Ranking · People

Fertility rate by country

Name: Fertility rate by country
Creator: UN World Population Prospects 2024

By the UN's estimates, South Korea has the lowest fertility rate in the world, 0.75 children per woman in 2025. Taiwan's own count for 2025 was even lower, a record 0.695. Chad has the highest rate, 5.94. About 2.1 children per woman keeps a population stable, and 104 of the 196 countries are now below that level.

UN World Population Prospects 2024 · 196 countries · Updated September 2026

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Children per woman in 2025, lowest first

Under 1.3
1.3–1.6
1.6–2.1
2.1–4
Over 4
Not in this ranking

Fertility rate by country: Children per woman in 2025, lowest first
#	Country	Children per woman	1975	Change since 1975
1	South Korea	0.75	3.31	−77%
2	Taiwan	0.86	2.97	−71%
3	Singapore	0.96	2.08	−54%
4	Ukraine	1.00	2.05	−51%
5	China	1.02	3.57	−71%
6	Andorra	1.10	2.46	−55%
7	Malta	1.11	2.15	−48%
8	Chile	1.13	3.18	−64%
9	San Marino	1.16	2.05	−43%
10	Thailand	1.19	4.36	−73%
11	Mauritius	1.21	3.20	−62%
12	United Arab Emirates	1.21	6.35	−81%
13	Italy	1.21	2.18	−44%
14	Belarus	1.22	2.13	−43%
15	Lithuania	1.22	2.17	−44%
16	Japan	1.23	1.92	−36%
17	Spain	1.23	2.77	−56%
18	Finland	1.30	1.68	−23%
19	Poland	1.31	2.28	−43%
20	Costa Rica	1.31	3.80	−66%
21	Albania	1.33	4.57	−71%
22	Austria	1.33	1.82	−27%
23	Canada	1.33	1.80	−26%
24	Greece	1.34	2.42	−45%
25	Jamaica	1.34	4.44	−70%
26	Latvia	1.35	1.95	−31%
27	Bahamas	1.36	3.42	−60%
28	Cyprus	1.37	2.11	−35%
29	Estonia	1.37	2.04	−33%
30	Saint Lucia	1.38	5.36	−74%
31	Belgium	1.39	1.75	−21%
32	Uruguay	1.39	3.02	−54%
33	Luxembourg	1.40	1.56	−10%
34	Norway	1.42	1.99	−29%
35	Bhutan	1.44	6.62	−78%
36	Sweden	1.44	1.77	−19%
37	Netherlands	1.44	1.67	−14%
38	Switzerland	1.44	1.61	−11%
39	Cuba	1.45	2.82	−49%
40	Russia	1.46	2.00	−27%
41	Germany	1.46	1.48	−1%
42	Grenada	1.46	3.75	−61%
43	Czechia	1.47	2.43	−40%
44	Croatia	1.47	1.95	−25%
45	North Macedonia	1.47	2.69	−45%
46	Dominica	1.47	3.46	−58%
47	Cape Verde	1.50	6.77	−78%
48	Kuwait	1.50	6.06	−75%
49	Hungary	1.50	2.36	−36%
