The demographics of Colombia consist of statistics regarding Colombians' health, economic status, religious affiliations, ethnicity, population density, and other aspects of the population. Colombia is the second-most populous country in South America after Brazil, and the third-most populous in Latin America, after Brazil and Mexico.
Colombia's population has grown steadily for most of its history, although the growth rate slowed markedly in the late 20th century, due in part to emigration resulting from a sustained internal conflict. However, the economy has improved noticeably in recent decades, especially in urban areas, and living standards have risen in line with this.
Population size and structure
UN estimates According to the total population was in , compared to only 12,342,000 in 1950. The proportion of children below the age of 15 in 2015 was 24.3%, 68.7% was between 15 and 65 years of age, while 7% was 65 years or older. Year Total population(1000) Population percentage in age bracket 0–14 15–64 65+ 195012 341 195514 225 196016 480 196519 144 197022 061 197524 757 198027 738 198531 012 199034 272 199537 442 200040 404 200543 286 201045 918 201548 229 202050 883
2018 Census
According to the 2018 census, Colombia has 48,258,494 inhabitants within its territory. All the data below is available in the DANE Census results.
Note: Crude migration change % is trend analysis, an extrapolation-based average population change (current year minus previous) minus the natural change of the current year (see table vital statistics). The average population is an estimate of the population in the middle of the year and not the end of the year.
Departmental and regional population pyramids Actually enumerated population according to the 2005 and 2018 censuses; population as of July 2026, based on Base de Datos Única de Afiliados. Rank Department Census population Change, 2005–2018 Percent of the total Colombia population, 2018Because of rounding of the individual percentages, the entries in this column may not sum to 100%. Population density 2026 population projection Current 2005 2018 2005 PercentThis figure for each department compares to a national increase of 12.5%. AbsoluteExtension km2Population density 2026Rank2026 populationBogotá7,412,5666,840,1168.4% +572,45015.36%1,5875,006.917,945,996Antioquia6,407,1025,696,18312.5% +710,91913.27%63,612109.526,963,990Valle del Cauca4,475,8864,161,4257.6% +314,4619.27%22,140213.034,714,987Cundinamarca2,919,0602,280,03728.0% +639,0236.05%24,210148.843,601,277Atlántico2,535,5172,166,15617.1% +369,3615.25%3,388851.852,885,904Santander2,184,8371,957,78911.6% +227,0484.53%30,53778.962,410,700Bolívar2,070,1101,878,99310.2% +191,9174.29%25,97886.772,251,190Córdoba1,784,7831,467,92921.6% +316,8543.70%25,02080.582,014,312Nariño1,630,5921,541,9565.7% +88,6363.38%33,26851.891,721,735Norte de Santander1,491,6891,243,97519.9% +247,7143.09%21,65879.3101,717,792Cauca1,464,4881,268,93715.4% +195,5513.03%29,30855.0111,613,329Magdalena1,341,7461,149,91716.7% +191,8292.78%23,18867.2121,558,748Tolima1,330,1871,365,342 −2.6% −35,1552.76%23,56259.0141,390,982Boyacá1,217,3761,255,311 −3.0% −37,9352.52%23,18955.9151,295,848Cesar1,200,574903,27932.9% +297,2952.49%22,90565.2131,493,824Huila1,100,3861,011,4188.8% +88,9682.28%19,89061.4161,221,847Meta1,039,722783,16832.8% +256,5542.15%85,63513.6171,166,652Caldas998,255968,7403.0% +29,5152.07%7,888134.0191,056,839Risaralda943,401897,5095.1% +45,8921.95%4,140243.2211,006,785Sucre904,863772,01017.2% +132,8531.88%10,91795.9201,047,052La Guajira880,560681,57529.2% +198,9851.82%20,84851.9181,082,618Quindío539,904534,5521.0% +5,3521.12%1,845302.423557,850Chocó534,826440,12321.6% +94,7031.11%46,53012.922599,468Casanare420,504293,25343.4% +127,2510.87%44,64010.724477,966Caquetá401,489420,337 −4.5% −18,8480.83%88,9654.925431,867Putumayo348,182310,13212.3% +38,0500.72%24,88515.926395,590Arauca262,174232,11812.9% +30,0560.54%23,81811.827280,022Vichada107,80855,87293.0% +51,9360.22%100,2421.528154,190Guaviare82,76795,551 −13.4% −12,8740.17%53,4601.63084,833Amazonas76,58967,72613.1% +8,8630.16%109,6650.82985,896San Andrés y Providencia61,28070,554 −13.1% −9,2740.13%521,221.73163,527Guainía48,11435,23036.6% +12,8840.10%72,2380.83261,065Vaupés40,79739,2793.9% +1,5180.08%54,1350.83344,490Colombia48,258,49442,888,59212.5% +5,369,902−1,141,74846.8−53,399,171
