Demographics of Indonesia


Indonesia is a highly diverse country, both ethnically and linguistically. The country's population reached 270.20 million according to the [2020 Indonesian language|Indonesian census|2020 National language|national census], up from 237.64 million in 2010. As of mid-2025, the official estimate stood at 284.44 million, reflecting an annual growth rate of 1.11%. It remains the fourth most populous country in the world. Java, excluding Madura is home to approximately 54.4% of the national population, making it the most densely populated island globally.
Despite a fairly effective family planning program that has been in place since 1967, Indonesia's average population growth per year was over 1.1% for the decade ending in 2020, nearly having 13% population growth for that decade. At this rate, Indonesia's population is no longer projected to surpass the population of the United States, and it is itself projected by the United Nations to be overtaken in population by Nigeria and by Pakistan by 2040. Indonesia has a relatively young population compared to many Western countries, although it is gradually aging due to declining birth rates and rising life expectancy. As of 2017, the median age stood at 30.2 years.
The country is among the most ethnically and linguistically diverse in the world, home to over 600 ethnic groups and more than 700 languages. Since gaining independence, Indonesian has served as the national language and is widely used in education, government, business, and formal communication. However, most Indonesians grow up speaking a regional language as their mother tongue, using Indonesian primarily as a lingua franca for interethnic interaction. Major regional languages include Javanese, Sundanese, Minangkabau, Buginese, Balinese, and Batak, among many others. The Javanese, who make up about 40% of the population, have historically held significant political influence, with every president since independence having at least partial or full Javanese ancestry.

Population

YearPopulation±% p.a.
12,000,000
10003,500,000+0.06%
15007,750,000+0.16%
17009,500,000+0.10%
184020,000,000
193060,727,233+0.81%
195577,473,268+0.98%
196197,085,348+3.83%
1971119,208,229+2.07%
1976141,862,419+3.54%
1980147,490,298+0.98%
1990179,378,946+1.98%
2000206,264,595+1.41%
2010237,641,326+1.43%
2020270,203,917+1.29%

Source: Our World in Data, Statistics Indonesia, Wertheim, Geografi dan Kependudukan, Widjojo Nitisastro

Population by province

Source: Population Census 2010, except for final column, taken from Population Census 2020.
Note: North Kalimantan province was created in 2012 ; the 2010 total figures given are those for the provinces as they were following that splitting.

Age structure

Population Estimates by Sex and Age Group :
Age groupMaleFemaleTotal%
Total135 337 011134 266 419269 603 430100
0–411 101 52810 850 46521 951 9938.14
5–911 205 65710 739 50321 945 1608.14
10–1411 284 33310 884 50922 168 8428.22
15–1911 189 86110 949 53122 139 3928.21
20–2411 070 77410 887 55521 958 3298.14
25–2910 963 60510 736 36121 699 9668.05
30–3410 777 33710 524 67321 302 0107.90
35–3910 477 47510 305 70420 783 1797.71
40–449 830 9299 693 10919 524 0387.24
45–499 140 3159 023 92418 164 2396.74
50–547 975 5517 947 47715 923 0285.91
55–596 632 3296 691 46713 323 7964.94
60–645 234 7625 287 05210 521 8143.90
65-693 758 9663 921 2637 680 2292.85
70-742 485 3082 757 0625 242 3701.94
75+2 208 2813 066 7645 275 0451.96
Age groupMaleFemaleTotalPercent
0–1433 591 51832 474 47766 065 99524.50
15–6493 292 93892 046 853185 339 79168.75
65+8 452 5559 745 08918 197 6446.75

Vital statistics

United Nations estimates

Source: UN DESA, World Population Prospects, 2022

Demographic and Health Surveys

Total Fertility Rate and Crude Birth Rate :

Fertility rate and aging population (by province)

Total fertility rate and population over age 60 by region as of 2010:

Marriages and Divorces

YearMid-year populationMarriagesDivorces
2007234,858,0001,944,569175,713
2008237,937,0002,194,037193,189
2009240,981,0002,162,115223,371
2010238,518,8002,207,224285,184
2011247,100,0002,319,821276,791
2012250,223,0002,289,648346,480
2013253,276,0002,210,046324,247
2014256,230,0002,110,776344,237
2015255,587,5001,958,394347,256
2016258,496,5001,837,185365,633
2018264,161,6002,016,171408,202
2019266,911,9001,968,978439,002
2020270,203,9001,780,346291,677
2021272,682,5001,742,049447,743
2022275,773,0001,705,348516,344
2023278,696,2001,577,255463,654
2024281,603,8001,478,302394,608

Note: No data is available for 2017.

Ethnic groups

Indonesia is a country of great ethnic diversity, with approximately 600 distinct indigenous ethnic groups living side by side across more than 17,000 islands. The majority of Indonesia's population is descended from Austronesian peoples who are concentrated in western and central Indonesia, which is part of the Asian continent. Another large group is the Melanesian peoples, who inhabit the eastern part of Indonesia in Oceania.
The Javanese are the largest ethnic group, accounting for 40.2% of the population and are culturally, economically, and politically dominant. The Javanese are concentrated in Java, the most populous island, especially in the central and eastern parts, and also in significant numbers in most provinces due to extensive migration throughout the archipelago. The Sundanese are the next largest group, followed by the Malays, Batak, Madurese, Betawi, Minangkabau, and Bugis. A sense of Indonesian nationalism is present along with strong ethnic and regional identities.

Languages

Indonesian is the official and national language of Indonesia, widely spoken by over 97% of the population. However, Indonesia is a highly multilingual country. According to Ethnologue, there are currently 737 regional languages spoken across the Indonesian archipelago. This extensive linguistic diversity accounts for about 10% of the world’s total languages, making Indonesia the second most linguistically diverse country in the world. The majority of these languages belong to the Austronesian language family, which is prevalent in the western and central regions of Indonesia, including languages such as Acehnese, Batak, Sundanese, Balinese, Banjarese and Buginese. In contrast, the eastern regions, particularly Papua and the Maluku Islands, are home to over 270 Papuan languages, which are distinct from the Austronesian language family and represent a unique linguistic heritage. The most widely spoken language as a mother tongue is Javanese, spoken by over 80 million speakers, mainly in central and east Java, but also on many other islands due to migration.

Religion

Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim-majority nation; based on civil registration data in 2024 from Ministry of Home Affairs, 87.09% of Indonesians are Muslims, 10.45% Christians, 1.67% Hindu, 0.71% Buddhists, 0.03% Confucians and 0.04% Folk and other faiths. Most Indonesian Hindus are Balinese and most Buddhists in modern-day Indonesia are Chinese.