50	Iceland	1.50	2.64	−43%
51	Bosnia and Herzegovina	1.50	2.39	−37%
52	Serbia	1.50	1.92	−22%
53	Argentina	1.50	3.27	−54%
54	Saint Kitts and Nevis	1.51	3.67	−59%
55	Denmark	1.52	1.91	−20%
56	Portugal	1.52	2.75	−45%
57	Trinidad and Tobago	1.52	3.21	−53%
58	Malaysia	1.53	4.50	−66%
59	Kosovo	1.53	5.28	−71%
60	United Kingdom	1.54	1.81	−15%
61	Liechtenstein	1.54	1.90	−19%
62	Maldives	1.55	7.32	−79%
63	Slovakia	1.57	2.54	−38%
64	Slovenia	1.58	2.17	−27%
65	Antigua and Barbuda	1.58	2.77	−43%
66	Ireland	1.60	3.37	−53%
67	Brazil	1.60	4.42	−64%
68	Turkey	1.62	5.09	−68%
69	Colombia	1.62	4.40	−63%
70	United States	1.62	1.81	−10%
71	France	1.64	1.93	−15%
72	Australia	1.64	2.21	−26%
73	New Zealand	1.65	2.36	−30%
74	Azerbaijan	1.66	4.21	−61%
75	Iran	1.67	5.95	−72%
76	Qatar	1.70	5.86	−71%
77	Barbados	1.70	2.45	−31%
78	Brunei	1.71	4.99	−66%
79	Armenia	1.71	2.92	−41%
80	Romania	1.71	2.59	−34%
81	Moldova	1.72	2.52	−32%
82	Bulgaria	1.74	2.24	−22%
83	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	1.75	5.16	−66%
84	El Salvador	1.75	5.71	−69%
85	North Korea	1.77	3.05	−42%
86	Bahrain	1.78	5.62	−68%
87	Georgia	1.79	2.55	−30%
88	Ecuador	1.79	5.43	−67%
89	Tunisia	1.80	5.97	−70%
90	Montenegro	1.80	2.38	−24%
91	Palau	1.86	4.90	−62%
92	Mexico	1.87	5.74	−67%
93	Philippines	1.88	5.60	−66%
94	Vietnam	1.88	5.62	−67%
95	India	1.94	5.19	−63%
96	Nepal	1.94	5.73	−66%
97	Sri Lanka	1.94	3.82	−49%
98	Peru	1.94	5.71	−66%
99	Belize	2.01	6.28	−68%
100	Venezuela	2.06	4.69	−56%
101	Seychelles	2.08	4.75	−56%
102	Myanmar	2.08	5.25	−60%
103	Monaco	2.09	2.35	−11%
104	Panama	2.09	4.41	−53%
105	Indonesia	2.10	5.03	−58%
106	Bangladesh	2.11	6.73	−69%
107	Morocco	2.18	6.30	−65%
108	Nicaragua	2.18	6.45	−66%
109	South Africa	2.19	5.19	−58%
110	Dominican Republic	2.19	5.23	−58%
111	Lebanon	2.21	4.52	−51%
112	Suriname	2.21	4.63	−52%
113	Libya	2.25	7.98	−72%
114	Fiji	2.25	4.10	−45%
115	Guatemala	2.26	6.41	−65%
116	Saudi Arabia	2.29	7.37	−69%
117	Laos	2.36	6.29	−62%
118	Guyana	2.37	4.45	−47%
119	Paraguay	2.39	5.18	−54%
120	Honduras	2.45	6.87	−64%
121	Oman	2.48	7.71	−68%
122	Bolivia	2.50	5.75	−57%
123	Cambodia	2.51	4.10	−39%