Structure of the population
Age groupMaleFemaleTotal% Total 23 550 072 24 708 422 48 258 494 100 0–4 1 698 699 1 621 485 3 320 184 6.88 5–9 1 862 778 1 780 738 3 643 516 7.55 10–14 2 017 205 1 925 513 3 942 718 8.17 15–19 2 152 328 2 055 812 4 208 140 8.72 20–24 2 166 806 2 137 851 4 304 657 8.92 25–29 2 007 553 2 026 857 4 034 410 8.36 30–34 1 804 867 1 857 952 3 662 819 7.59 35–39 1 703 524 1 809 693 3 513 217 7.28 40–44 1 428 451 1 568 401 2 996 852 6.21 45–49 1 360 889 1 529 794 2 890 683 5.99 50–54 1 327 108 1 510 491 2 837 599 5.88 55–59 1 153 378 1 336 760 2 490 138 5.16 60–64 916 911 1 076 164 1 993 075 4.13 65–69 699 748 820 394 1 520 142 3.15 70–74 501 888 598 405 1 100 293 2.28 75–79 357 112 443 978 801 090 1.66 80+ 415 967 582 994 998 961 2.07Age groupMaleFemaleTotalPercent 0–14 5 578 682 5 327 736 10 906 418 22.60 15–64 16 021 815 16 909 775 32 931 590 68.24 65+ 1 974 715 2 445 771 4 420 486 9.16
Urbanization
Movement from rural to urban areas was very heavy in the middle of the twentieth century, but has since tapered off. The urban population increased from 29% of the total population in 1938, to 52% in 1964 and about 70% by 1990. Currently the figure is about 77%. The list of the most populated municipalities and districts in the country only contains those whose population surpasses 150.000 inhabitants.
Rank Place name 2026 projections Birth rate Death rate Natural growth 1 Bogotá 7,945,996 7.0 4.8 2.2 2 Medellín 2,526,795 6.8 6.7 0.1 3 Cali 2,269,983 7.3 7.2 0.1 4 Barranquilla 1,275,854 10.5 6.9 3.6 5 Cartagena 1,010,995 12.0 6.3 5.7 6 Soacha 895,878 6.7 3.3 3.4 7 Cúcuta 792,180 9.3 6.3 3.0 8 Soledad 733,597 7.8 3.6 4.2 9 Valledupar 629,217 9.6 4.2 5.4 10 Bucaramanga 618,548 7.7 6.2 1.5 11 Bello 609,168 6.8 5.0 1.8 12 Santa Marta 588,662 10.3 5.3 5.0 13 Villavicencio 588,645 9.4 5.9 3.5 14Montería 585,029 8.8 5.0 3.8 15 Ibagué 557,317 8.6 7.3 1.3 16 Pereira 487,820 6.6 8.1 –1.5 17 Manizales 475,690 4.4 6.2 –1.8 18Neiva 408,218 9.1 6.2 2.9 19 Pasto 404,775 6.8 6.1 0.7 20 Palmira 382,703 5.9 7.0 –1.1 21 Popayán 355,347 7.9 6.0 1.9 22 Buenaventura 335,217 7.5 4.5 3.0 23 Sincelejo 331,045 9.6 5.0 4.6 24 Floridablanca 315,194 7.2 5.4 1.8 25 Armenia 307,103 7.3 9.3 –2.0 25 Itagüí 306,397 5.9 5.6 0.3 26 Tumaco 277,065 9.4 3.6 5.8 27 Envigado 268,381 4.4 5.7 –1.3 28 Dosquebradas 246,388 6.1 6.4 –0.3 29 Barrancabermeja 230,559 10.3 6.1 4.2 30 Tuluá 225,868 5.7 6.8 –1.1 31 Maicao 218,184 17.5 3.8 13.7 32 Riohacha 211,811 22.8 4.9 17.9 33 Uribia 208,712 21.2 1.2 20.0 34 Yopal 198,423 11.0 4.7 6.3 35 Jamundí 196,875 8.0 5.8 2.2 36 Piedecuesta 192,888 8.4 4.9 3.5 37 Tunja 191,372 8.5 4.7 3.8 38 Florencia 188,620 10.2 5.3 4.9 39 Mosquera 185,735 7.8 2.8 5.0 40 Chía 177,550 7.6 4.3 3.3 41 Girón 177,523 9.0 4.5 4.5 42 Zipaquirá 169,869 9.3 4.3 5.0 43 Facatativá 168,471 8.8 4.1 4.7 44 Fusagasugá 162,844 6.6 9.0 –2.4 45 Rionegro 156,303 9.4 5.8 3.4 46 Malambo 153,223 7.1 4.1 3.0 47 Magangué 152,489 10.2 5.2 5.0
Metropolitan areas
