Romania’s population drop slowed by migration but still ongoing
Romania’s resident population reached 19.041 million people on January 1, 2026, 1,829 fewer than a year earlier, according to provisional data published Friday, August 28, by the National Institute of Statistics.
The decline was largely limited by migration. The number of immigrants exceeded that of emigrants by 102,200, but the difference did not fully offset the natural decrease of 104,100 people.
Overall, the positive international migration balance increased compared with previous years and covered almost the entire difference between the number of deaths and the number of births.
Among people who left Romania, men accounted for 57.9% of the total. They were also the majority among those who came to the country, with a share of 58.6%.
The urban population reached 9.792 million people at the beginning of 2026, up 0.2% from the same period in 2025. The female population stood at 9.744 million people, down 0.1%.
Beyond the decrease in the number of inhabitants, INS data indicate an intensification of demographic aging. People aged at least 65 accounted for 20.5% of the population on January 1, 2026, compared with 20.3% a year earlier. At the same time, the share of children aged 0 to 14 fell from 15.4% to 15.1%.
The demographic aging index therefore rose from 131.3 to 135.9 elderly people for every 100 young people. In other words, at the beginning of 2026, Romania had almost 136 people aged at least 65 for every 100 children under 15. The demographic dependency ratio fell slightly, from 55.6 to 55.2 young and elderly people for every 100 working-age adults.
INS included foreign citizens in the resident population, as well as stateless people, who usually live in Romania for a period of at least 12 months. During the war in Ukraine, the statistics also include Ukrainian citizens benefiting from temporary protection in Romania.
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