124	Timor-Leste	2.56	5.19	−51%
125	Jordan	2.57	7.93	−68%
126	Djibouti	2.58	6.74	−62%
127	Mongolia	2.58	7.07	−64%
128	Haiti	2.59	5.75	−55%
129	Turkmenistan	2.63	6.00	−56%
130	Lesotho	2.64	5.82	−55%
131	Botswana	2.66	6.61	−60%
132	Syria	2.66	7.49	−64%
133	Algeria	2.67	7.48	−64%
134	Eswatini	2.68	6.71	−60%
135	Egypt	2.71	5.75	−53%
136	Micronesia	2.71	6.88	−61%
137	Kyrgyzstan	2.75	4.76	−42%
138	Israel	2.75	3.61	−24%
139	Marshall Islands	2.82	7.83	−64%
140	Kazakhstan	2.95	3.40	−13%
141	Tajikistan	2.99	6.69	−55%
142	Papua New Guinea	3.03	6.06	−50%
143	Tonga	3.07	5.75	−47%
144	Kiribati	3.09	5.02	−38%
145	Kenya	3.12	7.80	−60%
146	Tuvalu	3.14	3.58	−12%
147	Namibia	3.17	6.53	−51%
148	Iraq	3.17	6.91	−54%
149	Palestine	3.19	7.48	−57%
150	Nauru	3.25	3.97	−18%
151	Ghana	3.30	6.76	−51%
152	Uzbekistan	3.45	5.92	−42%
153	Solomon Islands	3.47	6.99	−50%
154	Pakistan	3.50	6.81	−49%
155	Malawi	3.53	7.36	−52%
156	São Tomé and Príncipe	3.53	6.53	−46%
157	Vanuatu	3.53	5.98	−41%
158	Gabon	3.54	5.39	−34%
159	Rwanda	3.59	8.10	−56%
160	Eritrea	3.61	6.59	−45%
161	Sierra Leone	3.61	6.55	−45%
162	Zimbabwe	3.62	6.83	−47%
163	Guinea-Bissau	3.68	6.15	−40%
164	South Sudan	3.71	7.33	−49%
165	Senegal	3.71	7.25	−49%
166	Samoa	3.75	6.61	−43%
167	Comoros	3.76	7.16	−47%
168	Liberia	3.79	6.74	−44%
169	Gambia	3.80	6.43	−41%
170	Ethiopia	3.81	7.08	−46%
171	Madagascar	3.84	6.97	−45%
172	Zambia	3.97	7.42	−46%
173	Burkina Faso	4.00	6.91	−42%
174	Equatorial Guinea	4.04	5.79	−30%
175	Guinea	4.04	6.37	−37%
176	Republic of the Congo	4.05	6.36	−36%
177	Uganda	4.06	7.20	−44%
178	Togo	4.07	7.09	−43%
179	Côte d'Ivoire	4.17	7.91	−47%
180	Cameroon	4.19	6.40	−35%
181	Sudan	4.19	6.87	−39%
182	Nigeria	4.30	6.77	−36%
183	Yemen	4.41	8.37	−47%
184	Benin	4.42	6.83	−35%
185	Tanzania	4.47	7.10	−37%
186	Mauritania	4.56	6.71	−32%
187	Mozambique	4.62	6.66	−31%
188	Afghanistan	4.66	7.54	−38%
189	Burundi	4.68	7.24	−35%
190	Angola	4.95	7.49	−34%
191	Mali	5.42	7.25	−25%
192	Niger	5.79	7.54	−23%
193	Central African Republic	5.81	5.88	−1%
194	DR Congo	5.90	6.42	−8%
195	Somalia	5.91	7.03	−16%
196	Chad	5.94	6.88	−14%

