Nations by Numbers

South Asia

Sri Lanka in numbers

Sri Lanka is in South Asia and is classed by the World Bank as upper middle income. Its capital is Colombo. Its population was 21.76 million in 2025, ranking 62 of 217 countries. GDP per person was US$5,002 in 2025.

Population21.76 million2025
GDPUS$108.8 billion2025
GDP per personUS$5,0022025
Life expectancy77.72024
Area65,6102024
Urban share20.5%2025

People

Population

21.76 million
2025 · +13% since 2000 · Rank 62 of 217

Population growth (annual %)

-0.73%
2025 · 1.82% in 2000 · Rank 206 of 217

Population density (people per km²)

354.3
2024 · +15% since 2000 · Rank 33 of 216

Urban population (% of total)

20.5%
2025 · 14.6% in 2000 · Rank 212 of 217

Population aged 0 to 14 (% of total)

21.7%
2025 · 27.0% in 2000 · Rank 110 of 217

Population aged 65 and over (% of total)

12.5%
2025 · 6.2% in 2000 · Rank 82 of 217

Fertility rate (births per woman)

1.95
2024 · -12% since 2000 · Rank 107 of 217

Health and living standards

Life expectancy at birth (years)

77.7
2024 · +9% since 2000 · Rank 78 of 217

Under-5 mortality (per 1,000 live births)

5.9
2024 · -64% since 2000 · Rank 148 of 196

Health spending per person (current US$)

US$134
2023 · +215% since 2000 · Rank 138 of 193

Access to electricity (% of population)

100.0%
2024 · 70.3% in 2000 · Rank 58 of 215

Internet users (% of population)

54.6%
2024 · 0.6% in 2000 · Rank 145 of 186

Primary school enrolment (% gross)

91.5%
2023 · 102.9% in 2001 · Rank 160 of 190

Economy

GDP (current US$)

US$108.8 billion
2025 · +556% since 2000 · Rank 72 of 210

GDP per person (current US$)

US$5,002
2025 · +482% since 2000 · Rank 140 of 210

GDP per person, PPP (current international $)

Int$17,065
2025 · +291% since 2000 · Rank 115 of 199

GDP growth (annual %)

4.95%
2025 · 6.00% in 2000 · Rank 54 of 210

Inflation, consumer prices (annual %)

-4.76%
2025 · 6.18% in 2000 · Rank 179 of 180

Unemployment (% of labour force, ILO estimate)

4.0%
2025 · 7.7% in 2000 · Rank 120 of 187

Exports of goods and services (% of GDP)

19.0%
2025 · 39.0% in 2000 · Rank 149 of 183

Personal remittances received (% of GDP)

7.6%
2025 · 7.0% in 2000 · Rank 38 of 176

Land and environment

Land and water area (km²)

65,610
2024 · +0% since 2000 · Rank 123 of 216

Forest area (% of land area)

34.4%
2024 · 35.6% in 2000 · Rank 98 of 214

CO₂ emissions per person (tonnes)

1.06
2024 · +79% since 2000 · Rank 140 of 203

Elsewhere in South Asia

BangladeshBhutanIndiaMaldivesNepal

Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators, updated 8 October 2026. Each figure is the latest year available for Sri Lanka. Rankings compare countries with data from the same or recent years.