What's the population of China?
0people
Capital: Beijing · Continent: Asia
China, in Asia, is home to about 1.4B people and covers 9,706,961 km², governed from its capital Beijing. Average life expectancy is 78 years, GDP per capita sits around $13,862, and Manufacturing remains one of the country's key industries.
Population
1.4B
Area
9,706,961 km²
GDP per capita
$13,862
Population
Area
Demographics
Immigrants
Share of population who are foreign citizens
0.12%
1.6M people · 2024
- Foreign citizens 0.12%
- Citizens 99.88%
Citizenship
- Hong Kong25.7% · 421.6K
- Myanmar22.4% · 367.1K
- Taiwan10.4% · 170.4K
- Vietnam5.4% · 88.3K
- South Korea4.0% · 65.1K
- Other countries27.6% · 452.6K
- Unknown4.5% · 73.7K
- China's census doesn't record place of birth, so the UN counts foreign citizens instead. Naturalized citizens are left out, and foreign nationals born in China are included.
- Includes refugees and asylum seekers reported by UNHCR.
- "Unknown" is the number the UN could not assign to a country of origin.
Economy
- Nominal GDP
- $19,498,039,388,043
- Currency
- CNY
Top industries
- Manufacturing
- Electronics
- Technology
- Steel
Monthly temperature & rainfall
Monthly average high temperature
- China
Monthly precipitation
- China
Data table
| Month | High °C | Low °C | Precip mm |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2.7 | -5.4 | 1 |
| Feb | 4.9 | -5 | 0 |
| Mar | 15.5 | 3.6 | 14 |
| Apr | 23.5 | 11.2 | 15 |
| May | 26.5 | 15.7 | 73 |
| Jun | 33.3 | 22.7 | 65 |
| Jul | 32.5 | 24.5 | 244 |
| Aug | 29.9 | 23 | 178 |
| Sep | 28 | 18.5 | 20 |
| Oct | 16.2 | 8.8 | 90 |
| Nov | 11.8 | 2 | 7 |
| Dec | 3.1 | -5.2 | 4 |
Best time to visit China tends to be around June, when average highs sit near 33.3°C.
Religion
- Unaffiliated 52%
- Folk religion 22%
- Buddhism 18%
- Christianity 5%
- Islam 2%
- Other 1%
Language
- Official language(s)
- zh
- English proficiency
- Low
Travel essentials
- Time zone
- Asia/Shanghai
- Electricity
- 220V · A/C/I
- Driving side
- Right
- Calling code
- +86
- Emergency number
- 110
Compare China with
Reports featuring China
- The Country Most Like South Korea on Paper Ranks Last on Income: The Two Koreas, ComparedOf the 53 countries WhatsThePop tracks, only North Korea matches South Korea on climate, plugs, driving side, time zone, and language. Yet income per person is $36,227 in the South and an estimated $1,387 in the North — a 26-fold gap. And the North is actually 1.2 times larger.
- 3.5% of People in South Korea Were Born Abroad — In 1990 It Was 0.04%In 1990, 18,499 people living in South Korea had been born abroad — 0.04% of the population. In 2024 it is 1.81 million, or 3.5%, just under the world average of 3.7%. Sort the same data by head count instead of share and an entirely different list of countries appears.
- South Korea's Fertility Rate Is 0.72 — By 2050 It Will Be Older Than JapanSouth Korea's 2023 fertility rate was 0.72 births per woman — the lowest of the 53 countries this site tracks. UN population projections put its 65-and-over share at 39.7% by 2050, overtaking Japan (37.5%), the country usually cited as the world's oldest.
- 13 Plug Standards, 53 Countries — Only 17 Match South Korea's ExactlyWe checked the plug type and voltage for all 53 countries WhatsThePop tracks. There are 13 distinct standards — only 17 match South Korea's C/F, 220V setup exactly, and 16 need a completely different adapter.
- Same Income, a 17-Rank Gap: Where South Korea and Japan Actually DivergeSouth Korea's GDP per capita ($36,227) is actually $276 higher than Japan's ($35,951). Yet on livability rankings, Japan sits 2nd out of 87 countries while South Korea sits 19th. Here's what the income numbers don't explain.
- Adjusted for PPP: Iceland Drops 16%, Egypt Jumps 7.6×Recalculating GDP per capita in purchasing-power-parity (PPP) terms reshuffles the rankings once more. Iceland's figure drops 16%; Egypt's jumps 7.6×. The same phrase, 'income per person,' measures something different in each country.
- The World's 2nd-Biggest Economy Ranks 33rd Per Capita — Why 'Big Economy' Isn't 'Expensive Travel'Among the 53 countries WhatsThePop tracks, China has the 2nd-largest total economy but ranks 33rd per capita — just 38% of South Korea's figure. Economic size and what travelers actually pay are answers to different questions.
- 20 Countries Bigger Than South Korea — And Only 2 SmallerOf the 22 countries WhatsThePop tracks, only the Netherlands and Switzerland are smaller than South Korea (100,210 km²). Here's how the other 20 stack up, grouped by scale.
Sources & data
- population: World Bank Open Data (2026-08)
- area: world-countries (Wikidata-derived) (2026-08)
- gdp_nominal_usd: World Bank Open Data (2026-08)
- gdp_per_capita_usd: World Bank Open Data (2026-08)
- religions: Manual curation (Pew Research) (2026-08)
- industries: Manual curation (CIA World Factbook) (2026-08)
- climate: Open-Meteo Historical Weather API (2026-08)
- happiness_index: World Happiness Report 2025 (2026-07)
- livability_rank: U.S. News & World Report — Best Countries 2024 (2026-07)
- migrants: UN DESA International Migrant Stock 2024 (2026-09)
FAQ
- What is the population of China?
- China — 1.4B (2025)
- How big is China?
- 9,706,961 km²
- What is the capital of China?
- Beijing
- What is the GDP per capita of China?
- $13,862
- What language is spoken in China?
- zh