Fertility rate by country: Children per woman in 1975, lowest first
#	Country	1975	Children per woman	Change since 1975
1	Germany	1.48	1.46	−1%
2	Luxembourg	1.56	1.40	−10%
3	Switzerland	1.61	1.44	−11%
4	Netherlands	1.67	1.44	−14%
5	Finland	1.68	1.30	−23%
6	Belgium	1.75	1.39	−21%
7	Sweden	1.77	1.44	−19%
8	Canada	1.80	1.33	−26%
9	United Kingdom	1.81	1.54	−15%
10	United States	1.81	1.62	−10%
11	Austria	1.82	1.33	−27%
12	Liechtenstein	1.90	1.54	−19%
13	Denmark	1.91	1.52	−20%
14	Japan	1.92	1.23	−36%
15	Serbia	1.92	1.50	−22%
16	France	1.93	1.64	−15%
17	Latvia	1.95	1.35	−31%
18	Croatia	1.95	1.47	−25%
19	Norway	1.99	1.42	−29%
20	Russia	2.00	1.46	−27%
21	Estonia	2.04	1.37	−33%
22	Ukraine	2.05	1.00	−51%
23	San Marino	2.05	1.16	−43%
24	Singapore	2.08	0.96	−54%
25	Cyprus	2.11	1.37	−35%
26	Belarus	2.13	1.22	−43%
27	Malta	2.15	1.11	−48%
28	Lithuania	2.17	1.22	−44%
29	Slovenia	2.17	1.58	−27%
30	Italy	2.18	1.21	−44%
31	Australia	2.21	1.64	−26%
32	Bulgaria	2.24	1.74	−22%
33	Poland	2.28	1.31	−43%
34	Monaco	2.35	2.09	−11%
35	Hungary	2.36	1.50	−36%
36	New Zealand	2.36	1.65	−30%
37	Montenegro	2.38	1.80	−24%
38	Bosnia and Herzegovina	2.39	1.50	−37%
39	Greece	2.42	1.34	−45%
40	Czechia	2.43	1.47	−40%
41	Barbados	2.45	1.70	−31%
42	Andorra	2.46	1.10	−55%
43	Moldova	2.52	1.72	−32%
44	Slovakia	2.54	1.57	−38%
45	Georgia	2.55	1.79	−30%
46	Romania	2.59	1.71	−34%
47	Iceland	2.64	1.50	−43%
48	North Macedonia	2.69	1.47	−45%
49	Portugal	2.75	1.52	−45%
50	Spain	2.77	1.23	−56%
51	Antigua and Barbuda	2.77	1.58	−43%
52	Cuba	2.82	1.45	−49%
53	Armenia	2.92	1.71	−41%
54	Taiwan	2.97	0.86	−71%
55	Uruguay	3.02	1.39	−54%
56	North Korea	3.05	1.77	−42%
57	Chile	3.18	1.13	−64%
58	Mauritius	3.20	1.21	−62%
59	Trinidad and Tobago	3.21	1.52	−53%
60	Argentina	3.27	1.50	−54%
61	South Korea	3.31	0.75	−77%
62	Ireland	3.37	1.60	−53%
63	Kazakhstan	3.40	2.95	−13%
64	Bahamas	3.42	1.36	−60%
65	Dominica	3.46	1.47	−58%
66	China	3.57	1.02	−71%
67	Tuvalu	3.58	3.14	−12%
68	Israel	3.61	2.75	−24%
69	Saint Kitts and Nevis	3.67	1.51	−59%
70	Grenada	3.75	1.46	−61%
71	Costa Rica	3.80	1.31	−66%
72	Sri Lanka	3.82	1.94	−49%
73	Nauru	3.97	3.25	−18%
74	Fiji	4.10	2.25	−45%
75	Cambodia	4.10	2.51	−39%
76	Azerbaijan	4.21	1.66	−61%
77	Thailand	4.36	1.19	−73%
78	Colombia	4.40	1.62	−63%
79	Panama	4.41	2.09	−53%
80	Brazil	4.42	1.60	−64%
81	Jamaica	4.44	1.34	−70%
82	Guyana	4.45	2.37	−47%
83	Malaysia	4.50	1.53	−66%
84	Lebanon	4.52	2.21	−51%
85	Albania	4.57	1.33	−71%
86	Suriname	4.63	2.21	−52%
87	Venezuela	4.69	2.06	−56%
88	Seychelles	4.75	2.08	−56%
89	Kyrgyzstan	4.76	2.75	−42%
90	Palau	4.90	1.86	−62%
91	Brunei	4.99	1.71	−66%
92	Kiribati	5.02	3.09	−38%
93	Indonesia	5.03	2.10	−58%
94	Turkey	5.09	1.62	−68%
95	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	5.16	1.75	−66%
96	Paraguay	5.18	2.39	−54%
97	India	5.19	1.94	−63%
