World Factbook
Kiribati
Republic of Kiribati
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Literacy
male
98.6% (2020 est.)
female
98.9% (2020 est.)
total population
98.6% (2020 est.)
Languages
Gilbertese, English (official)
Religions
Roman Catholic 58.9%, Kiribati Uniting Church 21.2%, Kiribati Protestant Church 8.4%, Church of Jesus Christ 5.6%, Seventh Day Adventist 2.1%, Baha'i 2.1%, other 1.7% (2020 est.)
Sex ratio
at birth
1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years
1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years
0.93 male(s)/female
total population
0.94 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
65 years and over
0.63 male(s)/female
Birth rate
19.4 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Death rate
6.88 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Median age
male
26.4 years
total
27.7 years (2025 est.)
female
28.2 years
Population
male
56,364
total
116,545 (2024 est.)
female
60,181
Nationality
noun
I-Kiribati (singular and plural)
adjective
Kiribati
Tobacco use
male
48.4% (2025 est.)
total
35.4% (2025 est.)
female
23.6% (2025 est.)
Urbanization
urban population
57.8% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization
2.77% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years
26.8% (male 15,895/female 15,304)
15-64 years
67.9% (male 38,046/female 41,059)
65 years and over
5.4% (2024 est.) (male 2,423/female 3,818)
Ethnic groups
I-Kiribati 95.78%, I-Kiribati/mixed 3.8%, Tuvaluan 0.2%, other 1.7% (2020 est.)
Child marriage
men married by age 18
8.6% (2019)
women married by age 15
2.4% (2019)
women married by age 18
18.4% (2019)
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio
47.3 (2024 est.)
youth dependency ratio
39.4 (2024 est.)
potential support ratio
12.7 (2024 est.)
elderly dependency ratio
7.9 (2024 est.)
Physician density
0.2 physicians/1,000 population (2013)
Health expenditure
Health expenditure (as % of GDP)
14.8% of GDP (2021)
Health expenditure (as % of national budget)
9.7% of national budget (2022 est.)
Net migration rate
-2.75 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Hospital bed density
1.9 beds/1,000 population (2016 est.)
Total fertility rate
2.13 children born/woman (2025 est.)
Drinking water source
improved: rural
rural: 59.5% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 75.7% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 87.9% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 40.5% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 24.3% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 12.1% of population (2022 est.)
Education expenditure
Education expenditure (% GDP)
16.4% of GDP (2023 est.)
Education expenditure (% national budget)
20.1% national budget (2024 est.)
Infant mortality rate
male
33.5 deaths/1,000 live births
total
30.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)
female
29.4 deaths/1,000 live births
Population growth rate
0.98% (2025 est.)
Gross reproduction rate
1.04 (2025 est.)
Population distribution
consists of three archipelagos spread out over an area roughly the size of India; the eastern Line Islands and central Phoenix Islands are sparsely populated, but the western Gilbert Islands are some of the most densely settled places on earth, with the main island of South Tarawa boasting a population density similar to Tokyo or Hong Kong
Life expectancy at birth
male
65.9 years
female
71.3 years
total population
68.5 years (2024 est.)
Maternal mortality ratio
80 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)
Sanitation facility access
improved: rural
rural: 48.1% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 62.1% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 72.6% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 51.9% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 37.9% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 27.4% of population (2022 est.)
Alcohol consumption per capita
beer
0.26 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine
0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
total
0.43 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits
0.17 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols
0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Major urban areas - population
64,000 TARAWA (capital) (2018)
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
46% (2016)
Mother's mean age at first birth
23.1 years (2009 est.)
note: data represents median age at first birth among women 25-29
Currently married women (ages 15-49)
67.4% (2020 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
6.9% (2018 est.)