Top 10 most populous countries in the world
India is the most populous country at 1.44 billion, just ahead of China. The full top 10 from our Data Atlas.
Population questions mix world geography with India's demographic story. Here are the ten most populous countries in our Data Atlas.
Latest year available per country; 238 countries with data · Source: UPSCPrep Data Atlas
See the full Population table in the Atlas
Key points
- India is first with about 1.44 billion people, ahead of China at about 1.42 billion.
- The United States (343.5 million) is a distant third, followed by Indonesia, Pakistan and Nigeria.
- Four of the ten are in Asia's south and south-east: India, Indonesia, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
The other side of the number
Latest year available per country; 216 countries with data · Source: UPSCPrep Data Atlas
See the full Total CO₂ emissions table in the Atlas
Large populations bring large totals. India is third in total CO₂ emissions, after China and the United States, but its per-person figure is far lower – a central point in climate negotiations.
UPSC angle
- Link population to density (India ranks 27th of 233 at 492 people per km²), median age (28.1 years) and urbanisation (35.7%).
- Use these in GS-1 answers on population and GS-3 answers on climate equity.