Demographic features of the population of Denmark proper, part of the Danish Realm, include ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations, and other aspects.
Population
Since 1980, which marked a decrease in population, the number of people of Danish descent, defined as having at least one parent who was born in Denmark and has Danish citizenship, has remained constant at around 5 million in Denmark, and nearly all the population growth from 5.1 and thereafter was mostly due to immigration. During April of 2025, the number of inhabitants in Denmark reached 6 million.
Population numbers in 2100 are expected to be slightly lower than in 2024.
YearPopulation 1769 797,584 1787 841,806 1801 929,001 1834 1,230,964 1840 1,289,075 1845 1,356,877 1850 1,414,648 1855 1,507,222 1860 1,608,362 1870 1,784,741 1880 1,969,039 1890 2,172,380 1901 2,449,540 1906 2,588,919 1911 2,757,076 1916 2,921,362 1921 3,267,831 1925 3,434,555 1930 3,550,656 1935 3,706,349 1940 3,844,312 1945 4,045,232 1950 4,281,275 1955 4,448,401 1960 4,585,256 1965 4,767,597 1970 4,937,579 1971 4,950,598 1972 4,975,653 1973 5,007,538 1974 5,036,184 1975 5,054,410
Fertility The natural growth of the population (births minus deaths) was negative in 2022, that is, minus 1005 people. The previous last year there was a negative natural increase in the population was in 1988. During 2022, 58,430 children were born, 5,043 fewer than in 2021. In 2022, 59,435 people died, there were 2,283, or 4.0% more than in 2021. The total population in the age group 80 and over grew by 12,844 people, or 4.4%., from 2022 to 2023.
During 2022, the Danish population grew by 59,234 people, so the population on January 1, 2023, consisted of 5,932,654 people. It was a population increase of 1.0 percent, which is higher than in 2021, when the population increase was 0.6 percent.
In 2022, Denmark had a total fertility rate (TFR) of 1.55 children per woman in 2022. It is the first time in history that immigrant women from non-Western countries now have fewer children on average than women of Danish roots in Denmark. On average, immigrant women have 1.76 children, the descendants have an average of 1.75 children, while women of Danish roots have 1.78 children. This is because Ukrainians, who are categorized as non-Western, have come to Denmark in large numbers. In the same year, immigrant women from Syria had the highest TFR, they gave birth to an average of 3.7 children. They are followed by women from Somalia and Pakistan, 2020 figures show.
In 2021 the number of childless women aged 50 was the highest in seven years; 12.3 percent of women aged 50 have never had a child, while 19.5 percent of 50-year-old men do not have children.
Historical fertility rates
The total fertility rate is the number of children born per woman. It is based on fairly good data for the entire period. Sources: Our World In Data and Gapminder Foundation. Year 18501851185218531854185518561857185818591860Total fertility rate in Denmark4.244.064.484.274.414.314.374.444.484.534.4 Year 1861186218631864186518661867186818691870Total fertility rate in Denmark4.274.174.174.064.214.324.094.183.964.1 Year 1871187218731874187518761877187818791880Total fertility rate in Denmark4.064.094.164.174.314.44.364.274.34.28 Year 1881188218831884188518861887188818891890Total fertility rate in Denmark4.344.364.294.54.394.374.284.254.214.11 Year 189118921893189418951896189718981899Total fertility rate in Denmark4.1844.164.14.094.114.024.084.01 Total fertility rate
1.78 children born/woman (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 152nd
Average age of the mother at her first birth In 2021 the average age of the mother at her first birth in Denmark was of 29.8 years, and the father is of 31.5 years.
Life expectancy Sources: Our World In Data and the United Nations.
