Ghana population pyramid 2026
35,697,557 people in 2026 (projected). Ghana’s pyramid flipped from a surplus of adult men in 1950 to a surplus of young adult women by 1975, and its base is now starting to straighten.
- 2026 population
- 35.7Mrank 46 of 237
- Median age
- 21.6 yearsoldest rank 185
- Fertility rate
- 3.26births per woman · above replacement
- Structure
- Youthful3.9% age 65+
Ghana population pyramid
2026 · Share of total by five-year age group and sex
Hover over or tap a bar to see exact values.
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The UN series provides historical estimates through 2023. Figures from 2024 onward—including 2026—are medium-scenario projections, not counts or predictions guaranteed to occur.
Ghana age distribution in 2026
Children under 15 account for 35.0% of the population, while 3.9% are aged 65 or older. The remaining 61.1% are in the conventional working-age range of 15–64. On these shares, the site classifies Ghana’s age structure as youthful; the guide to expansive population pyramids explains what that shape implies.
The total age dependency ratio is 63.7: about 64 people under 15 or 65+ for every 100 people aged 15–64 (57.3 children and 6.4 older people). This is an age-balance indicator, not a literal count of economic dependants per worker.
What shapes Ghana’s population pyramid
Migration written into the sides of the pyramid
The early pyramids for Ghana are lopsided in ways that births and deaths alone cannot explain. In 1950, when the country was still the Gold Coast colony, men outnumbered women in every adult band from 20–24 up to 75–79, and at ages 35–39 the ratio was about 129 men per 100 women. The cocoa farms and gold mines of the period drew large numbers of male workers from neighbouring territories, which is often cited as a major reason for that surplus.
By 1975 the picture had reversed. Women outnumbered men in every band from 20–24 to 40–44, the generation born roughly 1931–1955. Ghana expelled many foreign nationals in 1969, and economic decline in the 1970s and early 1980s pushed many Ghanaians, particularly young men, to seek work abroad; the UN estimates net emigration of about 1.1 million between 1950 and 1999. These events coincide with the shift in the chart, although data for the period are thin and the size of each effect is uncertain. The same cohorts still show a female surplus at ages 45–64 in 2000.
A base that has stopped flaring
Ghana’s total fertility rate peaked close to seven around 1970 and has since fallen by more than half, to about 3.3 in 2026. The effect is now visible at the bottom of the pyramid. The 0–4, 5–9 and 10–14 bands are almost the same size in 2026, about 4.3, 4.1 and 4.1 million, so the base no longer flares outwards as it did in 2000. Above age 15 the bands still shrink steadily, a reminder that each earlier generation was born into a smaller population.
Ghana’s current structure is close to that of Pakistan, Iraq and Gabon: still young, but past the most expansive phase described in the demographic transition model. At older ages women increasingly outnumber men, reflecting a life expectancy gap of about five years, and by ages 80–84 there are roughly two men for every three women.
Under the medium scenario Ghana’s population reaches about 51 million by 2050 and is still growing slowly in 2100, at about 68 million, even though fertility is projected to fall below replacement level before the end of the century. The Ghana 2050 pyramid shows a column-like lower half in place of today’s triangle.
What to notice across the years
Distinctive cohorts and turning points
No five-year band under age 80 is more than 10% larger or smaller than both of its neighbours, so Ghana’s 2026 pyramid has a comparatively smooth profile without sharp bulges or notches.
In the UN medium scenario births outnumber deaths in every year through 2100. Children under 15 outnumber people aged 65 and older in every pyramid year through 2100.
Births, deaths, and migration
A pyramid changes in only three ways: births add to the base, deaths remove people at every age, and migration adds or removes people mainly in young adulthood. In 2026, Ghana is projected to record 903,735 births (about one birth every 35 seconds) and 248,774 deaths, a natural increase of 654,961. Net migration adds −24,195 people, ranking #142 in the net migration rate ranking.
Between 2000 and 2023 the UN estimates 19,821,660 births, 5,273,066 deaths, and cumulative net migration of +175,033. Over that period the balance of births and deaths moved the total more than migration did. See how migration shapes a pyramid and birth rate versus fertility rate. The medium scenario assumes net migration of −959,466 between 2026 and 2050.
