Cambodia Population

Cambodia's fertility is falling toward the replacement level, but its age structure still bears the scar of the Khmer Rouge era, which killed a large share of the population in the 1970s. A youthful population is now driving development, though the demographic window will not stay open indefinitely. Recovery from past catastrophe remains part of the backdrop.

With roughly 18.0 million people as of 2026, Cambodia ranks 73rd in the world by population. A country of South-Eastern Asia, its trajectory to 2100 is governed by how births, deaths and migration play out. It packs in roughly 100 people per square kilometre.

Cambodia is projected to keep growing until about 2078, when its population peaks at roughly 23.4 million before a gradual decline sets in, leaving it near 22.8 million by 2100.

The median age is set to climb from about 26 today to roughly 43 by 2100, even as life expectancy improves from about 71 years. That ageing slowly changes everything from the size of the workforce to the cost of care and pensions.

At roughly 2.55 births per woman, fertility remains above replacement, though it has been trending down. Emigration adds a further drag, as departures outnumber arrivals year to year.

The trajectory above is the UN's medium scenario. Wars, policy shifts, economic change and migration can all move the numbers, but the broad shape, growth followed by an eventual peak, is robust across the main variants.