World Factbook
Albania
Republika e Shqiperise
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Literacy
male
98.2% (2023 est.)
female
97.2% (2023 est.)
total population
97.7% (2023 est.)
Languages
Languages
Albanian 98.8% (official - derived from Tosk dialect), Greek 0.5%, other 0.6% (including Macedonian, Romani, Vlach, Turkish, Italian, and Serbo-Croatian), unspecified 0.1% (2011 est.)
major-language sample(s)
Libri i fakteve boterore, burimi i pazevendesueshem per informacione elementare (Albanian) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Religions
Muslim 56.7%, Roman Catholic 10%, Orthodox 6.8%, atheist 2.5%, Bektashi (a Sufi order) 2.1%, other 5.7%, unspecified 16.2% (2011 est.)
note: all mosques and churches were closed in 1967 and religious observances prohibited; in November 1990, Albania began allowing private religious practice
Sex ratio
at birth
1.06 male(s)/female
0-14 years
1.09 male(s)/female
15-64 years
0.97 male(s)/female
total population
0.97 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
65 years and over
0.85 male(s)/female
Birth rate
8.71 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Death rate
7.9 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Median age
male
34.8 years
total
37.9 years (2025 est.)
female
37.8 years
Population
male
1,229,151
total
2,551,837 (2025 est.)
female
1,322,686
Nationality
noun
Albanian(s)
adjective
Albanian
Tobacco use
male
37% (2025 est.)
total
21.4% (2025 est.)
female
6.2% (2025 est.)
Urbanization
urban population
64.6% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization
1.29% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years
18% (male 292,296/female 267,052)
15-64 years
66.9% (male 1,023,515/female 1,055,388)
65 years and over
15.1% (2024 est.) (male 215,252/female 253,597)
Ethnic groups
Albanian 82.6%, Greek 0.9%, other 1% (including Vlach, Romani, Macedonian, Montenegrin, and Egyptian), unspecified 15.5% (2011 est.)
note: data represent population by ethnic and cultural affiliation
Child marriage
men married by age 18
1.2% (2018)
women married by age 15
1.4% (2018)
women married by age 18
11.8% (2018)
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio
49 (2025 est.)
youth dependency ratio
24.1 (2025 est.)
potential support ratio
4 (2025 est.)
elderly dependency ratio
24.9 (2025 est.)
Physician density
1.88 physicians/1,000 population (2020)
Health expenditure
Health expenditure (as % of GDP)
7.3% of GDP (2021)
Health expenditure (as % of national budget)
9.2% of national budget (2022 est.)
Net migration rate
-11.37 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Hospital bed density
2.9 beds/1,000 population (2020 est.)
Total fertility rate
1.09 children born/woman (2025 est.)
Drinking water source
improved: rural
rural: 94.1% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 95.1% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 95.7% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 5.9% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 4.9% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 4.3% of population (2022 est.)
Education expenditure
Education expenditure (% GDP)
3.1% of GDP (2023 est.)
Education expenditure (% national budget)
10.9% national budget (2023 est.)
Infant mortality rate
male
11.3 deaths/1,000 live births
total
10.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)
female
9.2 deaths/1,000 live births
Population growth rate
-1.06% (2025 est.)
Gross reproduction rate
0.52 (2025 est.)
Population distribution
a fairly even distribution, with somewhat higher concentrations of people in the western and central parts of the country
Life expectancy at birth
male
77.3 years
female
82.8 years
total population
79.9 years (2024 est.)
Maternal mortality ratio
7 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)
Sanitation facility access
improved: rural
rural: 100% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 99.9% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 99.8% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 0% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 0.1% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 0.2% of population (2022 est.)
Alcohol consumption per capita
beer
1.75 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine
1.15 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
total
4.4 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits
1.43 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols
0.08 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Major urban areas - population
520,000 TIRANA (capital) (2023)
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
21.7% (2016)
Mother's mean age at first birth
26.6 years (2020 est.)
Currently married women (ages 15-49)
65.7% (2018 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
1.5% (2017 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)
male
14 years (2023 est.)
total
15 years (2023 est.)
female
15 years (2023 est.)