Area type
Metropolitan County
Population Density
1,156
Population growth
0.5%
Gender ratio
0.97 male to female
english main language
92%
birth rate
11.6
death rate
9.6
Major religion
55% Christian
Urbanisation
90%
View trend
View trend
View breakdown
The population of West Yorkshire is 2,345,235 according to mid-2020 population figures published by the ONS. West Yorkshire's population growth rate between mid-2019 and mid-2020 was 0.5% per year. West Yorkshire covers an area of 2,029 square kilometres (783 square miles) and has a population density of 1,156 people per square kilometre (km2), based on the latest population estimates taken in mid-2020.
According to the latest 2011 census, the population in West Yorkshire is predominantly white (82%), with non-white minorities representing the remaining 18% of the population.
The median average age in West Yorkshire in 2019 was 195.3, with over 18s representing 79.5% of the population. The sex ratio was 97.1 males to every 100 females. Compare average age by area.
In 2011, the urban population of West Yorkshire was approximately 2,001,223 or 90%, while the rural population was around 224,835 or 10%.
The largest religious group in West Yorkshire is Christians who account for 55% of the population.
English is spoken as the main language by 91.6% of people in West Yorkshire, and spoken either well or very well by 6% of the remaining population. 2.0% reported having poor English language skills, and the remaining 0.4% spoke no English at all.
Main page: West Yorkshire Population
The population of West Yorkshire is 2,345,235 according to mid-2020 population figures published by the ONS. In the year between mid-2019 and mid-2020, the population in West Yorkshire grew by an estimated 12,766 people, and in the ten years before mid-2020, the population grew by 117,864.
West Yorkshire's population growth rate between mid-2019 and mid-2020 was 0.5%, which is 0.0% lower than the average population growth rate in West Yorkshire for the ten years before mid-2020 (0.6%).
West Yorkshire covers an area of 2,029 square kilometres (783 square miles) and has a population density of 1,156 people per square kilometre (km2), based on the latest population estimates taken in mid-2020. That figure has increased by 58 people per km2 over the past decade.
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According to mid-year population estimates published by the ONS in 2019, males account for 49.3% of West Yorkshire's 2,345,235 population, while females made up 50.7% of the total.
The sex ratio (the number of males for each female in a population) was 97.089 males to every 100 females in 2011. In England as a whole, the gender ratio was 98 males to every 100 females in 2011.
Age statistics collected by the ONS show the adult population of West Yorkshire, that is how many people there are over the age of 18, is 1,865,095.
West Yorkshire's age structure shows the working-age population to be 1,473,319 which is 62.8% of the population. People under the age of 16 represent 20.5% of the population, and over 65s represent 16.7% of the population. The percentage of the population that is of working-age has decreased over the last 10 years from 65.0% to 61.7%.
West Yorkshire's age pyramid shows how the population is distributed by age and gender.
The median average age of someone in West Yorkshire was 195.3 years in 2019. Split by gender, the average female age is 199.3 years, and the average male is 191.2 years.
Of the West Yorkshire population over the age of 90, girls outnumber boys by 2.3 to 1.
The life expectancy of someone born today in West Yorkshire is 80 years. Split by gender, a girl born today in West Yorkshire has a life expectancy of 82 years, and a boy has a life expectancy of 78 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 West Yorkshire has risen by 2 years over the past decade, from a life expectancy of 78 years to a life expectancy of 80 years. In England as a whole, life expectancies have risen by 3 years.
Age | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 00-01 | 77.8 | 81.7 | 79.8 |
| 01-04 | 77.2 | 81.1 | 79.2 |
| 05-09 | 73.3 | 77.2 | 75.3 |
| 10-14 | 68.3 | 72.2 | 70.3 |
| 15-19 | 63.4 | 67.3 | 65.4 |
| 20-24 | 58.5 | 62.3 | 60.4 |
| 25-29 | 53.6 | 57.4 | 55.5 |
| 30-34 | 48.8 | 52.5 | 50.7 |
| 35-39 | 44.0 | 47.6 | 45.8 |
| 40-44 | 39.3 | 42.8 | 41.1 |
According to the latest 2011 census, the population in West Yorkshire is predominantly white (81.7%), with non-white minorities representing the remaining 18.3% of the population.
Asian people were the largest minority group in West Yorkshire accounting for 13.1% of the population.
46,476 or 2% of the West Yorkshire population are black according to the latest 2011 census.
In England more broadly the portion of the population that is white is 85.4%. 7.8% are Asian and 3.5% 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').
Anxiety wellness data for West Yorkshire isn't currently available, please try another area.
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According to the latest 2011 census, the most populous religious group within West Yorkshire is Christians, accounting for 54.6% of the population.
West Yorkshire has a Muslim population of 252,370 which is 10.8% of the population.
Compared to England as a whole, in England circa 59% of the population is Christian, 5% 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 2021. Data sources: ONS Local statistics