Number of births in Spain 2006-2024

According to the most recent data, more people died in Spain than were born in 2024, with figures reaching over 439,000 deaths versus 322,034 newborns. From 2006 to 2024, 2008 ranked as the year in which the largest number of children were born, with figures reaching over half a million newborns. 

The depopulation of a country

The population of Spain declined for many years, a negative trend reverted from 2016 onwards, and was projected to grow by nearly two million by 2029 compared to 2024. Despite this expected increase, Spain has one of the lowest fertility rate in the European Union, with barely 1.29 children per woman according to the latest reports. During the last years, the country featured a continuous population density of approximately 94 inhabitants per square kilometer – a figure far from the European average, which stood nearly at nearly 112 inhabitants per square kilometer in 2021. 

Migration inflow: an essential role in the Spanish population growth

One of the key points to balance out the population trend in Spain is immigration – Spain’s immigration figures finally started to pick up in 2015 after a downward trend that presumably initiated after the 2008 financial crisis, which left Spain with one of the highest unemployment rates in Europe.