98	South Africa	5.19	2.19	−58%
99	Timor-Leste	5.19	2.56	−51%
100	Dominican Republic	5.23	2.19	−58%
101	Myanmar	5.25	2.08	−60%
102	Kosovo	5.28	1.53	−71%
103	Saint Lucia	5.36	1.38	−74%
104	Gabon	5.39	3.54	−34%
105	Ecuador	5.43	1.79	−67%
106	Philippines	5.60	1.88	−66%
107	Bahrain	5.62	1.78	−68%
108	Vietnam	5.62	1.88	−67%
109	El Salvador	5.71	1.75	−69%
110	Peru	5.71	1.94	−66%
111	Nepal	5.73	1.94	−66%
112	Mexico	5.74	1.87	−67%
113	Bolivia	5.75	2.50	−57%
114	Haiti	5.75	2.59	−55%
115	Egypt	5.75	2.71	−53%
116	Tonga	5.75	3.07	−47%
117	Equatorial Guinea	5.79	4.04	−30%
118	Lesotho	5.82	2.64	−55%
119	Qatar	5.86	1.70	−71%
120	Central African Republic	5.88	5.81	−1%
121	Uzbekistan	5.92	3.45	−42%
122	Iran	5.95	1.67	−72%
123	Tunisia	5.97	1.80	−70%
124	Vanuatu	5.98	3.53	−41%
125	Turkmenistan	6.00	2.63	−56%
126	Kuwait	6.06	1.50	−75%
127	Papua New Guinea	6.06	3.03	−50%
128	Guinea-Bissau	6.15	3.68	−40%
129	Belize	6.28	2.01	−68%
130	Laos	6.29	2.36	−62%
131	Morocco	6.30	2.18	−65%
132	United Arab Emirates	6.35	1.21	−81%
133	Republic of the Congo	6.36	4.05	−36%
134	Guinea	6.37	4.04	−37%
135	Cameroon	6.40	4.19	−35%
136	Guatemala	6.41	2.26	−65%
137	DR Congo	6.42	5.90	−8%
138	Gambia	6.43	3.80	−41%
139	Nicaragua	6.45	2.18	−66%
140	Namibia	6.53	3.17	−51%
141	São Tomé and Príncipe	6.53	3.53	−46%
142	Sierra Leone	6.55	3.61	−45%
143	Eritrea	6.59	3.61	−45%
144	Botswana	6.61	2.66	−60%
145	Samoa	6.61	3.75	−43%
146	Bhutan	6.62	1.44	−78%
147	Mozambique	6.66	4.62	−31%
148	Tajikistan	6.69	2.99	−55%
149	Eswatini	6.71	2.68	−60%
150	Mauritania	6.71	4.56	−32%
151	Bangladesh	6.73	2.11	−69%
152	Djibouti	6.74	2.58	−62%
153	Liberia	6.74	3.79	−44%
154	Ghana	6.76	3.30	−51%
155	Cape Verde	6.77	1.50	−78%
156	Nigeria	6.77	4.30	−36%
157	Pakistan	6.81	3.50	−49%
158	Zimbabwe	6.83	3.62	−47%
159	Benin	6.83	4.42	−35%
160	Honduras	6.87	2.45	−64%
161	Sudan	6.87	4.19	−39%
162	Micronesia	6.88	2.71	−61%
163	Chad	6.88	5.94	−14%
164	Iraq	6.91	3.17	−54%
165	Burkina Faso	6.91	4.00	−42%
166	Madagascar	6.97	3.84	−45%
167	Solomon Islands	6.99	3.47	−50%
168	Somalia	7.03	5.91	−16%
169	Mongolia	7.07	2.58	−64%
170	Ethiopia	7.08	3.81	−46%
171	Togo	7.09	4.07	−43%
172	Tanzania	7.10	4.47	−37%
173	Comoros	7.16	3.76	−47%
174	Uganda	7.20	4.06	−44%
175	Burundi	7.24	4.68	−35%
176	Senegal	7.25	3.71	−49%
177	Mali	7.25	5.42	−25%
178	Maldives	7.32	1.55	−79%
179	South Sudan	7.33	3.71	−49%
180	Malawi	7.36	3.53	−52%
181	Saudi Arabia	7.37	2.29	−69%
182	Zambia	7.42	3.97	−46%
183	Algeria	7.48	2.67	−64%
184	Palestine	7.48	3.19	−57%
185	Syria	7.49	2.66	−64%
186	Angola	7.49	4.95	−34%
187	Afghanistan	7.54	4.66	−38%
188	Niger	7.54	5.79	−23%
189	Oman	7.71	2.48	−68%
190	Kenya	7.80	3.12	−60%
191	Marshall Islands	7.83	2.82	−64%
192	Côte d'Ivoire	7.91	4.17	−47%
193	Jordan	7.93	2.57	−68%
194	Libya	7.98	2.25	−72%
195	Rwanda	8.10	3.59	−56%
196	Yemen	8.37	4.41	−47%

