| Population | 6,243,931 (July 2021 est.) |
| Nationality | noun: Nicaraguan(s) adjective: Nicaraguan |
| Ethnic groups | Mestizo (mixed Amerindian and White) 69%, White 17%, Black 9%, Amerindian 5% |
| Languages | Spanish (official) 95.3%, Miskito 2.2%, Mestizo of the Caribbean coast 2%, other 0.5%; note - English and indigenous languages found on the Caribbean coast (2005 est.) major-language sample(s): La Libreta Informativa del Mundo, la fuente indispensable de información básica. (Spanish) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information. |
| Religions | Roman Catholic 50%, Evangelical 33.2%, other 2.9%, none 0.7%, unspecified 13.2% (2017 est.) |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 25.63% (male 811,731/female 777,984) 15-24 years: 19.51% (male 609,962/female 600,567) 25-54 years: 42.41% (male 1,254,683/female 1,376,052) 55-64 years: 6.63% (male 188,591/female 222,766) 65 years and over: 5.82% (male 159,140/female 201,965) (2020 est.) |
| Dependency ratios | total dependency ratio: 54.3 youth dependency ratio: 45.5 elderly dependency ratio: 8.8 potential support ratio: 11.4 (2020 est.) |
| Median age | total: 27.3 years male: 26.4 years female: 28.2 years (2020 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 0.93% (2021 est.) |
| Birth rate | 16.71 births/1,000 population (2021 est.) |
| Death rate | 5.16 deaths/1,000 population (2021 est.) |
| Net migration rate | -2.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.) |
| Population distribution | the overwhelming majority of the population resides in the western half of the country, with much of the urban growth centered in the capital city of Managua; coastal areas also show large population clusters |
| Urbanization | urban population: 59.3% of total population (2021) rate of urbanization: 1.45% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.) |
| Major cities - population | 1.073 million MANAGUA (capital) (2021) |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-24 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 25-54 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 55-64 years: 0.85 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2020 est.) |
| Mother's mean age at first birth | 19.2 years (2011/12 est.) note: median age at first birth among women 25-29 |
| Maternal mortality rate | 198 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 19.57 deaths/1,000 live births male: 22.83 deaths/1,000 live births female: 16.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 74.51 years male: 72.28 years female: 76.86 years (2021 est.) |
| Total fertility rate | 1.81 children born/woman (2021 est.) |
| Contraceptive prevalence rate | 80.4% (2011/12) |
| Drinking water source | improved: urban: 97.6% of population rural: 62.6% of population total: 83.1% of population unimproved: urban: 2.4% of population rural: 37.4% of population total: 16.9% of population (2017 est.) |
| Health expenditures | 8.6% (2018) |
| Physicians density | 0.98 physicians/1,000 population (2018) |
| Hospital bed density | 0.9 beds/1,000 population (2017) |
| Sanitation facility access | improved: urban: 89.8% of population rural: 66.5% of population total: 80.1% of population unimproved: urban: 10.2% of population rural: 33.5% of population total: 19.9% of population (2017 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate | 0.2% (2020 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS | 12,000 (2020 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths | <500 (2020 est.) |
| Major infectious diseases | degree of risk: high (2020) food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria |
| Obesity - adult prevalence rate | 23.7% (2016) |
| Children under the age of 5 years underweight | 4.6% (2011/12) |
| Education expenditures | 4.4% of GDP (2017) |
| Demographic profile | Despite being one of the poorest countries in Latin America, Nicaragua has improved its access to potable water and sanitation and has ameliorated its life expectancy, infant and child mortality, and immunization rates. However, income distribution is very uneven, and the poor, agriculturalists, and indigenous people continue to have less access to healthcare services. Nicaragua's total fertility rate has fallen from around 6 children per woman in 1980 to below replacement level today, but the high birth rate among adolescents perpetuates a cycle of poverty and low educational attainment. Nicaraguans emigrate primarily to Costa Rica and to a lesser extent the United States. Nicaraguan men have been migrating seasonally to Costa Rica to harvest bananas and coffee since the early 20th century. Political turmoil, civil war, and natural disasters from the 1970s through the 1990s dramatically increased the flow of refugees and permanent migrants seeking jobs, higher wages, and better social and healthcare benefits. Since 2000, Nicaraguan emigration to Costa Rica has slowed and stabilized. Today roughly 300,000 Nicaraguans are permanent residents of Costa Rica - about 75% of the foreign population - and thousands more migrate seasonally for work, many illegally. |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 82.6% male: 82.4% female: 82.8% (2015) |
Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021