1775–1950 Years17751835183618371838183918401841184218431844184518461847184818491850Life expectancy in Denmark33.038.440.041.543.141.941.142.642.543.944.043.440.440.440.839.543.5
Years1851185218531854185518561857185818591860Life expectancy in Denmark44.543.038.544.746.146.742.540.044.445.1 Years1861186218631864186518661867186818691870Life expectancy in Denmark47.647.647.240.239.842.944.945.646.146.0 Years1871187218731874187518761877187818791880Life expectancy in Denmark46.147.247.546.044.445.847.347.546.244.8 Years1881188218831884188518861887188818891890Life expectancy in Denmark48.346.748.548.549.649.048.746.747.847.2 Years1891189218931894189518961897189818991900Life expectancy in Denmark46.847.447.149.450.852.951.853.150.651.9 Years1901190219031904190519061907190819091910Life expectancy in Denmark52.654.754.855.754.356.556.154.957.458.0 Years1911191219131914191519161917191819191920Life expectancy in Denmark57.058.058.958.558.456.957.356.357.057.6 Years1921192219231924192519261927192819291930Life expectancy in Denmark61.760.661.261.161.961.761.261.961.962.3 Years1931193219331934193519361937193819391940Life expectancy in Denmark61.862.763.664.162.963.564.065.065.866.3 Years1941194219431944194519461947194819491950Life expectancy in Denmark66.067.167.466.466.167.268.570.170.170.3
1950–2015
PeriodLife expectancy inYearsPeriodLife expectancy inYears1950–195571.11985–199074.81955–196072.11990–199575.21960–196572.41995–200076.11965–197072.92000–200577.31970–197573.62005–201078.61975–198074.22010–201580.21980–198574.4
Age structure 0–14 years: 16.57% (male 493,829 /female 468,548) 15–24 years: 12.67% (male 377,094 /female 358,807) 25–54 years: 39.03% (male 1,147,196 /female 1,119,967) 55–64 years: 12.33% (male 356,860 /female 359,264) 65 years and over: 19.42% (male 518,200 /female 609,737) (2018 est.)
Median age
total: 41.9 years. Country comparison to the world: 35th male: 40.8 years female: 42.9 years (2018 est.)
Ethnic and origin groups
Non-indigenous ethnic minorities include: Afghans Greenlandic Turks Arabs (i.e. Palestinians, followed by Moroccans, Syrians, Lebanese, Yemenis, Egyptians, Iraqis and Jordanians) Vietnamese Thai Jews Chinese Pakistanis Iranians (including Kurds and Lurs) Somalis Eritreans Sudanese Indians Chileans (the most numerous of Latin American nationalities) Bosniaks Poles Albanians Bangladeshis Roma Filipinos
Historic minorities Ethnic minorities in Denmark include a handful of groups:
Approximately 15,000 people in Denmark belong to a German minority traditionally referred to as tysksindet meaning "German-minded" in Danish, and as Nordschleswiger in German. This minority of Germans hold Danish citizenship and self-identify as Germans. Many of them speak German or Low German as their home language. There are also several thousand German citizens and other ethnic Germans residing in Denmark with no historical connection to this group. From 1864 until 15 June 1920 this group mainly lived in what would become Germany in 1871. This area had 163,600 inhabitants on its return to Denmark which can be seen on the crude migration change in the table which jumped from 1.6 in 1919 to 54.1 in 1920. An estimated 23,000 people in Denmark proper are ethnic Faroese, while 19,000 Greenlanders reside permanently in Denmark. Many of these use the Faroese and Greenlandic languages, respectively, as their first language. All residents of the Kingdom (viz. Denmark proper, the Faroe Islands and Greenland) hold Danish citizenship, unless they inherit or otherwise receive a foreign citizenship. The Danish Jews number around 6,000 in 2020 according to the organisation Jewish Community in Denmark, around 1,700 being card-carrying members of the organisation. There are close to 10,000 Roma in Denmark.
