| 3. | Tampere | 244 223 | 3 214 | 1,3 |
| 4. | Vantaa | 239 206 | 1 975 | 0,8 |
| 5. | Oulu | 209 551 | 2 224 | 1,1 |
| 6. | Turku | 195 137 | 746 | 0,4 |
| 7. | Jyväskylä | 144 473 | 1 053 | 0,7 |
| 8. | Kuopio | 121 543 | 1 333 | 1,1 |
| 9. | Lahti | 120 027 | 43 | 0,0 |
| 10. | Pori | 83 482 | -202 | -0,2 |
1) The total number of municipalities 309. Regional division as on 1 January 2022.
Development of selected offences
Offences recorded by the police, Finnish Customs and the Finnish Border Guard
| 2010 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020* | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offences and infractions total | 935 609 | 873 415 | 818 528 | 680 184 |
| Offences against the Criminal Code | 505 357 | 443 525 | 452 771 | 537 713 |
| Offences 1) | 431 623 | 391 877 | 404 842 | 476 021 |
| Theft, petty theft | 148 213 | 122 741 | 126 906 | 137 104 |
| Breaking into a residence | 6 453 | 4 922 | 4 534 | 4 720 |
| Breaking into business premises | 4 091 | 2 927 | 2 965 | 3 038 |
| Shoplifting | 53 439 | 45 620 | 47 720 | 51 625 |
| Robbery | 1 508 | 1 701 | 1 809 | 2 009 |
| Damage to property | 49 160 | 30 448 | 30 519 | 32 753 |
| Fraud, embezzlement | 19 163 | 27 868 | 32 167 | 36 501 |
| Means of payment frauds | 4 458 | 6 111 | 6 296 | 7 337 |
| Manslaughter, murder, killing | 110 | 85 | 72 | 91 |
| Attempted manslaughter, murder or killing | 308 | 355 | 329 | 398 |
| Assault | 33 082 | 33 639 | 33 849 | 32 706 |
| Sexual exploitation of a child | 1 102 | 1 373 | 1 709 | 1 746 |
| Rape | 818 | 1 393 | 1 477 | 1 438 |
| Drunken driving | 21 130 | 19 006 | 18 498 | 20 339 |
| Offences involving narcotics | 19 724 | 29 140 | 32 307 | 36 946 |
| Alcohol-related offences and infractions | 4 053 | 1 670 | 1 815 | 1 400 |
| Endangering of traffic safety, traffic infraction | 503 986 | 481 538 | 413 686 | 204 163 |
* preliminary data
1) Excl. endangering of traffic safety, traffic infraction
Source: Statistics Finland, statistics on offences and coercive measures
Updated: 24.3.2021
Parliamentary elections 2019
| Party | Votes | % | Change from 2015 | Seats | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % points | 2019 | 2015 | |||
| Finnish Social Democratic Party | 546 471 | 17,7 | 1,2 | 40 | 34 |
| Finns Party | 538 805 | 17,5 | -0,2 | 39 | 38 |
| National Coalition Party | 523 957 | 17,0 | -1,2 | 38 | 37 |
| Centre Party of Finland | 423 920 | 13,8 | -7,3 | 31 | 49 |
| Green League | 354 194 | 11,5 | 3,0 | 20 | 15 |
| Left Alliance | 251 808 | 8,2 | 1,0 | 16 | 12 |
| Swedish People´s Party in Finland | 139 640 | 4,5 | -0,3 | 9 | 9 |
| Christian Democrats in Finland | 120 144 | 3,9 | 0,4 | 5 | 5 |
| Blue Reform | 29 943 | 1,0 | 1,0 | - | - |
| Other parties | 63 452 | 2,1 | 0,2 | - | - |
| Others | 89 582 | 2,9 | 2,0 | 2 | 1 |
| Total | 3 081 916 | 100 | 200 | 200 | |
| Female candidates | 1 453 377 | 47,2 | 4,6 | 94 | 83 |
Corrected on 28 April 2022. The corrections are indicated in red.
