Population:
15,189,958 (July 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 71
[see also: Population country ranks ]

Nationality:
noun: Guatemalan(s)
adjective: Guatemalan

Ethnic groups:
Mestizo (mixed Amerindian-Spanish - in local Spanish called Ladino) and European 59.4%, K'iche 9.1%, Kaqchikel 8.4%, Mam 7.9%, Q'eqchi 6.3%, other Mayan 8.6%, indigenous non-Mayan 0.2%, other 0.1% (2001 census)

Languages:
Spanish (official) 60%, Amerindian languages 40%
note: there are 23 officially recognized Amerindian languages, including Quiche, Cakchiquel, Kekchi, Mam, Garifuna, and Xinca

Religions:
Roman Catholic, Protestant, indigenous Mayan beliefs

Demographic profile:
Guatemala is a predominantly poor country that struggles in several areas of health and development, including infant, child, and maternal mortality, malnutrition, literacy, and contraceptive awareness and use. The country's large indigenous population is disproportionately affected. Guatemala is the most populous country in Central America and has the highest fertility rate in Latin America. It also has the highest population growth rate in Latin America, which is likely to continue because of its large reproductive-age population and high birth rate. Almost half of Guatemala's population is under age 19, making it the youngest population in Latin America. Guatemala's total fertility rate has slowly declined during the last few decades due in part to limited government-funded health programs. However, the birth rate is still more than three children per woman and is markedly higher among its rural and indigenous populations. Guatemalans have a history of emigrating legally and illegally to Mexico, the United States, and Canada because of a lack of economic opportunity, political instability, and natural disasters. Emigration, primarily to the United States, escalated during the 1960 to 1996 civil war and accelerated after a peace agreement was signed. Thousands of Guatemalans who fled to Mexico returned after the war, but labor migration to southern Mexico continues.

Age structure:
0-14 years: 35.02% (male 2,711,683/female 2,608,295)
[see also: Age structure 0-14 years country ranks ]
15-24 years: 21.8% (male 1,663,484/female 1,647,749)
[see also: Age structure 15-24 years country ranks ]
25-54 years: 33.53% (male 2,425,931/female 2,666,790)
[see also: Age structure 25-54 years country ranks ]
55-64 years: 5.23% (male 377,642/female 416,939)
[see also: Age structure 55-64 years country ranks ]
65 years and over: 4.42% (male 311,165/female 360,280) (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: 70.9%
[see also: Dependency ratios - total dependency ratio country ranks ]
youth dependency ratio: 62.6%
[see also: Dependency ratios - youth dependency ratio country ranks ]
elderly dependency ratio: 8.3%
[see also: Dependency ratios - elderly dependency ratio country ranks ]
potential support ratio: 12.1% (2015 est.)
[see also: Dependency ratios - potential support ratio country ranks ]

Median age:
total: 21.7 years
[see also: Median age - total country ranks ]
male: 21 years
[see also: Median age - male country ranks ]
female: 22.4 years (2016 est.)
[see also: Median age - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 180

Population growth rate:
1.79% (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 62
[see also: Population growth rate country ranks ]

Birth rate:
24.5 births/1,000 population (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 55
[see also: Birth rate country ranks ]

Death rate:
4.7 deaths/1,000 population (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 199
[see also: Death rate country ranks ]

Net migration rate:
-1.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 160
[see also: Net migration rate country ranks ]

Population distribution:
the vast majority of the populace resides in the southern half of the country, particularly in the mountainous regions; more than half of the population lives in rural areas

Urbanization:
urban population: 51.6% of total population (2015)
[see also: Urbanization - urban population country ranks ]
rate of urbanization: 3.4% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)
[see also: Urbanization - rate of urbanization country ranks ]

Major urban areas - population:
GUATEMALA CITY (capital) 2.918 million (2015)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 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: 1.01 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 15-24 years country ranks ]
25-54 years: 0.91 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 25-54 years country ranks ]
55-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 55-64 years country ranks ]
65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 65 years and over country ranks ]
total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2016 est.)

Mother's mean age at first birth:
20.3
note: median age at first birth among women 25-29 (2008/09 est.)
[see also: Mother's mean age at first birth country ranks ]

Maternal mortality rate:
88 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 64
[see also: Maternal mortality rate country ranks ]

Infant mortality rate:
total: 22 deaths/1,000 live births
[see also: Infant mortality rate - total country ranks ]
male: 23.9 deaths/1,000 live births
[see also: Infant mortality rate - male country ranks ]
female: 19.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2016 est.)
[see also: Infant mortality rate - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 77

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 72.3 years
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - total country ranks ]
male: 70.3 years
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - male country ranks ]
female: 74.4 years (2016 est.)
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 146

Total fertility rate:
2.83 children born/woman (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 62
[see also: Total fertility rate country ranks ]

Health expenditures:
6.2% of GDP (2014)
country comparison to the world: 88
[see also: Health expenditures country ranks ]

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

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

Drinking water source:
improved: urban: 98.4% of population rural: 86.8% of population total: 92.8% of population
[see also: Drinking water source - Improved - total country ranks ]
unimproved: urban: 1.6% of population rural: 13.2% of population total: 7.2% of population (2015 est.)
[see also: Drinking water source - Unimproved - total country ranks ]

Sanitation facility access:
improved: urban: 77.5% of population rural: 49.3% of population total: 63.9% of population
[see also: Sanitation facility access - Total Improved country ranks ]
unimproved: urban: 22.5% of population rural: 50.7% of population total: 36.1% of population (2015 est.)
[see also: Sanitation facility access - Total UnImproved country ranks ]

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.57% (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 64
[see also: HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate country ranks ]

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
54,600 (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 56
[see also: HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS country ranks ]

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
1,700 (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 58
[see also: HIV/AIDS - deaths country ranks ]

Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne disease: dengue fever and malaria
note: active local transmission of Zika virus by Aedes species mosquitoes has been identified in this country (as of August 2016); it poses an important risk (a large number of cases possible) among US citizens if bitten by an infective mosquito; other less common ways to get Zika are through sex, via blood transfusion, or during pregnancy, in which the pregnant woman passes Zika virus to her fetus (2016)

Obesity - adult prevalence rate:
16.4% (2014)
country comparison to the world: 100
[see also: Obesity - adult prevalence rate country ranks ]

Children under the age of 5 years underweight:
12.6% (2015)
country comparison to the world: 57
[see also: Children under the age of 5 years underweight country ranks ]

Education expenditures:
3% of GDP (2015)
country comparison to the world: 139
[see also: Education expenditures - percent of GDP country ranks ]

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 81.5%
[see also: Literacy - total country ranks ]
male: 87.4%
[see also: Literacy - male country ranks ]
female: 76.3% (2015 est.)
[see also: Literacy - female country ranks ]

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 11 years
[see also: School life expectancy - total country ranks ]
male: 11 years
[see also: School life expectancy - male country ranks ]
female: 10 years (2013)
[see also: School life expectancy - female country ranks ]

Child labor - children ages 5-14:
total number: 929,852
[see also: Child labor - children ages 5-14 - total number country ranks ]
percentage: 21%
[see also: Child labor - children ages 5-14 - percentage country ranks ]
note: data represent children ages 5-17 (2006 est.)

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24
total: 6.3%
[see also: Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 - total country ranks ]
male: 6.5%
[see also: Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 - male country ranks ]
female: 5.8% (2013 est.)
[see also: Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 117