Country Details

North Macedonia

Southeastern Europe, north of Greece

People and Society

Detailed information and insights

Population

Total

2,137,556 (2025 est.)

Male

1,065,634

Female

1,071,922

Nationality

Noun

Macedonian(s)

Adjective

Macedonian

Ethnic groups

Macedonian 58.4%, Albanian 24.3%, Turkish 3.9%, Romani 2.5%, Serb 1.3%, other 2.3%, no ethnic affiliation data available 7.2% (2021 est.)

Note

note: data represent total resident population; Romani populations are usually underestimated in official statistics and may represent 6.5–13% of North Macedonia’s population

Languages

Languages

Macedonian (official) 61.4%, Albanian (official) 24.3%, Turkish 3.4%, Romani 1.7%, other (includes Aromanian (Vlach) and Bosnian) 2%, unspecified 7.2% (2021 est.)

Major-language sample(s)


Книга на Светски Факти, неопходен извор на основни информации. (Macedonian)

The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.

Religions

Orthodox 46.1%, Islam 32.2%, Christian 13.2%, Other 7.2%; less than 1%: atheist, Catholic, other religions, not specified, Protestant (2021 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years

16% (male 176,423/female 164,945)

15-64 years

68.4% (male 740,649/female 719,627)

65 years and over

15.6% (2024 est.) (male 147,655/female 186,323)

Dependency ratios

Total dependency ratio

46.9 (2025 est.)

Youth dependency ratio

23.3 (2025 est.)

Elderly dependency ratio

23.6 (2025 est.)

Potential support ratio

4.2 (2025 est.)

Median age

Total

40.9 years (2025 est.)

Male

39.4 years

Female

41.6 years

Population growth rate

0.08% (2025 est.)

Birth rate

10.07 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)

Death rate

9.62 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)

Net migration rate

0.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)

Population distribution

a fairly even distribution throughout most of the country, with urban areas attracting larger and denser populations

Urbanization

Urban population

59.5% of total population (2023)

Rate of urbanization

0.61% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Major urban areas - population

611,000 SKOPJE (capital) (2023)

Sex ratio

At birth

1.07 male(s)/female

0-14 years

1.07 male(s)/female

15-64 years

1.03 male(s)/female

65 years and over

0.79 male(s)/female

Total population

0.99 male(s)/female (2024 est.)

Mother's mean age at first birth

26.9 years (2020 est.)

Maternal mortality ratio

3 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)

Infant mortality rate

Total

6.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)

Male

7.9 deaths/1,000 live births

Female

6 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth

Total population

77.3 years (2024 est.)

Male

75.3 years

Female

79.6 years

Total fertility rate

1.53 children born/woman (2025 est.)

Gross reproduction rate

0.74 (2025 est.)

Drinking water source

Improved: urban

urban: 98.1% of population (2022 est.)

Improved: rural

rural: 97.4% of population (2022 est.)

Improved: total

total: 97.8% of population (2022 est.)

Unimproved: urban

urban: 1.9% of population (2022 est.)

Unimproved: rural

rural: 2.6% of population (2022 est.)

Unimproved: total

total: 2.2% of population (2022 est.)

Health expenditure

Health expenditure (as % of GDP)

8.5% of GDP (2021)

Health expenditure (as % of national budget)

12.4% of national budget (2022 est.)

Physician density

2.94 physicians/1,000 population (2022)

Hospital bed density

4.2 beds/1,000 population (2020 est.)

Sanitation facility access

Improved: urban

urban: 100% of population (2022 est.)

Improved: rural

rural: 98.6% of population (2022 est.)

Improved: total

total: 99.4% of population (2022 est.)

Unimproved: urban

urban: 0% of population (2022 est.)

Unimproved: rural

rural: 1.4% of population (2022 est.)

Unimproved: total

total: 0.6% of population (2022 est.)

Obesity - adult prevalence rate

22.4% (2016)

Alcohol consumption per capita

Total

3.9 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Beer

1.93 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Wine

1.03 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Spirits

0.9 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Other alcohols

0.03 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

0.9% (2019 est.)

Currently married women (ages 15-49)

66.1% (2021 est.)

Child marriage

Women married by age 15

0.3% (2019)

Women married by age 18

7.5% (2019)

Literacy

Female

97.8% (2018 est.)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

Total

15 years (2022 est.)

Male

14 years (2022 est.)

Female

15 years (2022 est.)