How Many People Live in Romania – Official Data

The population living in Romania has reduced drastically. According to the latest data compiled in 2022, there are only 19,053,815 residents in the country. The National Institute for Statistics published the official data on Friday, December 30, concluding a census conducted this year. As a comparison, in 1989, when communism ended in the country, Romania’s population was more than 23 million.

The report shows Romania has lost more than 1 million inhabitants during the last 10 years. Precisely, compared to 2011, Romania lost 1,067,800 residents.

The ageing process, migration and the fact that teenagers wait until their 30s to have babies if they decide to do so contribute to this result.

89.3% said they were Romanians, 6.0% were Hungarians, and 3.4% were of Roma ethnicity. Even so, there were lots of Roma leaders to challenge these figures, but also the Hungarian minority leaders said these were wrong. The controversy started because, during the census, only 16.5 million stated their nationality, while 3 million refused to do so.

Also, 45,500 Ukrainians, 22,900 Germans and 20,900 Turkish nationals live in Romania. According to the same provisional report, 85.3% of those who disclosed their religious beliefs were Orthodox, 4.5% Catholics and 3% Calvinists.

There are no official data on how many Romanians live abroad, but some official statements mention more than 9 million.

With an ageing and diminishing population, Romania is clearly going to have serious problems securing pensions for those who still work. This is why the Government issues 100,000 working permits a year for non-EU residents, trying to compensate the people leaving the country for better jobs elsewhere in Europe.