Area type
Metropolitan District
Land area
188 square kilometres
Fertility rate
1.61
Birth rate
10.0
Death rate
10.6
internal migration
0.5%
international migration
0.2%
View trend
View trend
View trend
The population of Wigan is 330,712 according to mid-2020 population figures published by the ONS. Based on recent growth rates we estimate the current 2022 population of Wigan to be 334,850. In the year between mid-2019 and mid-2020, the population in Wigan grew by an estimated 2,050 people, and in the ten years prior to mid-2020, the population grew by 12,590. Compare population by area.
Wigan's population growth rate between mid-2019 and mid-2020 was 0.6%, which is 0.2% higher than the average population growth rate in Wigan for the ten years prior to mid-2020 (0.4%).
Wigan covers an area of 188 square kilometres (73 square miles) and has a population density of 1,758 people per square kilometre (km2), based on the latest population estimates taken in mid-2020. That figure has increased by 67 people per km2 over the past decade.
Between mid-2019 and mid-2020, net internal migration into Wigan was 1,699, and net international migration into Wigan was 542.
Wigan's fertility rate (the total number of children that would be born to the average woman in Wigan if she were to live to the end of her child-bearing years) of 1.61, and birth rate (the number of live births per thousand of population per year) of 10.0, led to population increases of 3,289 during the year, and Wigan's death rate or mortality rate (the number of deaths per thousand of population per year) of 10.6 resulted in a 3,483 population decrease. In total, a net 194 person natural decrease.
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During the past decade, internal migration has risen from a net outflow of 372 in 2011 to a net 1,699 inflow. International migration has risen from a net inflow of 487 in 2011 to an inflow of 542 in 2020.
The natural increase in population, due to births and deaths, has fallen from an annual net increase of 974 people in 2011 to -194 in 2020.
International migration was the largest driver of population change over the past decade, representing circa 40% of the total change in population.
Wigan Salary
Rental Market of Wigan
Wigan Economy
Wigan'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 | 330,712 | 0.62% | 1,758 |
| 2019 | 328,662 | 0.79% | 1,747 |
| 2018 | 326,088 | 0.44% | 1,733 |
| 2017 | 324,650 | 0.35% | 1,725 |
| 2016 | 323,526 | 0.40% | 1,719 |
| 2015 | 322,244 | 0.35% | 1,713 |
| 2014 | 321,114 | 0.41% | 1,707 |
| 2013 | 319,810 | 0.34% | 1,700 |
| 2012 | 318,740 | 0.19% | 1,694 |
| 2011 | 318,122 | 1,691 |
Wigan's forecast, population density, and population growth rate, over the next twenty years. Figures reported by the ONS in 2018.
The population of Wigan is forecast to be 334,065 in 2025 and 337,865 in 2030.
Year | Population | Growth rate | Population Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 332,245 | 0.32% | 1,766 |
| 2024 | 333,209 | 0.29% | 1,771 |
| 2025 | 334,065 | 0.26% | 1,775 |
| 2026 | 334,901 | 0.25% | 1,780 |
| 2027 | 335,676 | 0.23% | 1,784 |
| 2028 | 336,422 | 0.22% | 1,788 |
| 2029 | 337,153 | 0.22% | 1,792 |
| 2030 | 337,865 | 0.21% | 1,796 |
| 2031 | 338,585 | 0.21% | 1,799 |
| 2032 | 339,347 | 0.23% | 1,803 |
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