Discover the 20 Least Populated Countries in the World: A Unique Exploration

As of 2023, there are more than 7.888 billion people on planet Earth. Some of these people live in the top 20 least populated countries in the world as you’ll get to discover in this piece.

Population is the total number of people living in a nation or area. The population of the globe is increasing at a low single-digit annual rate right now. It is anticipated that the population will increase by 81 million people a year. The world’s population more than doubled between 1959 and the 2000s.

The annual population growth rate reached its maximum in the late 1960s. Since then, the pace of increase has nearly been cut in half, and it is anticipated that this trend will continue globally in the next years.

With that said, these are the least populated countries in the world.

Vatican City, 800 people

Vatican City, which covers only 100 acres and has an extremely small population of 800, is the tiniest nation in the world. Even though it is an absolute monarchy, the Vatican is located in the heart of Rome, Italy. It is hence unique in comparison to all other nations.

The Vatican has its currency, police, laws, and much more because of the prestige of the Vatican and its inhabitants. The current Pope is an absolute monarch, which effectively means that he has unlimited control over all aspects of the state and is free to act however he chooses.

Nauru, 11,232 people

One of the South Pacific’s most heavily inhabited Westernised nations is Nauru.

Nauru is the smallest republic and an island country. Currently, it ranks as the third-smallest in the world after Vatican City and Monaco. With a population of roughly 10,000, it is the second-smallest city in the world (this doesn’t exclude colonies and foreign territories), behind Vatican City.

As of July 2021, 12,511 people called Nauru home. The population was formerly higher, but 1,500 people left the island in 2006 as a result of the repatriation of foreign workers from Kiribati and Tuvalu. A large number of phosphate mining job losses served as the impetus for the repatriation.

Tuvalu, 11,722 people

Island nation Tuvalu, originally the Ellice Islands, is located in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean. Its islands are located roughly in the middle of Hawaii and Australia.

11,722 people are living in Tuvalu. The Tuvaluan islands have a total land area of 26 square kilometres (10 square miles).

The nation depends largely on imports and fishing for sustenance because the islands don’t have much soil. The licensing of fishing rights to foreign businesses, grants and humanitarian initiatives, and remittances from Tuvaluan fishermen who work on cargo ships to their families are significant components of the nation’s financial system.

Palau, 22,927 people

Located in the western Pacific Ocean’s Micronesia subregion, Palau (historically Belau, Palaos, or Pelew) is an island nation. About 340 islands make up the republic, which connects the Federated States of Micronesia with the western chain of the Caroline Islands.

It is one of the world’s tiniest nations, with only 466 square kilometres (180 square miles) in total. Koror, which has the nation’s most populous city of the same name, is the island with the greatest population.

San Marino, 34,037 people

A microstate in Europe that is surrounded by Italy is called San Marino. San Marino is the fifth-smallest country in the world, with a land area of just over 61 km2 (23+12 sq mi) and a population of 34,037; it is situated on the northeastern edge of the Apennine Mountains.

Although San Marino is a landlocked nation, its northeastern tip lies only ten kilometres (six miles) from the Italian city of Rimini, which is located on the Adriatic coast. Italy also houses the closest airport. 

Italian is San Marino’s official language.

Liechtenstein, 39,135 people

Between Austria and Switzerland in the Alps, Liechtenstein is a German-speaking, doubly landlocked nation. It ranks as the sixth-smallest nation in the world.

It has a population of 38,749 as of 2019 and is the fourth-smallest country in Europe. Its territory is barely over 160 square kilometres (62 square miles). Its capital, Vaduz, and largest municipality, Schaan, are both divided into 11 municipalities. It is also the smallest nation with two borders.

Monaco, 39,684 people

Monaco is one of the world’s smallest and richest nations and was called a “sunny place for shady people” by English author W. Somerset Maugham.

The principality, which is near Nice, France, and a few kilometres from the Italian border, has a population of about 39,684 people, and slightly about seven in ten of them are billionaires.

Marshall Islands, people 53,327

The Marshall Islands are an island nation west of the International Date Line in the Pacific Ocean, close to Kiribati. Geographically, the nation is part of Micronesia’s wider island chain.

At the time of the 2021 World Bank Census, the country’s 53,327 inhabitants were dispersed throughout five islands and 29 coral atolls, totalling 1,156 distinct islands and islets. 

Majuro is the nation’s capital and largest city. Its area is made up of more water than any other sovereign state, with a percentage of 97.87%.

Saint Kitts And Nevis, 57,713 people

The two islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis, which are both in the West Indies and part of the Lesser Antilles’ Leeward Islands chain, make up the island nation and microstate known as Saint Kitts and Nevis.

