Bhutan People - 2024

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Population

876,181 (2023 est.)

Nationality

noun: Bhutanese (singular and plural)

adjective: Bhutanese

Ethnic groups

Ngalop (also known as Bhote) 50%, ethnic Nepali 35% (predominantly Lhotshampas), indigenous or migrant tribes 15%

Languages

Sharchopkha 28%, Dzongkha (official) 24%, Lhotshamkha 22%, other 26% (includes foreign languages) (2005 est.)

Religions

Lamaistic Buddhist 75.3%, Indian- and Nepali-influenced Hinduism 22.1%, other 2.6% (2005 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years: 23.49% (male 105,317/female 100,526)

15-64 years: 69.97% (male 318,732/female 294,292)

65 years and over: 6.54% (2023 est.) (male 29,582/female 27,732)

2023 population pyramid:

Dependency ratios

total dependency ratio: 40.7

youth dependency ratio: 32.1

elderly dependency ratio: 8.6

potential support ratio: 11.1 (2021 est.)

Median age

total: 30.2 years (2023 est.)

male: 30.6 years

female: 29.8 years

Population growth rate

0.96% (2023 est.)

Birth rate

15.6 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Death rate

6.1 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Net migration rate

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Urbanization

urban population: 44.4% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization: 2.52% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Major urban areas - population

203,000 THIMPHU (capital) (2018)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.05 male(s)/female

15-64 years: 1.08 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 1.07 male(s)/female

total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2023 est.)

Maternal mortality ratio

60 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 25.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)

male: 25.9 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 25.3 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 73 years (2023 est.)

male: 71.8 years

female: 74.3 years

Total fertility rate

1.77 children born/woman (2023 est.)

Gross reproduction rate

0.86 (2023 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

N/A

Drinking water source

improved: urban: 99.5% of population

rural: 100% of population

total: 99.8% of population

unimproved: urban: 0.5% of population

rural: 0% of population

total: 0.2% of population (2020 est.)

Current health expenditure

4.4% of GDP (2020)

Physicians density

0.5 physicians/1,000 population (2020)

Hospital bed density

1.7 beds/1,000 population (2012)

Sanitation facility access

improved: urban: 90.8% of population

rural: 83.1% of population

total: 86.4% of population

unimproved: urban: 9.2% of population

rural: 16.9% of population

total: 13.6% of population (2020 est.)

Obesity - adult prevalence rate

6.4% (2016)

Alcohol consumption per capita

total: 0.07 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

beer: 0.01 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

wine: 0.05 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

spirits: 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

other alcohols: 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

N/A

Currently married women (ages 15-49)

62.8% (2023 est.)

Education expenditures

7% of GDP (2021 est.)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 70.9%

male: 77.9%

female: 62.8% (2021)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

total: 13 years

male: 13 years

female: 13 years (2018)

NOTE: The information regarding Bhutan on this page is re-published from the 2024 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Bhutan 2024 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Bhutan 2024 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.