Page last updated on January 12, 2017

Population:
17,650,114 (July 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 64
[see also: Population country ranks ]

Nationality:
noun: Chilean(s)
adjective: Chilean

Ethnic groups:
white and non-indigenous 88.9%, Mapuche 9.1%, Aymara 0.7%, other indigenous groups 1% (includes Rapa Nui, Likan Antai, Quechua, Colla, Diaguita, Kawesqar, Yagan or Yamana), unspecified 0.3% (2012 est.)

Languages:
Spanish 99.5% (official), English 10.2%, indigenous 1% (includes Mapudungun, Aymara, Quechua, Rapa Nui), other 2.3%, unspecified 0.2%
note: shares sum to more than 100% because some respondents gave more than one answer on the census (2012 est.)

Religions:
Roman Catholic 66.7%, Evangelical or Protestant 16.4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1%, other 3.4%, none 11.5%, unspecified 1.1% (2012 est.)

Demographic profile:
Chile is in the advanced stages of demographic transition and is becoming an aging society - with fertility below replacement level, low mortality rates, and life expectancy on par with developed countries. Nevertheless, with its dependency ratio nearing its low point, Chile could benefit from its favorable age structure. It will need to keep its large working-age population productively employed, while preparing to provide for the needs of its growing proportion of elderly people, especially as women - the traditional caregivers - increasingly enter the workforce. Over the last two decades, Chile has made great strides in reducing its poverty rate, which is now lower than most Latin American countries. However, its severe income inequality ranks as the worst among members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Unequal access to quality education perpetuates this uneven income distribution. Chile has historically been a country of emigration but has slowly become more attractive to immigrants since transitioning to democracy in 1990 and improving its economic stability (other regional destinations have concurrently experienced deteriorating economic and political conditions). Most of Chile's small but growing foreign-born population consists of transplants from other Latin American countries, especially Peru.

Age structure:
0-14 years: 20.27% (male 1,825,115/female 1,751,977)
[see also: Age structure 0-14 years country ranks ]
15-24 years: 15.45% (male 1,391,522/female 1,335,933)
[see also: Age structure 15-24 years country ranks ]
25-54 years: 43.17% (male 3,804,037/female 3,816,114)
[see also: Age structure 25-54 years country ranks ]
55-64 years: 10.6% (male 880,014/female 990,969)
[see also: Age structure 55-64 years country ranks ]
65 years and over: 10.51% (male 776,340/female 1,078,093) (2016 est.)
[see also: Age structure 65 years and over country ranks ]
population pyramid:
A population pyramid illustrates the age and sex structure of a country's population and may provide insights about political and social stability, as well as economic development. The population is distributed along the horizontal axis, with males shown on the left and females on the right. The male and female populations are broken down into 5-year age groups represented as horizontal bars along the vertical axis, with the youngest age groups at the bottom and the oldest at the top. The shape of the population pyramid gradually evolves over time based on fertility, mortality, and international migration trends.

For additional information, please see the entry for Population pyramid on the Definitions and Notes page under the References tab.

Dependency ratios:
total dependency ratio: 45.2%
[see also: Dependency ratios - total dependency ratio country ranks ]
youth dependency ratio: 29.3%
[see also: Dependency ratios - youth dependency ratio country ranks ]
elderly dependency ratio: 16%
[see also: Dependency ratios - elderly dependency ratio country ranks ]
potential support ratio: 6.3% (2015 est.)
[see also: Dependency ratios - potential support ratio country ranks ]

Median age:
total: 34 years
[see also: Median age - total country ranks ]
male: 32.9 years
[see also: Median age - male country ranks ]
female: 35.2 years (2016 est.)
[see also: Median age - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 85

Population growth rate:
0.8% (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 139
[see also: Population growth rate country ranks ]

Birth rate:
13.7 births/1,000 population (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 143
[see also: Birth rate country ranks ]

Death rate:
6.1 deaths/1,000 population (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 157
[see also: Death rate country ranks ]

Net migration rate:
0.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 70
[see also: Net migration rate country ranks ]