It is the world’s smallest sovereign federation and the Western Hemisphere’s smallest sovereign state, with a territory of 261 square kilometres (101 square miles) and a population of about 57,713. Charles III serves as the nation’s king and head of state, and it is a Commonwealth kingdom.

Dominica, 75,748 people

Dominica is an island nation in the Caribbean. On the western part of the island is Roseau, the capital city. It is situated geographically as a member of the Windward Islands chain in the Lesser Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean Sea.

Dominica has a total surface area of 750 km2 (290 sq mi), and Morne Diablotins, which is 1,447 m (4,747 ft) above sea level, is the island’s highest point. In 2011, 75,748 people were living there.

Andorra – 76,965 people

Andorra is a tiny, mountainous nation in the Eastern Pyrenees of southern Europe that is encircled by territory on all sides. Andorra has a land size of 468 square kilometres, making it the sixth-smallest nation on the continent with only 76,965 inhabitants.

Surprisingly, ethnic Andorrans make up only 33% of the population, while Portuguese, French, and Spanish account for the majority of the population. The only official language is Catalan, and Christianity is the most practised religion in Andorra.

Seychelles – 93, 920 people

Seychelles ranks as the world’s 12^th least populous nation with 93,920 people. It is, nonetheless, Africa’s least populous nation. Compared to the second-least populous nation in Africa, Seychelles has a substantially smaller population.

Iceland – 339, 747 people

Iceland is an island republic in the North Atlantic Ocean with a 103,000 km2 land area and a population of only 339 747. Consequently, it ranks among the least populous countries in the world.

Icelandic, the country’s official language, is spoken by the vast majority of the population (93%) who are of Icelandic descent. Nearly 60% of people reside in the capital region, where urban areas are home to 99% of the population. The main faith practised here is Christianity.

Maldives – 392,709 people

With 392,709 inhabitants, Maldives has the least population in Asia and is the 27^th most populous country overall. Over 115 square miles (298 km2), there are 26 atolls in the nation. The nation’s sparse population continues to place a burden on its meagre supplies.

Brunei Darussalam – 443 593 people

On the northern tip of Southeast Asia’s island of Borneo is Brunei, a tiny nation. Except for the coast in the South China Sea, Sarawak, a Malaysian state, nearly encircles the nation.

With only 443,593 people, Brunei is the second-least populous nation in Asia as of 2017. The urban population is 76% of the total population. The official language of Brunei is Standard Malay, and ethnic Malay make up 65, 7% of the population. The majority religion in the nation is Islam.

Luxembourg, 594 130 people

Luxembourg is a tiny nation that is surrounded by territory on all sides. Germany, France, and Belgium are all bordering countries. 594,130 people are living in Luxembourg, which has a total area of around 2,586 km2.

The national language is Luxembourgish, while French, German, and Luxembourgish are the official languages of the nation. Portuguese-speaking persons make up the largest ethnic minority. The majority of people practice Roman Catholicism.

Suriname – 591 919 people

With a population of 591,919,  Suriname is a South American nation with the lowest population. With a surface size of only 63,252 square miles (163,821 km2), it is also the smallest nation on the continent.

Montenegro – 642,550 people

The ninth-smallest country in Europe by population is the Adriatic Sea-coasted nation of southeast Montenegro. 642,550 people were reportedly living there. Slavic people make up more than 90% of the population. Only Montenegrin is used in official correspondence. Montenegro’s capital and largest city is Podgorica.

Bhutan – 758 288 people

In South Asia, there is a tiny, mountainous nation called Bhutan. The country, which sits in the eastern Himalayas, is endowed with stunning natural scenery and distinctive culture. Bhutan is the third least populous nation in Asia, with only 758,288 people living there in a 38,394 square kilometre territory.

Mongolia – 3,068,243 people

Since much of Mongolia is made up of mountains and deserts, it has relatively little arable land and is one of the least inhabited nations in Asia. As of 2016.

3,068,243 people are thought to live in Mongolia. In and around Ulaanbaatar, the nation’s capital, live between 40 and 45 per cent of its citizens. The official and most widely used language in Mongolia is Mongolian, and Buddhism is the country’s main religion.

Conclusion 

The top 20 least populated nations in the world in 2021 included Niue, Norfolk Island, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Montserrat, Cook Islands, Nauru, Tuvalu, Wallis and Futuna, Republic of Palau, and Anguilla.

The economy, female fertility rates, birth rates, mortality rates, healthcare facilities, increasing urbanization, immigration and emigration rates, education, and other social and cultural elements are only a few of the many variables that affect a nation’s population growth.