How Many People Live in Japan?

Japan has a population of approximately 122.6 million people, and it is shrinking. Japan's population peaked at 128.1 million in 2010 and has been declining every year since, making it the first major developed country to enter sustained population decline without war or famine. In 2023, Japan recorded 758,631 births, the fewest since records began in 1899, against 1.57 million deaths. The country is losing about 800,000 people per year.

Japan's demographic crisis is driven by one of the lowest fertility rates on Earth (1.20 in 2023, a record low) combined with almost no immigration. Unlike Germany, France, or the UK, Japan has historically resisted large-scale immigration. Foreign residents make up only about 2.3% of the population, compared to 10-16% in Western Europe. The government has recently loosened visa rules for skilled workers, but cultural and bureaucratic barriers remain high.

The consequences are already visible: schools are closing across rural Japan (half the country's schools may close by 2050), entire villages have been abandoned, and the ratio of workers to retirees has fallen to 2:1. Akita Prefecture now has a median age of 56. Adult diapers outsell baby diapers nationwide. Japan is a preview of what many countries will face in 20-30 years.

📊 Key Demographics

🏙️ What Are Japans Largest Cities?

📉 How Bad Is Japans Population Crisis?

By 2050, Japan is projected to lose another 18 million people. Nearly 4 in 10 will be over 65. The government has tried everything: cash bonuses for babies, dating apps, workplace reforms, immigration reform. Nothing has moved the fertility rate upward. Japan's prime minister called it a "now or never" crisis in 2023. Most demographers believe it is already too late to reverse.

🏚️ Japan Has 9 Million Abandoned Houses

As the population shrinks and urbanizes, roughly 1 in 7 homes in Japan is vacant. These \"akiya\" (empty houses) are concentrated in rural areas where entire villages have been abandoned. Some local governments offer free houses to anyone willing to move in and maintain them. In Okutama, a town near Tokyo, you can get a house for essentially nothing if you agree to live there for at least 15 years. The problem is accelerating: by 2033, an estimated 1 in 3 Japanese homes could be empty.