World Factbook
Nauru
Republic of Nauru
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Literacy
male
93.4% (2023 est.)
female
99.7% (2023 est.)
total population
96.6% (2023 est.)
Languages
Nauruan 93% (official, a distinct Pacific Island language), English 2% (widely understood, spoken, and used for most government and commercial purposes), other 5% (includes Gilbertese 2% and Chinese 2%) (2011 est.)
note: data represent main language spoken at home; Nauruan is spoken by 95% of the population, English by 66%, and other languages by 12%
Religions
Protestant 60.4% (Nauruan Congregational 34.7%, Assemblies of God 11.6%, Pacific Light House 6.3%, Nauru Independent 3.6%, Baptist 1.5, Seventh Day Adventist 1.3%, other Protestant 1.4%), Roman Catholic 33.9%, other 4.2%, none 1.3%, no answer 0.3% (2021 est.)
Sex ratio
at birth
1.04 male(s)/female
0-14 years
1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years
0.97 male(s)/female
total population
0.96 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
65 years and over
0.49 male(s)/female
Birth rate
19.64 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Death rate
6.55 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Median age
male
27.3 years
total
28.2 years (2025 est.)
female
28.4 years
Population
male
4,874
total
9,930 (2025 est.)
female
5,056
Nationality
noun
Nauruan(s)
adjective
Nauruan
Tobacco use
male
49.3% (2025 est.)
total
47.7% (2025 est.)
female
46.1% (2025 est.)
Urbanization
urban population
100% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization
0.18% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years
29.6% (male 1,493/female 1,433)
15-64 years
66% (male 3,220/female 3,309)
65 years and over
4.4% (2024 est.) (male 143/female 294)
Ethnic groups
Nauruan 94.6%, I-Kiribati 2.2%, Fijian 1.3%, other 1.9% (2021 est.)
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio
50.7 (2025 est.)
youth dependency ratio
43.7 (2025 est.)
potential support ratio
14.4 (2025 est.)
elderly dependency ratio
7 (2025 est.)
Physician density
1.27 physicians/1,000 population (2015)
Health expenditure
Health expenditure (as % of GDP)
13.1% of GDP (2021)
Health expenditure (as % of national budget)
11.8% of national budget (2022 est.)
Net migration rate
-9.37 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Total fertility rate
2.52 children born/woman (2025 est.)
Drinking water source
improved: total
total: 100% of population
unimproved: total
total: 0% of population (2020 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 0% of population
Education expenditure
Education expenditure (% GDP)
5.7% of GDP (2023 est.) NA
Education expenditure (% national budget)
6.6% national budget (2025 est.)
Infant mortality rate
male
9.8 deaths/1,000 live births
total
7.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)
female
5.3 deaths/1,000 live births
Population growth rate
0.37% (2025 est.)
Gross reproduction rate
1.24 (2025 est.)
Population distribution
most people live in the fertile coastal areas, especially along the southwest coast
Life expectancy at birth
male
65 years
female
72.3 years
total population
68.6 years (2024 est.)
Maternal mortality ratio
273 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)
Alcohol consumption per capita
beer
0.54 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine
0.09 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
total
2.44 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits
1.81 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols
0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
61% (2016)
Currently married women (ages 15-49)
57.7% (2021 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
3.8% (2023 est.)