Sri Lanka Flag

Sri Lanka

Capital:
Colombo
Continent:
Asia
Abbreviation:
LKA

23.2M
Total Population
60
Population Rank
370.43
Density (km²)
125.9K 0.58%
Annual Population Growth

Population of Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka's population structure shows a somewhat lower male to female ratio of 0.94 to 1, with a median male age of 32.43 years old and a median female age of 35.66 years old. The highest concentration of adults under 75 years old is in the 18 and 19 year-old age groups, while the lowest concentration is in the 74 and 73 year-old age groups.

Sri Lanka Population

Data after 2022 is projected based on recent change

Sri Lanka Population Clock

Sri Lanka Population*
23,183,571
Births per Day
872
Deaths per Day
455
Emigrations per Day
84
Net Change per Day
333
2025 Population Change*
14,319

* As of 2/12/2025

1 birth

Every 1.7 minutes

1 death

Every 3.2 minutes

1 emigrant

Every 17.1 minutes

1 person

Every 4.3 minutes

Population by City

City
2025 Pop.
Colombo648,034
Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia219,827
Moratuwa185,031
Jaffna169,102
Negombo137,223
Pita Kotte118,179
Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte115,826
Kandy111,701
Trincomalee108,420
Kalmunai100,171

Sri Lanka Overview

Sri Lanka may seem like a small island lying southeast of India. It is growing at a rate of 0.913% annually and houses people from many different ethnicities and religions, which gives the country a multi-cultural and multi-ethnic identity.

Sri Lanka Demographics

Sri Lanka hosts a dynamic age structure that includes a very large age bracket of 25-54 year old individuals dominating the country. Around 42.6% of the population lies in that age bracket. Even though Sri Lanka is a developing economy, such a large working population is allowing it to pursue development projects and create a large number of jobs that can utilized by its inhabitants. This is not only helping many people to support their families, but is also helping Sri Lanka’s economy grow steadily in the last few years.

Moreover, the median age of people in Sri Lanka is estimated to be 31.1 years, with the median age of men being 30.1 years while females have a median age of 32.2 years. Furthermore, Sri Lanka has a high life expectancy of 75.94 years, with a male life expectancy at 72.43 years and female life expectancy at 79.59 years. This is also why 9.1% of the country’s population is in the 54-65 year age bracket, while 8.1% of its population is above the age of 65. An estimate of the number of deaths each year in the Sri Lanka lies at 5.96 deaths per a population of 1000 people.

Sri Lanka is a country of multiple ethnicities, but the two most prominent are the Sinhalese and the Sri Lankan Tamils. The Sinhalese make up around 75% of the total population and are concentrated in the central and southwestern parts of the country. The Tamils make up around 11.9% of the total population and are thus the largest minority present in the country.

Sri Lanka Religion, Economy and Politics

The Sinhalese are predominantly Buddhist, and thus it is the major religion in the country, followed by Hinduism, which is actively practiced by the Tamils. The next most popular religion is Christianity, especially among the Burgher population.

The World Happiness Report gives some insight into the quality of life, as well as a couple additional features of living that some might not often think about. Overall, Sri Lanka rates life quality at 4.4, ranking at 116th in comparison to the countries of the world.

In terms of improved drinking water and sanitation access, 95.6% of the population has improved access to drinking water and 95.1% have improved access to sanitation facilities.

The national expenditure of 3.5% GDP on healthcare results in a physician density of .88 per 1,000 individuals and 3.6 beds per 1,000 residents in terms of hospital bed availability.

Sri Lanka Population History

From the 1500s-1800s Sri Lanka was going from the control of one European country to another, from the Portuguese to the Dutch, to the British. In 1948, Sri Lanka finally got its independence and formed its first government.

The country has seen a couple of cyclones in the 1900s, each which has killed thousands. There were also many civil and religious issues during the 20th century that led to many riots, terrorist attacks, and countless deaths. Unfortunately, this still plagues the country today.

Sri Lanka has had more than its fair share of natural disasters in the 21st century, with flooding in 2003 killing hundreds and leaving thousands homeless, an undersea earthquake in 2004 that killed over 30,000, and flooding that affected millions in 2011.