Why they rank where they do

South Korea

South Korea's own count rose to 0.80 in 2025, with 254,300 births. It was the second rise in a row, after a record low of 0.72 in 2023.
Taiwan

Births in Taiwan fell by a fifth in one year, from 134,856 in 2024 to 107,812 in 2025, the fewest on record.
Singapore

From 1972 Singapore's government campaigned for families to "Stop at Two". In 1987 it switched to "Have three or more, if you can afford it". Singapore's own count for 2025 was a record low of 0.87.
Ukraine

In the territory Ukraine's government controls, births fell from 273,770 in 2021 to 168,780 in 2025, and deaths were 2.9 times births in 2025. About 5.9 million refugees from Ukraine were abroad in February 2026.
China

China's one-child policy ran from 1980 to 2015. All couples could have two children from 2016 and three from 2021. Births still fell to 7.92 million in 2025, the fewest since 1949, and China's population fell for the fourth year in a row.
Japan

Japan recorded 671,236 births in 2025, the 10th record low in a row. Births first fell below 700,000 in 2024, for the first time since records began in 1899.
United States

The CDC recorded a record low fertility rate of about 1.60 in 2024. The United States keeps growing mainly through immigration.
France

In 2025 more people died in France than were born, 651,000 against 645,000, for the first time since 1945. France's own fertility rate fell to 1.56, the lowest since the end of World War I.
India

India fell below replacement level in its national health survey of 2019-21. The rate differs widely by state: official data for 2024 put Bihar at 2.9 and Kerala and Tamil Nadu at 1.3.
Israel

Israel has by far the highest fertility rate in the OECD, the club of rich countries: about 2.9 children per woman in Israel's own statistics, against an OECD average of 1.5. Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) Jewish women have about 6.5 children on average.
Niger

Niger had the world's highest fertility rate for many years. Its 2012 health survey found about 7.6 children per woman.

Which countries have the highest fertility rates?

The eight highest fertility rates are all in sub-Saharan Africa. Chad leads with 5.94 children per woman, just ahead of Somalia and DR Congo. These countries also have some of the youngest populations on Earth: the median age in 2024 was 15.4 in Niger, 15.6 in Mali and 15.7 in Chad.

Outside Africa, Afghanistan has the highest rate, 4.66, followed by Yemen at 4.41. Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, is at 4.30.

Chad5.94
Somalia5.91
DR Congo5.90
Central African Republic5.81
Niger5.79
Mali5.42
Angola4.95
Burundi4.68

Replacement level, 2.1 children per woman

What is the replacement fertility rate?

In countries with low death rates, about 2.1 children per woman keeps a population stable without migration. The number is above 2 because about 105 boys are born for every 100 girls, and because some girls die before they reach or finish their childbearing years. Where more children die young, the replacement level is higher.

In 1975, only 24 countries were below 2.1. In 2025, 104 of the 196 countries in this ranking are below it, and about 67% of the world's people live in them. The UN projects that the world's population will peak at about 10.3 billion in 2084.

Which countries' fertility rates have fallen the most?

Among countries with at least 20 million people, South Korea's fertility rate fell the most between 1975 and 2025, by 77%. Thailand, Iran, China and Taiwan each fell by more than 70%. Every one of the 196 countries in this ranking has a lower rate than in 1975.

Iran's fall was one of the fastest ever recorded. Iranian women had about 6.5 children in the mid-1980s. In December 1989 the government relaunched family planning, and the rate fell to about 2 by 2000. Then Iran's leaders changed course. In 2012 the government cut free contraception. In 2014 Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei made raising births official policy, and a 2021 law restricted contraception, sterilization and abortion.

South Korea−77%
Thailand−73%
Iran−72%
China−71%
Taiwan−71%
Saudi Arabia−69%
Bangladesh−69%
Turkey−68%

Change in children per woman, 1975 to 2025. Countries with at least 20 million people.

Can governments raise birth rates?

Some have tried, with little lasting success. South Korea's government spent about 380 trillion won from 2006 to 2023 on policies to raise births. South Korea's rate has risen two years in a row since 2023, but it is still one of the lowest in the world.

In Hungary, under Viktor Orbán, the rate rose from 1.23 in 2011 to 1.61 in 2021, then fell to 1.31 in 2025. Since 2020, Hungarian mothers of four or more children pay no income tax for life, and the exemption is being extended to mothers of three and two. In Georgia, the head of the Georgian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Ilia II, promised in 2007 to personally baptize every third and later child of married Orthodox parents. Births rose from about 49,000 in 2007 to about 63,000 in 2009. Georgia's rate peaked at 2.30 in 2014 and fell to 1.61 in 2025.

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PopulationUN 2025 1

India1.46B 2

China1.42B 3

United States347M GDPIMF 2025 1

United States$30.8tn 2

China$19.6tn 3

Germany$5.05tn National debtIMF 2025 1

Venezuela308.7% 2

Japan206.5% 3

Sudan187.6%

Why they rank where they do

Which countries have the highest fertility rates?

What is the replacement fertility rate?

Which countries' fertility rates have fallen the most?

Can governments raise birth rates?

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