Voting turnout of Finnish citizens resident in Finland 72.1%, Finns resident abroad included 68.7%
Voting turnout 1) in parliamentary elections, 1908–2019
European Parliament elections 2019
| Party | Votes | % | Change from 2014 | Number of Euro-MPs elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| % points | ||||
| National Coalition Party | 380 460 | 20,8 | -1,8 | 3 |
| Green League | 292 892 | 16,0 | 6,7 | 2 |
| Finnish Social Democratic Party | 267 603 | 14,6 | 2,3 | 2 |
| Finns Party | 253 176 | 13,8 | 1,0 | 2 |
| Centre Party of Finland | 247 477 | 13,5 | -6,1 | 2 |
| Left Alliance | 126 063 | 6,9 | -2,4 | 1 |
| Swedish People´s Party in Finland | 115 962 | 6,3 | -0,4 | 1 |
| Christian Democrats in Finland | 89 204 | 4,9 | -0,4 | - |
| Others | 57 208 | 3,1 | 1,2 | - |
| Total | 1 830 045 | 100 | - | 13 |
| Females | 1 000 059 | 54,6 | 6,0 |
Voting turnout of Finnish citizens resident in Finland 42.7%
Source: Statistics Finland, European Parliament elections
Updated: 7.6.2019
Municipal elections 2021
| Party | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
| National Coalition Party | 522 623 | 21,4 |
| Finnish Social Democratic Party | 433 811 | 17,7 |
| Centre Party of Finland | 363 364 | 14,9 |
| Finns Party | 354 236 | 14,5 |
| Green League | 259 104 | 10,6 |
| Left Alliance | 194 385 | 7,9 |
| Swedish People´s Party in Finland | 121 494 | 5,0 |
| Christian Democrats in Finland | 88 259 | 3,6 |
| Movement Now | 38 943 | 1,6 |
| Other parties | 19 611 | 0,8 |
| Constituency associations | 50 482 | 2,1 |
| Total | 2 446 312 | 100 |
Voting turnout 55.1%
Presidential election 2018
| 1st round on 28 Jan. 2018 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Votes | % |
| Sauli Niinistö | 1 875 342 | 62,6 |
| Pekka Haavisto | 371 254 | 12,4 |
| Laura Huhtasaari | 207 337 | 6,9 |
| Paavo Väyrynen | 185 305 | 6,2 |
| Matti Vanhanen | 122 383 | 4,1 |
| Tuula Haatainen | 97 294 | 3,2 |
| Merja Kyllönen | 89 977 | 3,0 |
| Nils Torvalds | 44 776 | 1,5 |
| Total | 2 993 668 | 100 |
Voting turnout of Finnish citizens resident in Finland 69.9%, Finns resident abroad included 66.8%
Sauli Niinistö was elected President of the Republic in the first round of the elections
County elections 2022
| Party | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
| National Coalition Party | 401 853 | 21,6 |
| Finnish Social Democratic Party | 359 462 | 19,3 |
| Centre Party of Finland | 356 851 | 19,2 |
| Finns Party | 206 637 | 11,1 |
| Left Alliance | 148 720 | 8,0 |
| Green League |
137 221 |
7,4 |
| Swedish People´s Party in Finland | 91 409 | 4,9 |
| Christian Democrats in Finland | 78 914 | 4,2 |
| Movement Now | 33 767 | 1,8 |
| Valta kuuluu kansalle (VKK) | 24 189 | 1,3 |
| Other parties | 7 819 | 0,4 |
| Constituency associations | 12 684 | 0,7 |
| Total | 1 859 526 | 100 |
Voting turnout 47,5%.
Corrected on 11 April 2022. The corrections are indicated in red.
Main topic: Population and Society
More statistical figures in the StatFin database
Finland in Figures only includes the key figures on Finland and Finns. You can find more figures on various sectors of society in the easy-to-use StatFin database.
The database also provides regional data, such as the population of municipalities.
Last updated 23 May 2022