There are 8 official metropolitan areas configurated according to the Colombian territorial laws; to organize a metropolitan area in Colombia the vinculated municipalities must consult its population to approve such territorial organization. By population, officially recognized metropolitan areas are: Metropolitan area of Medellín: also known as metropolitan area of the Aburra Valley, includes the Medellin district and the surrounding municipalities, Bello, Girardota, Envigado, Sabaneta, Barbosa, Copacabana, Itagüí, La Estrella and Caldas. According to the 2026 projections, the population is 4,212,261. Metropolitan area of Bucaramanga: includes the municipalities of Bucaramanga, Floridablanca, Girón and Piedecuesta, their combined population in 2026 is 1,304,153. Metropolitan area of Barranquilla: formed by the district of Barranquilla and the municipalities of Puerto Colombia, Soledad, Malambo and Galapa, their population in 2026 is 2,298,402, making up 80% of the Atlántico department population. Metropolitan area of Cúcuta: includes the municipalities of Cúcuta, Villa del Rosario, Los Patios, El Zulia, San Cayetano and Puerto Santander, right across the international border with Venezuela, the population in 2026 is estimated to be 1,074,787. Metropolitan area of Pereira or New Occident: within the Risaralda Department, includes the municipalities of Pereira, Dos Quebradas and La Virginia, which combined make up a population of 765,594 in 2026. Metropolitan area of Valledupar: includes Valledupar, one of the fastest growing cities of Colombia, and the municipalities of Agustin Codazzi, La Paz, Manaure Balcón del Cesar and San Diego, their combined population is 767,933. Metropolitan area of Manizales: includes the municipalities of Manizales, Villamaria, Neira and Palestina, within the Caldas Department, comprising a population of 587,611 in 2026. Metropolitan area of Cali: conformed by the municipalities of Cali and Jamundí, in Valle del Cauca Department, and Puerto Tejada in Cauca Department, with a population of 2,510,567.
In 2022, Bogotá and the surrounding municipalities of the Cundinamarca Department, conformed the metropolitan region of Bogotá-Cundinamarca, a special urban planning region according to the Law 2199 of 2022, each municipality has to consult its population their will to join the metropolitan region, besides Bogotá, immediate municipalites such as Soacha, Mosquera, Funza, Madrid, Facatativá, Cota, Chía, La Calera and Sopó, conform the metropolitan region with a combined population of 9,798,717, the most populated region in Colombia.
There are also other non official urban regions in Colombia, most of them conformed by some capital cities and their surrounding municipalities: Urban region of Armenia: within the Quindío department, includes the municipalities of Armenia, Calarcá, Circasia, La Tebaida, Montenegro and Salento, with a population of 492,086 in 2026. Urban region of Cartagena de Indias: including the district of Cartagena and the municipalities of Turbaco, Turbana, Arjona and Santa Rosa de Lima, with a population of 1,255,298. Urban region of Girardot: between the Cundinamarca and Tolima departments, crossed by the Magdalena river, includes the municipalities of Girardot, Ricaurte and Flandes, combined the region has a population of 149,316 in 2026. Urban region of Montería: within the Córdoba department, includes the municipalities of Montería, Cereté, San Carlos, San Pelayo and Ciénaga de Oro, with a combined population of 859,586. Urban region of Sincelejo: a fast growing region in northern Colombia within the Sucre department, includes the municipalities of Sincelejo, Corozal, Sampués, Morroa and Los Palmitos, combined the region has a population of 508,624, close to the Caribbean sea and the touristic conurbation of Tolú and Coveñas with a population of 61,148 in 2026. Both urban regions comprise 55% of the department population. Urban region of San Nicolás Valley: located west of Medellín, in the department of Antioquia, currently in the phase of consultation,, if authorized by its population, the metropolitan area would include the municipalities of Rionegro, La Ceja, El Carmen de Viboral, Guarne, Retiro, El Santuario, San Vicente Ferrer and La Unión, with a combined population of 485,099 in 2026.
Vital statistics
Registered births and deaths