Annual values 1950–2100; dashed lines after 2023 are the UN medium projection. The trend table below lists the values by decade.
Life expectancy and mortality
- Life expectancy, women
- 68.6 years45.3 in 1950
- Life expectancy, men
- 63.7 years41.3 in 1950
- Further years at 65
- 14.1 yearsboth sexes
- Infant mortality
- 29.0per 1,000 births · 149 in 1950
- Under-five mortality
- 38.8per 1,000 births
- Mother’s mean age at birth
- 29.4 yearssex ratio at birth 103.8
Women in Ghana are projected to live 4.9 years longer than men, which is why the female side of the pyramid widens relative to the other at older ages (see the life expectancy gap ranking). Infant mortality has fallen from 149 to 29.0 deaths per 1,000 live births since 1950, ranking #40 of 237 in the infant mortality ranking (highest first). A mean age at childbearing of 29.4 years sets the spacing between generations, and so how far apart echo cohorts sit in the pyramid.
Median age, fertility rate, and global ranks for Ghana
The median age of 21.6 years splits the population into two equal halves. A total fertility rate of 3.26 births per woman is above the replacement level of roughly 2.1, and life expectancy at birth is 66.1 years.
These ranks compare all 237 countries and areas in this dataset using the same 2026 UN medium projection. Ranks use the stored source precision, so displayed rounding can make adjacent values look identical; small differences should not be overinterpreted.
| Indicator | 2026 value | Global rank | Ranking direction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 35,697,557 | #46 | Largest first |
| Median age | 21.6 years | #185 | Oldest first |
| Fertility rate | 3.26 | #47 | Highest first |
| Annual growth | +1.8% | #53 | Fastest first |
| Life expectancy | 66.1 years | #209 | Highest first |
| Population aged 65+ | 3.9% | #188 | Highest share first |
Largest age groups in Ghana
The five largest cohorts identify where the 2026 population is concentrated. They can reflect past birth patterns, survival, and migration; the chart alone does not establish which cause dominates.
| Rank | Age group | Population | Share of total | Male / female |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0–4 | 4,299,099 | 12.0% | 2.2M / 2.1M |
| 2 | 5–9 | 4,129,661 | 11.6% | 2.1M / 2M |
| 3 | 10–14 | 4,069,482 | 11.4% | 2.1M / 2M |
| 4 | 15–19 | 3,639,106 | 10.2% | 1.8M / 1.8M |
| 5 | 20–24 | 3,248,818 | 9.1% | 1.6M / 1.6M |
Sex ratio and the balance by age
In the 2026 projection, Ghana has 17,822,392 males and 17,875,165 females. That is 99.7 males per 100 females, ranking #81 when the dataset is ordered from the highest male-to-female ratio to the lowest.
Males account for 49.9% of the population and females for 50.1%. There are 52,773 more females than males overall. Among people aged 65 and older, the ratio is 81.7 males per 100 females.
The overall balance can conceal large differences by age; how sex ratios change with age explains the usual pattern. The ratio reflects the male/female categories in the UN source and is not a measure of gender identity. Compare all profiles in the sex-ratio ranking.
At birth, 103.8 boys are projected to be born for every 100 girls in 2026, close to the biological norm of about 105 (compare the sex ratio at birth ranking). The ratio at birth sets the balance at the base of the pyramid; how it changes with age then depends on survival and migration.
How Ghana has changed since 1950
The population has increased from 5,080,664 in 1950 to 35,697,557 in 2026, a change of 603%. Over the same span, median age moved from 17.7 to 21.6 years.
The under-15 share changed from 41.0% to 35.0%, while the share aged 65 and older changed from 4.6% to 3.9%. These shifts show why total population growth and age-structure change need to be read separately. See the Ghana population pyramid in 1950 for the full starting shape.
How the population could change by 2050
Under the UN medium scenario, Ghana’s population is projected to grow by about 42%, reaching 50,553,047 in 2050. The median age changes from 21.6 to 27.0 years.
The 65+ share is projected to rise by 3.5 percentage points to 7.4%. At the same time, the under-15 share is projected at 28.3%. The Ghana population pyramid for 2050 shows the projected shape in detail. How UN projections work explains the assumptions behind these figures.