Modern minorities
In the modern minorities, Statistics Denmark counts first-generation immigrants, second-generation (Descendants in Danish statistics classification) and third-generation (Children of descendants in Danish classification). Children of descendants can be either of "Danish origin" (if both of their parents were born in Denmark with Danish citizenship) and of "foreign origin" (if one of their parents is a second-generation immigrant and another first-generation). Therefore, this table included all people of the respective background, people who are classified as of "foreign background" and third-generation immigrants, who classified as of "Danish origin". Statistics Denmark denotes an immigrant's group based on their country of birth, it does this usually off of the immigrant or descendents parents, if only one such parent is known, then the group is determined by that or if no parents are known then it is assumed if the person is an immigrant that their country of origin is their country of birth.
Statistics Denmark also has specific classification bands which it uses to separate different immigrant groups. As an example, for 'Western' immigrants and 'Non-western', the classification band is as follows:
Western countries: All 28 EU countries and Andorra, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Norway, San Marino, Switzerland, Vatican State, Canada, United States, Australia and New Zealand. Non-western countries; All other countries. According to 2026 figures from Statistics Denmark, 83,2% of Denmark's population of over 6,025,603 was of Danish descent. The remaining 16,8% were of a foreign background, defined as immigrants or descendants of recent immigrants. With the same definition, the most common countries of origin were Turkey, Poland, Germany, Iraq, Romania, Syria, Somalia, Iran, Afghanistan, and Yugoslavia and its successor states. More than 1,011,036 individuals (16,8%) are migrants and their descendants (230,082 second generation migrants born in Denmark).
Of these 1,011,036 immigrants and their descendants: 357,803 (35.4%) have a Western background (Norway, Germany, Bosnia and Herzegovina, UK, Poland, Romania and Iceland; definition: EU countries, non-EU Nordic countries, Andorra, Liechtenstein, Monaco, San Marino, Switzerland, Vatican State, Canada, USA, Australia and New Zealand). 653,233 (64.6%) have a non-Western background (Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Thailand, Ukraine, and Somalia; all other countries).
There were 121,183 immigrants in 2022, of these 31,381 were Ukrainian citizens, people with Ukrainian citizenship accounted for 26 percent of all immigration. The total population of Denmark increased in 2022 by 59,234 people, and the net immigration of Ukrainian people amounted to 45 percent of this population growth.
Rank Country of originImmigrants by country of birth, descendants and children of descendants (those, who are classified of Danish origin) Population (2008) Population (2021) Population (2023) Population (2024) Population (2025) 1. 59,960 75,072 77,845 79,373 80,937 2. 21,118 49,369 55,122 57,070 57,215 3. 5,105 15,595 42,482 44,825 49,854 4. 3,367 44,326 45,000 45,641 46,634 5. 3,681 34,997 44,221 46,036 46,132 6. 28,412 35,141 39,528 41,516 43,410 7. 28,417 34,217 35,101 35,476 35,975 8. 21,217 31,175 32,246 33,050 34,181 9. 23,343 30,435 31,700 32,269 33,014 10. 14,773 22,408 24,364 26,276 28,491 11. 21,861 23,449 23,625 23,659 23,732 12. 5,666 15,595 19,296 21,268 22,815 13. 11,880 19,957 21,380 21,784 22,172 14. 16,561 21,338 21,486 21,653 21,849 15. 12,593 17,651 18,190 18,442 18,605 16. 14,789 17,095 17,726 17,999 18,303 17. 13,459 16,307 16,906 17,448 18,272 18. 15,747 17,481 17,691 17,735 17,786 19. 8,574 14,841 15,836 16,549 17,443 20. 3,646 15,231 16,439 16,357 16,192 21. former 18,151 15,903 15,356 15,016 14,257 22. 9,808 13,170 13,708 13,937 14,138 23. 8,280 13,166 13,693 14,029 14,122 24. 1,194 - 13,503 13,840 14,007 25. 10,494 – 12,692 12,996 13,734 26. 7,199 – 12,760 13,098 13,577 27. 3,994 – 11,684 12,313 13,135 28. 7,151 – 10,786 11,293 11,797 29. 4,389 – 9,517 9,946 10,323 30. 8,421 – 9,513 9,765 10,082