World Factbook
Pakistan
Jamhuryat Islami Pakistan
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Literacy
male
69.1% (2021 est.)
female
48.5% (2021 est.)
total population
58.9% (2021 est.)
Languages
note
note: data represent population by mother tongue; English (official; lingua franca of Pakistani elite and most government ministries)
Languages
Punjabi 38.8%, Pashto (alternate name, Pashtu) 18.2%, Sindhi 14.6%, Saraiki (a Punjabi variant) 12.2%, Urdu 7.1%, Balochi 3%, Hindko 2.4%, Brahui 1.2%, other 2.4%
major-language sample(s)
دنیا کا قاموس، ایک لازمی زریہ بنیادی معلومات کا (Urdu) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Religions
Muslim 96.4%, Hindu 1.6%, Christian 1.4%; less than 1%: scheduled castes, Qadiani/Ahmadi, other, Sikh. (2020 est.)
Sex ratio
at birth
1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years
1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years
1.05 male(s)/female
total population
1.04 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
65 years and over
0.87 male(s)/female
Birth rate
25.05 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Death rate
5.79 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Median age
male
22.8 years
total
23.2 years (2025 est.)
female
23 years
Population
male
130,727,015
total
257,047,044 (2025 est.)
female
126,320,029
Nationality
noun
Pakistani(s)
adjective
Pakistani
Tobacco use
male
25.7% (2025 est.)
total
15.5% (2025 est.)
female
5.4% (2025 est.)
Urbanization
urban population
38% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization
2.1% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years
34.4% (male 44,330,669/female 42,529,007)
15-64 years
60.7% (male 78,321,834/female 74,833,003)
65 years and over
4.9% (2024 est.) (male 5,735,294/female 6,613,764)
Ethnic groups
Punjabi 44.7%, Pashtun (Pathan) 15.4%, Sindhi 14.1%, Saraiki 8.4%, Muhajirs 7.6%, Baloch 3.6%, other 6.3%
Child marriage
men married by age 18
4.7% (2018)
women married by age 15
3.6% (2018)
women married by age 18
18.3% (2018)
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio
64 (2025 est.)
youth dependency ratio
55.8 (2025 est.)
potential support ratio
12.1 (2025 est.)
elderly dependency ratio
8.2 (2025 est.)
Physician density
1.16 physicians/1,000 population (2021)
Health expenditure
Health expenditure (as % of GDP)
2.9% of GDP (2021)
Health expenditure (as % of national budget)
5.6% of national budget (2022 est.)
Net migration rate
-1.1 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Hospital bed density
0.5 beds/1,000 population (2019 est.)
Total fertility rate
3.25 children born/woman (2025 est.)
Drinking water source
improved: rural
rural: 89.3% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 90.6% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 92.9% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 10.7% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 9.4% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 7.1% of population (2022 est.)
Education expenditure
Education expenditure (% GDP)
1.9% of GDP (2023 est.)
Education expenditure (% national budget)
9.8% national budget (2023 est.)
Infant mortality rate
male
56 deaths/1,000 live births
total
50.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)
female
46.8 deaths/1,000 live births
Population growth rate
1.82% (2025 est.)
Gross reproduction rate
1.59 (2025 est.)
Population distribution
the Indus River and its tributaries attract most of the settlement, with Punjab province the most densely populated
Life expectancy at birth
male
68.2 years
female
72.5 years
total population
70.3 years (2024 est.)
Maternal mortality ratio
155 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)
Sanitation facility access
improved: rural
rural: 76.1% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 81.5% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 90.5% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 23.9% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 18.5% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 9.5% of population (2022 est.)
Alcohol consumption per capita
beer
0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine
0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
total
0.04 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits
0.04 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols
0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Major urban areas - population
17.236 million Karachi, 13.979 million Lahore, 3.711 million Faisalabad, 2.415 million Gujranwala, 2.412 million Peshawar, 1.232 million ISLAMABAD (capital) (2023)
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
8.6% (2016)
Mother's mean age at first birth
22.8 years (2017/18 est.)
note: data represents median age at first birth among women 25-49
Currently married women (ages 15-49)
63.4% (2018 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
23.1% (2018 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)
male
8 years (2022 est.)
total
8 years (2022 est.)
female
7 years (2022 est.)