The population is still rising at the end of the UN medium projection in 2100, when it reaches 67,547,746. The page therefore does not assign a peak year beyond the available horizon.
Population trend: 1950–2100
Mid-year population for every year. Estimates through 2023; dashed line shows the UN medium projection.
| Year | Population | Median age | Fertility | Life exp. | Births | Deaths | Net migration | Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 5,080,664 | 17.7 | 6.70 | 43.1 | 244,091 | 115,318 | +14,261 | +2.8% |
| 1960 | 6,961,214 | 16.7 | 6.89 | 46.9 | 350,661 | 133,531 | +12,181 | +3.3% |
| 1970 | 8,925,812 | 14.9 | 6.95 | 47.9 | 425,552 | 167,620 | −10,233 | +2.8% |
| 1980 | 11,941,448 | 15.6 | 6.47 | 51.1 | 526,952 | 180,134 | −13,564 | +2.8% |
| 1990 | 15,394,648 | 16.1 | 5.74 | 55.4 | 623,064 | 180,860 | −46,789 | +2.6% |
| 2000 | 19,637,087 | 17.3 | 4.83 | 58.1 | 704,930 | 196,202 | −4,206 | +2.6% |
| 2010 | 25,474,995 | 19.2 | 4.18 | 61.3 | 832,331 | 219,199 | −3,726 | +2.4% |
| 2020 | 31,887,809 | 20.4 | 3.54 | 64.3 | 874,684 | 237,221 | −291 | +2.0% |
| 2023 | 33,787,914 | 20.9 | 3.40 | 65.5 | 888,947 | 237,869 | −10,003 | +1.9% |
| 2024* | 34,427,414 | 21.1 | 3.34 | 65.7 | 892,343 | 241,311 | −13,114 | +1.9% |
| 2026* | 35,697,557 | 21.6 | 3.26 | 66.1 | 903,735 | 248,774 | −24,195 | +1.8% |
| 2030* | 38,222,089 | 22.4 | 3.10 | 66.8 | 929,536 | 265,431 | −28,681 | +1.7% |
| 2040* | 44,568,350 | 24.8 | 2.78 | 68.5 | 988,500 | 320,706 | −42,433 | +1.4% |
| 2050* | 50,553,047 | 27.0 | 2.55 | 70.0 | 997,386 | 387,587 | −44,421 | +1.1% |
| 2060* | 55,750,054 | 29.0 | 2.35 | 71.5 | 983,303 | 458,390 | −48,831 | +0.8% |
| 2070* | 60,088,946 | 31.1 | 2.19 | 72.9 | 970,322 | 525,573 | −55,687 | +0.7% |
| 2080* | 63,606,282 | 33.3 | 2.08 | 74.3 | 942,021 | 586,708 | −50,143 | +0.5% |
| 2090* | 66,099,925 | 35.3 | 2.00 | 75.7 | 898,289 | 651,798 | −49,469 | +0.3% |
| 2100* | 67,547,746 | 37.2 | 1.93 | 77.1 | 856,155 | 705,641 | −55,105 | +0.1% |
* 2024 onward is the UN medium projection. Fertility is births per woman; life expectancy is years at birth; births, deaths, and net migration are counts for that calendar year.
Download every year, 1950–2100 (CSV)
2026 population by age and sex
The table provides the counts behind the chart. Age groups are five-year bands, with everyone aged 100 or older combined.
