Area type
Metropolitan District
Land area
140 square kilometres
Fertility rate
1.98
Birth rate
13.0
Death rate
10.5
internal migration
-0.4%
international migration
0.4%
View trend
View trend
View trend
The population of Bolton is 288,248 according to mid-2020 population figures published by the ONS. Based on recent growth rates we estimate the current 2022 population of Bolton to be 289,649. In the year between mid-2019 and mid-2020, the population in Bolton grew by an estimated 698 people, and in the ten years prior to mid-2020, the population grew by 10,952. Compare population by area.
Bolton's population growth rate between mid-2019 and mid-2020 was 0.2%, which is 0.2% lower than the average population growth rate in Bolton for the ten years prior to mid-2020 (0.4%).
Bolton covers an area of 140 square kilometres (54 square miles) and has a population density of 2,062 people per square kilometre (km2), based on the latest population estimates taken in mid-2020. That figure has increased by 78 people per km2 over the past decade.
Between mid-2019 and mid-2020, net internal migration out of Bolton was 1,142, and net international migration into Bolton was 1,064.
Bolton's fertility rate (the total number of children that would be born to the average woman in Bolton if she were to live to the end of her child-bearing years) of 1.98, and birth rate (the number of live births per thousand of population per year) of 13.0, led to population increases of 3,746 during the year, and Bolton's death rate or mortality rate (the number of deaths per thousand of population per year) of 10.5 resulted in a 3,007 population decrease. In total, a net 739 person natural increase.
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During the past decade, internal migration has fallen from a net outflow of 631 in 2011 to a net 1,142 outflow. International migration has risen from a net inflow of 973 in 2011 to an inflow of 1,064 in 2020.
The natural increase in population, due to births and deaths, has fallen from an annual net increase of 1,402 people in 2011 to 739 in 2020.
Births and deaths was the largest driver of population change over the past decade, representing circa 94% of the total change in population.
Bolton Salary
Rental Market of Bolton
Bolton Economy
Bolton's population, population density, and population growth rate, over the past decade.
Figures reported by the ONS in 2021.
Year | Population | Growth rate | Population Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 288,248 | 0.24% | 2,062 |
| 2019 | 287,550 | 0.76% | 2,057 |
| 2018 | 285,372 | 0.20% | 2,041 |
| 2017 | 284,813 | 0.45% | 2,037 |
| 2016 | 283,536 | 0.61% | 2,028 |
| 2015 | 281,828 | 0.37% | 2,016 |
| 2014 | 280,788 | 0.18% | 2,009 |
| 2013 | 280,271 | 0.43% | 2,005 |
| 2012 | 279,084 | 0.64% | 1,996 |
| 2011 | 277,296 | 1,984 |
Bolton's forecast, population density, and population growth rate, over the next twenty years. Figures reported by the ONS in 2018.
The population of Bolton is forecast to be 290,052 in 2025 and 292,083 in 2030.
Year | Population | Growth rate | Population Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 289,039 | 0.22% | 2,068 |
| 2024 | 289,581 | 0.19% | 2,072 |
| 2025 | 290,052 | 0.16% | 2,075 |
| 2026 | 290,499 | 0.15% | 2,078 |
| 2027 | 290,932 | 0.15% | 2,081 |
| 2028 | 291,341 | 0.14% | 2,084 |
| 2029 | 291,709 | 0.13% | 2,087 |
| 2030 | 292,083 | 0.13% | 2,089 |
| 2031 | 292,443 | 0.12% | 2,092 |
| 2032 | 292,846 | 0.14% | 2,095 |
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