Area type
Region
Population Density
5,595
Population growth
0.5%
Gender ratio
0.94 male to female
english main language
78%
birth rate
12.9
death rate
6.6
Major religion
41% Christian
Urbanisation
100%
View trend
View trend
View breakdown
The population of London is 8,796,628 according to mid-2021 population figures published by the ONS. London's population growth rate between mid-2020 and mid-2021 was 0.5% per year. London covers an area of 1,572 square kilometres (607 square miles) and has a population density of 5,595 people per square kilometre (km2), based on the latest population estimates taken in mid-2021.
According to the latest 2021 census, the population in London is predominantly white (54%), with non-white minorities representing the remaining 46% of the population.
The median average age in London in 2021 was 35.9, with over 18s representing 81.9% of the population. The sex ratio was 94.2 males to every 100 females. Compare average age by area.
In 2021, the urban population of London was approximately 8,157,947 or 100%, while the rural population was around 15,994 or 0%.
The largest religious group in London is Christians who account for 41% of the population.
English is spoken as the main language by 78.4% of people in London, and spoken either well or very well by 17% of the population. 3.6% reported having poor English language skills, and the remaining 0.6% spoke no English at all.
Main page: London Population
The population of London is 8,796,628 according to mid-2021 population figures published by the ONS. In the year between mid-2020 and mid-2021, the population in London grew by an estimated -205,860 people, and in the ten years before mid-2021, the population grew by .
London's population growth rate between mid-2020 and mid-2021 was 0.5%, which is 0.2% lower than the average population growth rate in London for the ten years before mid-2021 (0.6%).
London covers an area of 1,572 square kilometres (607 square miles) and has a population density of 5,595 people per square kilometre (km2), based on the latest population estimates taken in mid-2021. That figure has by people per km2 over the past decade.
According to mid-year population estimates published by the ONS in 2019, males account for 48.5% of London's 8,796,628 population, while females made up 51.5% of the total.
The sex ratio (the number of males for each female in a population) was 94.224 males to every 100 females in 2021. In England as a whole, the gender ratio was 96 males to every 100 females in 2021.
Age statistics collected by the ONS show the adult population of London, that is how many people there are over the age of 18, is 7,206,842.
London's age structure shows the working-age population to be 6,156,399 which is 70.0% of the population. People under the age of 16 represent 18.1% of the population, and over 65s represent 11.9% of the population. The percentage of the population that is of working-age has decreased over the last 10 years from to .
London's age pyramid shows how the population is distributed by age and gender.
The median average age of someone in London was 35.9 years in 2019.
Of the London population over the age of 90, women outnumber men by 2.1 to 1.
The life expectancy of someone born today in London is 82 years. Split by gender, a girl born today in London has a life expectancy of 84 years, and a boy has a life expectancy of 80 years. Compare life expectancy by area.
As a comparison, in England as a whole, current life expectancy at birth is 81 years, for females that rises to 83 years and for males it falls to 79 years.
The life expectancy for someone born in London has risen by 4 years over the past decade, from a life expectancy of 79 years to a life expectancy of 82 years. In England as a whole, life expectancies have risen by 3 years.
Age | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 00-01 | 80.3 | 84.3 | 82.3 |
| 01-04 | 79.6 | 83.6 | 81.6 |
| 05-09 | 75.6 | 79.6 | 77.6 |
| 10-14 | 70.6 | 74.7 | 72.7 |
| 15-19 | 65.7 | 69.7 | 67.7 |
| 20-24 | 60.8 | 64.7 | 62.8 |
| 25-29 | 55.9 | 59.8 | 57.8 |
| 30-34 | 51.0 | 54.8 | 52.9 |
| 35-39 | 46.2 | 49.9 | 48.1 |
| 40-44 | 41.3 | 45.0 | 43.2 |
According to the latest 2021 census, the population in London is predominantly white (53.8%), with non-white minorities representing the remaining 46.2% of the population.
Asian people were the largest minority group in London accounting for 20.7% of the population.
1,188,370 or 14% of the London population are black according to the latest 2021 census.
In England more broadly the portion of the population that is white is 81%. 10% are Asian and 4% are Black.
Estimates of personal wellbeing in the UK are published by the ONS annually, with scores for anxiety, happiness, life satisfaction, and feeling that life is worthwhile. Overall scores are based on surveying a representative sample of the population and are scored out of 10 (.e.g for happiness 0 is 'not at all happy' and 10 is 'completely happy').
London Salary
London Housing Market
London Crime
According to the latest 2021 census, the most populous religious group within London is Christians, accounting for 40.7% of the population.
London has a Muslim population of 1,318,754 which is 15.0% of the population.
Compared to England as a whole, in England circa 46% of the population is Christian, 7% is Muslim, 2% is Hindu, and Buddhists, Sikhs and Jews each is around 1%. The remainder is split between people with no religion and those who decided not to identify a religion.
Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v.3.0. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2023. Data sources: ONS Local statistics