| Age group | Male | Female | Total | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–4 | 2,181,666 | 2,117,433 | 4,299,099 | 12.0% |
| 5–9 | 2,090,764 | 2,038,897 | 4,129,661 | 11.6% |
| 10–14 | 2,055,064 | 2,014,418 | 4,069,482 | 11.4% |
| 15–19 | 1,834,215 | 1,804,891 | 3,639,106 | 10.2% |
| 20–24 | 1,633,349 | 1,615,469 | 3,248,818 | 9.1% |
| 25–29 | 1,412,916 | 1,403,909 | 2,816,825 | 7.9% |
| 30–34 | 1,273,180 | 1,269,588 | 2,542,768 | 7.1% |
| 35–39 | 1,171,348 | 1,171,805 | 2,343,153 | 6.6% |
| 40–44 | 1,034,678 | 1,043,157 | 2,077,835 | 5.8% |
| 45–49 | 859,525 | 875,962 | 1,735,487 | 4.9% |
| 50–54 | 674,394 | 702,479 | 1,376,873 | 3.9% |
| 55–59 | 547,478 | 582,929 | 1,130,407 | 3.2% |
| 60–64 | 428,432 | 468,791 | 897,223 | 2.5% |
| 65–69 | 281,539 | 315,443 | 596,982 | 1.7% |
| 70–74 | 173,218 | 206,554 | 379,772 | 1.1% |
| 75–79 | 98,517 | 130,300 | 228,817 | 0.6% |
| 80–84 | 48,625 | 72,272 | 120,897 | 0.3% |
| 85–89 | 18,749 | 31,642 | 50,391 | 0.1% |
| 90–94 | 4,286 | 8,137 | 12,423 | 0.0% |
| 95–99 | 433 | 1,030 | 1,463 | 0.0% |
| 100+ | 16 | 58 | 74 | 0.0% |
Countries with the most similar age structure
These profiles have the 2026 age distributions closest to Ghana’s, measured by the total difference in the share of the population in each five-year band. Similar shapes can arise from very different histories, so the match is a starting point for comparison, not an explanation.
- Solomon Islands98% overlap · median age 20.9
- Iraq98% overlap · median age 21.1
- Comoros98% overlap · median age 20.7
- Pakistan98% overlap · median age 20.8
- Gabon97% overlap · median age 21.6
- Papua New Guinea97% overlap · median age 23.0
To calculate school-age, working-age, or older groups with other boundaries, use the age-group calculator for Ghana.
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APA
World Population Pyramid. (2026, October 19). Ghana Population Pyramid 2026. https://worldpopulationpyramid.com/countries/ghana/
MLA
“Ghana Population Pyramid 2026.” World Population Pyramid, 19 Oct. 2026, worldpopulationpyramid.com/countries/ghana/.
Chicago
World Population Pyramid. “Ghana Population Pyramid 2026.” Last modified October 19, 2026. https://worldpopulationpyramid.com/countries/ghana/.
Underlying data: United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2024). World Population Prospects 2024.
Frequently asked questions
What is the population of Ghana in 2026?
Under the UN World Population Prospects 2024 medium scenario, Ghana's population in 2026 is projected at 35,697,557.
What is the median age in Ghana?
The projected median age in Ghana in 2026 is 21.6 years: half the population is younger and half is older.
What is the fertility rate in Ghana?
The projected total fertility rate in 2026 is 3.26 births per woman, above the replacement level of about 2.1 in low-mortality populations.
Is Ghana's population projected to grow?
Between 2026 and 2050, the UN medium scenario indicates the population will grow by about 42%, from 35.7M to 50.6M.
What share of Ghana is aged 65 or older?
In 2026, 3.9% of the projected population is aged 65 or older. By 2050, the medium scenario places the share at 7.4%.
How many babies are born in Ghana each year?
The UN medium scenario projects 903,735 births and 248,774 deaths in 2026, about one birth every 35 seconds. Births exceed deaths by 654,961.
What is life expectancy in Ghana for men and women?
Life expectancy at birth in 2026 is projected at 68.6 years for women and 63.7 years for men, a gap of 4.9 years in favour of women.
Does Ghana have more immigrants or emigrants?
Ghana is projected to lose about 24,195 more people through emigration than it gains in 2026. Between 2000 and 2023 the UN estimates cumulative net migration of +175,033.
What is the sex ratio in Ghana?
The projected 2026 population sex ratio is 99.7 males per 100 females. This all-age ratio is different from the sex ratio at birth and can vary substantially by age.
Sources and notes
- United Nations, DESA, Population Division: World Population Prospects 2024, medium scenario.
- Population values are mid-year figures. Source values published in thousands are converted to people; displayed figures may imply more precision than is appropriate for planning.
- Historical values through 2023 are estimates. Values from 2024 onward are projections.
- Calculations follow the site methodology.