Serbia People - 2023

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Population

6,693,375 (2023 est.)

note: does not include the population of Kosovo

Nationality

noun: Serb(s)

adjective: Serbian

Ethnic groups

Serb 83.3%, Hungarian 3.5%, Romani 2.1%, Bosniak 2%, other 5.7%, undeclared or unknown 3.4% (2011 est.)

note: most ethnic Albanians boycotted the 2011 census; Romani populations are usually underestimated in official statistics and may represent 5–11% of Serbia's population

Languages

Serbian (official) 88.1%, Hungarian 3.4%, Bosnian 1.9%, Romani 1.4%, other 3.4%, undeclared or unknown 1.8%; note - Serbian, Hungarian, Slovak, Romanian, Croatian, and Ruthenian (Rusyn) are official in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina; most ethnic Albanians boycotted the 2011 census (2011 est.)

major-language sample(s):
Knjiga svetskih činjenica, neophodan izvor osnovnih informacija. (Serbian)

The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.

Serbian audio sample:

Religions

Orthodox 84.6%, Catholic 5%, Muslim 3.1%, Protestant 1%, atheist 1.1%, other 0.8% (includes agnostics, other Christians, Eastern, Jewish), undeclared or unknown 4.5% (2011 est.)

note: most ethnic Albanians boycotted the 2011 census

Age structure

0-14 years: 14.45% (male 498,534/female 468,853)

15-64 years: 65.81% (male 2,216,701/female 2,188,267)

65 years and over: 19.74% (2023 est.) (male 547,344/female 773,676)

Dependency ratios

total dependency ratio: 53.8

youth dependency ratio: 21.9

elderly dependency ratio: 31.9

potential support ratio: 3.1 (2021 est.)

note: data include Kosovo

Median age

total: 43.4 years

male: 41.7 years

female: 45 years (2020 est.)

Population growth rate

-0.63% (2023 est.)

Birth rate

8.87 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Death rate

15.12 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Net migration rate

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Population distribution

a fairly even distribution throughout most of the country, with urban areas attracting larger and denser populations

Urbanization

urban population: 57.1% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization: 0.04% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

note: data include Kosovo

total population growth rate v. urban population growth rate, 2000-2030

Major urban areas - population

1.408 million BELGRADE (capital) (2023)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female

15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female

total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2023 est.)

Mother's mean age at first birth

28.2 years (2020 est.)

note: data does not cover Kosovo or Metohija

Maternal mortality ratio

10 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 4.55 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 5.14 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 3.93 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 75.08 years

male: 72.46 years

female: 77.85 years (2023 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.46 children born/woman (2023 est.)

Gross reproduction rate

0.71 (2023 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

62.3% (2019)

Drinking water source

improved: urban: 99.7% of population

rural: 99.4% of population

total: 99.5% of population

unimproved: urban: 0.3% of population

rural: 0.6% of population

total: 0.5% of population (2020 est.)

Current health expenditure

8.7% of GDP (2020)

Physicians density

3.11 physicians/1,000 population (2016)

Hospital bed density

5.6 beds/1,000 population (2017)

Sanitation facility access

improved: urban: 99.6% of population

rural: 95.7% of population

total: 97.9% of population

unimproved: urban: 0.4% of population

rural: 4.3% of population

total: 2.1% of population (2020 est.)

Major infectious diseases

degree of risk: intermediate (2023)

food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea

vectorborne diseases: Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever

Obesity - adult prevalence rate

21.5% (2016)

Alcohol consumption per capita

total: 7.45 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

beer: 3.24 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

wine: 1.62 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

spirits: 2.37 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

other alcohols: 0.22 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

Tobacco use

total: 39.8% (2020 est.)

male: 40.5% (2020 est.)

female: 39.1% (2020 est.)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

1% (2019)

Currently married women (ages 15-49)

60.8% (2023 est.)

Child marriage

women married by age 15: 1.2%

women married by age 18: 5.5% (2019 est.)

Education expenditures

3.6% of GDP (2019 est.)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 99.5%

male: 99.9%

female: 99.1% (2019)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

total: 14 years

male: 14 years

female: 15 years (2021)

Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24)

total: 30.4%

male: 28.5%

female: 33.7% (2021 est.)

NOTE: The information regarding Serbia on this page is re-published from the 2023 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Serbia 2023 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Serbia 2023 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.