World Factbook
Bolivia
Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Literacy
male
97.8% (2023 est.)
female
93.5% (2023 est.)
total population
95.6% (2023 est.)
Languages
Languages
Spanish (official) 68.1%, Quechua (official) 17.2%, Aymara (official) 10.5%, Guarani (official) 0.6%, other 1.5%, unspecified 2.1%; note - Spanish and all Indigenous languages are official (2012 est.)
major-language sample(s)
La Libreta Informativa del Mundo, la fuente indispensable de información básica. (Spanish) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Religions
Roman Catholic 65%, Protestant 19.6% (Evangelical (non-specific) 11.9%, Evangelical Baptist 2.1%, Evangelical Pentecostal 1.8%, Evangelical Methodist 0.7%, Adventist 2.8%, Protestant (non-specific) 0.3%), Believer (not belonging to the church) 0.9%, other 4.8%, atheist 1.7%, agnostic 0.6%, none 6.1%, unspecified 1.3% (2023 est.)
Sex ratio
at birth
1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years
1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years
1.02 male(s)/female
total population
1.01 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
65 years and over
0.86 male(s)/female
Birth rate
17.02 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Death rate
5.99 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Median age
male
26.2 years
total
27 years (2025 est.)
female
27 years
Population
male
6,257,914
total
12,436,103 (2025 est.)
female
6,178,189
Nationality
noun
Bolivian(s)
adjective
Bolivian
Tobacco use
male
18.9% (2025 est.)
total
11% (2025 est.)
female
3.2% (2025 est.)
Urbanization
urban population
71.2% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization
1.87% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years
28.5% (male 1,792,803/female 1,718,081)
15-64 years
64.5% (male 4,002,587/female 3,937,953)
65 years and over
7% (2024 est.) (male 397,384/female 463,166)
Ethnic groups
Mestizo (mixed White and Indigenous ancestry) 68%, Indigenous 20%, White 5%, Cholo/Chola 2%, African descent 1%, other 1%, unspecified 3%; 44% other Indigenous group, predominantly Quechua or Aymara (2009 est.)
note: results among surveys vary based on the wording of the ethnicity question and the available response choices; the 2001 national census did not provide "Mestizo" as a response choice, resulting in a much higher proportion of respondents identifying themselves as belonging to one of the available indigenous ethnicity choices; the use of "Mestizo" and "Cholo" varies among response choices in surveys, with surveys using the terms interchangeably, providing one or the other as a response choice, or providing the two as separate response choices
Child marriage
men married by age 18
5.2% (2016)
women married by age 15
3.4% (2016)
women married by age 18
19.7% (2016)
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio
54 (2025 est.)
youth dependency ratio
42.9 (2025 est.)
potential support ratio
9.1 (2025 est.)
elderly dependency ratio
11 (2025 est.)
Physician density
1.28 physicians/1,000 population (2021)
Health expenditure
Health expenditure (as % of GDP)
8.2% of GDP (2021)
Health expenditure (as % of national budget)
16.4% of national budget (2022 est.)
Net migration rate
-0.95 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Hospital bed density
1.4 beds/1,000 population (2021 est.)
Total fertility rate
2.13 children born/woman (2025 est.)
Drinking water source
improved: rural
rural: 81% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 94.1% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 99.5% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 19% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 5.9% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 0.5% of population (2022 est.)
Education expenditure
Education expenditure (% GDP)
8.3% of GDP (2023 est.)
Education expenditure (% national budget)
10.8% national budget (2024 est.)
Infant mortality rate
male
24.5 deaths/1,000 live births
total
22.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)
female
20 deaths/1,000 live births
Population growth rate
1.01% (2025 est.)
Gross reproduction rate
1.04 (2025 est.)
Population distribution
a high-altitude plain in the west between two cordillera of the Andes, known as the Altiplano, is the focal area for most of the population; a dense settlement pattern is also found in and around the city of Santa Cruz, located on the eastern side of the Andes
Life expectancy at birth
male
71 years
female
74 years
total population
72.5 years (2024 est.)
Maternal mortality ratio
146 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)
Sanitation facility access
improved: rural
rural: 51.4% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 85.8% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 100% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 48.6% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 14.2% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 0% of population (2022 est.)
Alcohol consumption per capita
beer
2.22 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine
0.14 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
total
2.98 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits
0.54 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols
0.08 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Major urban areas - population
1.936 million LA PAZ (capital), 1.820 million Santa Cruz, 1.400 million Cochabamba (2022); 278,000 Sucre (constitutional capital) (2018)
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
20.2% (2016)
Mother's mean age at first birth
21.1 years (2008 est.)
note: data represents median age at first birth among women 25-49
Currently married women (ages 15-49)
50.2% (2022 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
3.4% (2016 est.)