Croatia

Southern Europe · Capital: Zagreb

LIVE

Population now

3,983,524

As of 2026, the population of Croatia is approximately 3,983,524 (live estimate), growing at -0.32% per year with a birth rate of 7.8 and a death rate of 11.0 per 1,000 people. The population is 48.8% male and 51.2% female, at a density of 70.5 people per km².

Some indicators for this country are regional estimates. See About the data.

Neighbouring countries are clickable

Births today—

Deaths today—

Net increase today—

Growth rate / yr—

Key indicators

Birth rate: 7.8 /1,000/yr
Death rate: 11.0 /1,000/yr
Literacy: 97.0%
Smoking: 24.0%
Density: 70.5 /km²
Life expectancy: 73.7 yrs

Male —

Female —

What's trending

Simulated feed. Connect a trends API to replace it.

Demographic profile

Croatia is the 132nd most populous of the 238 countries and territories tracked on this site, home to about 0.05% of everyone alive. Within Southern Europe, it ranks 5 of 14.

Each day brings roughly 85 births and 119 deaths — a net decline of about 12,418 people a year. At -0.32% annually, the population would halve in roughly 219 years if the trend held. Real trajectories bend as fertility, mortality and migration shift, which is why the chart below shows both history and projection.

Among its first-level divisions, the largest by our modelled allocation is Šibenik-Knin, holding an estimated 22.8% of the national population. The full breakdown of all 20 states and regions is in the table below — regional figures outside Sudan are modelled estimates built on real region names, and are flagged as such.

Literacy stands near 97.0% and adult smoking prevalence around 24.0%, with life expectancy at about 73.7 years. Baselines come from UN World Population Prospects, the World Bank, WHO surveys, WorldPop and HDX; the counters project them forward in real time — the method, and every caveat, is documented on our data sources page.

Quick answers

What is the population of Croatia in 2026? Approximately 3,983,524 people (live projection; the counter above updates every second).

How fast is Croatia shrinking? About -0.32% per year — roughly 85 births and 119 deaths every day.

What share of the world lives in Croatia? Around 0.05% — ranked 132 worldwide by population.

Population history & projection

Breakdown by states / regions

Regional figures are modelled estimates: real region names, populations allocated from the national total. Sudan carries curated state data.

State / region	Population	Male %	Birth rate	Death rate	Education %	Smoking %
Šibenik-Knin	907,998	48.0%	8.5	9.7	90.2%	26.5%
Split-Dalmatia	503,743	49.4%	7.1	12.2	99.5%	22.4%
Vukovar-Syrmia	356,888	48.6%	7.6	10.7	99.4%	20.0%
Lika-Senj	279,469	48.8%	7.2	10.2	99.5%	24.5%
Zadar	231,185	48.0%	7.5	11.7	99.5%	24.7%
Zagreb	197,996	48.8%	7.8	11.5	99.5%	28.9%
Karlovac	173,680	49.7%	8.5	12.1	91.8%	19.8%
Požega-Slavonia	155,045	48.3%	8.3	10.7	99.5%	19.9%
Osijek-Baranja	140,274	49.2%	8.0	11.7	96.5%	21.6%
Međimurje	128,258	49.6%	6.9	12.2	95.2%	19.1%
Bjelovar-Bilogora	118,277	48.4%	8.2	10.3	99.5%	29.8%
Varaždin	109,845	48.5%	6.9	11.3	99.5%	18.9%
Brod-Posavina	102,620	48.3%	7.3	10.3	99.2%	21.3%
Primorje-Gorski Kotar	96,355	48.3%	8.2	10.0	99.5%	18.6%
Dubrovnik-Neretva	90,867	49.9%	7.9	11.5	90.6%	20.2%
Istria	86,016	47.9%	7.9	10.7	92.0%	21.2%
Koprivnica-Križevci	81,696	49.5%	8.0	12.0	99.5%	26.2%
Virovitica-Podravina	77,822	48.4%	8.1	11.1	97.7%	18.6%
Sisak-Moslavina	74,326	48.0%	7.6	11.5	93.5%	28.6%
Krapina-Zagorje	71,155	48.1%	7.9	10.9	94.8%	23.2%