World Factbook
Marshall Islands
Republic of the Marshall Islands
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Literacy
male
95.7% (2021 est.)
female
96.4% (2021 est.)
total population
95.8% (2021 est.)
Languages
note
note: English (official), widely spoken as a second language
Languages
Marshallese (official) 98.2%, other languages 1.8% (1999)
major-language sample(s)
Bok eo an Lalin kin Melele ko Rejimwe ej jikin ebōk melele ko raurōk. (Marshallese) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Religions
Protestant 79.3% (United Church of Christ 47.9%, Assembly of God 14.1%, Full Gospel 5%, Bukot Nan Jesus 3%, Salvation Army 2.3%, Reformed Congressional Church 2.2%, Seventh Day Adventist 1.7%, New Beginning Church 1.4%, other Protestant 1.6%), Roman Catholic 9.3%, Church of Jesus Christ 5.7%, Jehovah's Witness 1.3%, other 3.3%, none 1.1% (2021 est.)
Sex ratio
at birth
1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years
1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years
1.03 male(s)/female
total population
1.03 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
65 years and over
0.95 male(s)/female
Birth rate
20.81 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Death rate
4.37 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Median age
male
25.4 years
total
25.9 years (2025 est.)
female
25.6 years
Population
male
41,581
total
82,011 (2024 est.)
female
40,430
Nationality
noun
Marshallese (singular and plural)
adjective
Marshallese
Tobacco use
male
52.9% (2025 est.)
total
30.9% (2025 est.)
female
8.5% (2025 est.)
Urbanization
urban population
78.9% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization
0.61% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years
30% (male 12,538/female 12,072)
15-64 years
64.3% (male 26,750/female 25,944)
65 years and over
5.7% (2024 est.) (male 2,293/female 2,414)
Ethnic groups
Marshallese 95.6%, Filipino 1.1%, other 3.3% (2021 est.)
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio
55.6 (2024 est.)
youth dependency ratio
46.7 (2024 est.)
potential support ratio
11.2 (2024 est.)
elderly dependency ratio
8.9 (2024 est.)
Physician density
0.47 physicians/1,000 population (2012)
Health expenditure
Health expenditure (as % of GDP)
12.5% of GDP (2021)
Health expenditure (as % of national budget)
6.7% of national budget (2022 est.)
Net migration rate
-4.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Total fertility rate
2.62 children born/woman (2025 est.)
Drinking water source
improved: rural
rural: 87.2% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 85.1% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 84.5% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 12.8% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 14.9% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 15.5% of population (2022 est.)
Education expenditure
Education expenditure (% GDP)
7.7% of GDP (2022 est.)
Education expenditure (% national budget)
11.3% national budget (2022 est.)
Infant mortality rate
male
24 deaths/1,000 live births
total
20.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)
female
17.1 deaths/1,000 live births
Population growth rate
1.22% (2025 est.)
Gross reproduction rate
1.28 (2025 est.)
Population distribution
most people live in urban clusters on many of the country's islands; more than two thirds of the population lives on the atolls of Majuro and Ebeye
Life expectancy at birth
male
73 years
female
77.5 years
total population
75.2 years (2024 est.)
Maternal mortality ratio
155 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)
Sanitation facility access
improved: rural
rural: 70.4% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 88% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 92.8% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 29.6% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 12% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 7.2% of population (2022 est.)
Major urban areas - population
31,000 MAJURO (capital) (2018)
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
52.9% (2016)
Currently married women (ages 15-49)
68.3% (2022 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
11.9% (2017 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)
male
14 years (2022 est.)
total
14 years (2022 est.)
female
15 years (2022 est.)