World Factbook
Taiwan
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Languages
Languages
Mandarin (official), Min Nan, Hakka dialects, approximately 16 indigenous languages
major-language sample(s)
世界概況 – 不可缺少的基本消息來源 (Mandarin) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Religions
Buddhist 35.3%, Taoist 33.2%, Christian 3.9%, folk religion (includes Confucian) approximately 10%, none or unspecified 18.2% (2005 est.)
Sex ratio
at birth
1.06 male(s)/female
0-14 years
1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years
1 male(s)/female
total population
0.97 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
65 years and over
0.82 male(s)/female
Birth rate
7.22 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Death rate
8.18 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Median age
male
43.6 years
total
45.1 years (2025 est.)
female
45.5 years
Population
male
11,596,835
total
23,600,776 (2025 est.)
female
12,003,941
Nationality
note
note: example - he or she is from Taiwan; they are from Taiwan
noun
Taiwan (singular and plural)
adjective
Taiwan (or Taiwanese)
Urbanization
urban population
80.1% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization
0.65% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years
12.1% (male 1,472,059/female 1,391,031)
15-64 years
69% (male 8,132,356/female 8,155,582)
65 years and over
18.8% (2024 est.) (male 2,002,076/female 2,442,170)
Ethnic groups
Han Chinese (including Holo, who compose approximately 70% of Taiwan's population, Hakka, and other groups originating in mainland China) more than 95%, indigenous Malayo-Polynesian peoples 2.3%
note 1: there are 16 officially recognized indigenous groups: Amis, Atayal, Bunun, Hla'alua, Kanakaravu, Kavalan, Paiwan, Puyuma, Rukai, Saisiyat, Sakizaya, Seediq, Thao, Truku, Tsou, and Yami; Amis, Paiwan, and Atayal are the largest and account for roughly 70% of the indigenous population
note 2: although not definitive, the majority of current genetic, archeological, and linguistic data support the theory that Taiwan is the ultimate source for the spread of humans across the Pacific to Polynesia; the expansion (ca. 3000 B.C. to A.D. 1200) took place via the Philippines and eastern Indonesia and reached Fiji and Tonga by about 900 B.C.; from there voyagers spread across the rest of the Pacific islands over the next two millennia
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio
46.5 (2025 est.)
youth dependency ratio
17.7 (2025 est.)
potential support ratio
3.5 (2025 est.)
elderly dependency ratio
28.7 (2025 est.)
Net migration rate
1.17 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Total fertility rate
1.12 children born/woman (2025 est.)
Infant mortality rate
male
4.2 deaths/1,000 live births
total
3.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)
female
3.5 deaths/1,000 live births
Population growth rate
0.02% (2025 est.)
Gross reproduction rate
0.54 (2025 est.)
Population distribution
distribution exhibits a peripheral coastal settlement pattern, with the largest populations on the north and west coasts
Life expectancy at birth
male
78.6 years
female
84.7 years
total population
81.6 years (2024 est.)
Major urban areas - population
4.504 million New Taipei City, 2.754 million TAIPEI (capital), 2.319 million Taoyuan, 1.553 million Kaohsiung, 1.369 million Taichung, 863,000 Tainan (2023)