Population distribution:
90% of the population is located in the middle third of the country around the capital of Santiago; the far north (anchored by the Atacama Desert) and the extreme south are relatively underpopulated

Urbanization:
urban population: 89.5% of total population (2015)
[see also: Urbanization - urban population country ranks ]
rate of urbanization: 1.09% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)
[see also: Urbanization - rate of urbanization country ranks ]

Major urban areas - population:
SANTIAGO (capital) 6.507 million; Valparaiso 907,000; Concepcion 816,000 (2015)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - at birth country ranks ]
0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 0-14 years country ranks ]
15-24 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 15-24 years country ranks ]
25-54 years: 1 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 25-54 years country ranks ]
55-64 years: 0.89 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 55-64 years country ranks ]
65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 65 years and over country ranks ]
total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2016 est.)

Maternal mortality rate:
22 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 131
[see also: Maternal mortality rate country ranks ]

Infant mortality rate:
total: 6.7 deaths/1,000 live births
[see also: Infant mortality rate - total country ranks ]
male: 7.2 deaths/1,000 live births
[see also: Infant mortality rate - male country ranks ]
female: 6.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2016 est.)
[see also: Infant mortality rate - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 162

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 78.8 years
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - total country ranks ]
male: 75.7 years
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - male country ranks ]
female: 81.9 years (2016 est.)
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 52

Total fertility rate:
1.81 children born/woman (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 150
[see also: Total fertility rate country ranks ]

Contraceptive prevalence rate:
64.2%
note: percent of women aged 15-44 (2006)
[see also: Contraceptive prevalence rate country ranks ]

Health expenditures:
7.8% of GDP (2014)
country comparison to the world: 76
[see also: Health expenditures country ranks ]

Physicians density:
1.02 physicians/1,000 population (2009)
[see also: Physicians density country ranks ]

Hospital bed density:
2.1 beds/1,000 population (2011)
[see also: Hospital bed density country ranks ]

Drinking water source:
improved: urban: 99.7% of population rural: 93.3% of population total: 99% of population
[see also: Drinking water source - Improved - total country ranks ]
unimproved: urban: 0.3% of population rural: 6.7% of population total: 1% of population (2015 est.)
[see also: Drinking water source - Unimproved - total country ranks ]

Sanitation facility access:
improved: urban: 100% of population rural: 90.9% of population total: 99.1% of population
[see also: Sanitation facility access - Total Improved country ranks ]
unimproved: urban: 0% of population rural: 9.1% of population total: 0.9% of population (2015 est.)
[see also: Sanitation facility access - Total UnImproved country ranks ]

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.27% (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 84
[see also: HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate country ranks ]

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
32,300 (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 61
[see also: HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS country ranks ]

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
400 (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 76
[see also: HIV/AIDS - deaths country ranks ]

Obesity - adult prevalence rate:
28.5% (2014)
country comparison to the world: 30
[see also: Obesity - adult prevalence rate country ranks ]

Children under the age of 5 years underweight:
0.5% (2014)
country comparison to the world: 137
[see also: Children under the age of 5 years underweight country ranks ]

Education expenditures:
4.8% of GDP (2014)
country comparison to the world: 90
[see also: Education expenditures - percent of GDP country ranks ]

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.5%
[see also: Literacy - total country ranks ]
male: 97.6%
[see also: Literacy - male country ranks ]
female: 97.4% (2015 est.)
[see also: Literacy - female country ranks ]

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 16 years
[see also: School life expectancy - total country ranks ]
male: 16 years
[see also: School life expectancy - male country ranks ]
female: 17 years (2014)
[see also: School life expectancy - female country ranks ]

Child labor - children ages 5-14:
total number: 82,882
[see also: Child labor - children ages 5-14 - total number country ranks ]
percentage: 3% (2003 est.)
[see also: Child labor - children ages 5-14 - percentage country ranks ]

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24
total: 16.1%
[see also: Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 - total country ranks ]
male: 13.9%
[see also: Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 - male country ranks ]
female: 19.2% (2013 est.)
[see also: Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 73