Georgia’s population stood at 3,929,581 as of November 14, 2024, according to the main results of the 2024 population and agricultural census released by the National Statistics Office of Georgia (Geostat), marking an increase of 215,777 people (5.8%) compared to the 2014 census figure of 3,713,804.
The census was conducted from November 14 to December 31, 2024, and covered all citizens of Georgia permanently residing in the country, as well as foreign nationals and stateless persons present in Georgian territory. Data from the Russia-occupied regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali/South Ossetia was not included.
The latest publication of the census, which provides more detailed data than the previous one, show that the majority of the country’s population – almost two-thirds – lives in urban areas, particularly Tbilisi, while all other regions, except Adjara and Kvemo Kartli, continued to record population declines. Georgians remained the largest ethnic group, while Azerbaijanis and Armenians were the largest minorities. Orthodox Christianity stood as the predominant religion, with 82% of the population adhering to it, and Georgian the most widely spoken language. The data also points to a growing number of foreign residents, particularly citizens of Russia, India, and Ukraine, compared to the previous census.
Compared to 2014, the share of people aged 65 and older increased by 3.3 percentage points to 17.6% (692,700 people). The share of people aged 0-14 rose by 1 percentage point to 19.6% (770,823), while the share of the 15-64 age group declined by 4.3 percentage points to 62.8% (2,466,058).
Women accounted for 52.1% of the population (2,048,577), while men made up 47.9% (1,881,004).
Citizenship
The number of Georgian citizens grew by 2.5% compared to 2014, reaching 3,775,415. However, their share of the total population fell from 99.2% to 96.1% over the decade.
Foreign citizens permanently residing in Georgia reached 133,857. The largest groups were:
- Russians – 37,715 people (1% of the population), up from 7,620;
- Indians – 23,925 people (0.6%), up from 416;
- Ukrainians – 11,542 people (0.3%), up from 1631;
- Azerbaijanis – 8,309 people (0.2%), up from 3,236;
- Armenians – 5,381 people (0.1%) up from 3,784.
The list was followed by citizens of Turkey (5,262), Belarus (4,473), Iran (4,322), Israel (3,244), and Jordan (3,037).
Urban and Regional Trends
The urban population stood at 2,455,444 (62.5%), while the rural population numbered 1,474,137 (37.5%).
Compared to 2014, the population of urban settlements grew by 15.7% (332,821 people), while the rural population declined by 7.4% (117,044 people). As a result, the urban share of the total population rose by 5.3 percentage points.
Tbilisi’s population reached 1,331,485, a 20.1% increase (222,768 people) since 2014. Outside the capital, the Autonomous Republic of Adjara (20.7%) and Kvemo Kartli (4.2%) recorded the population growth.
Every other region recorded a population decline, most notably Guria (-9.7%) and Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti (-7.6%), followed by Racha-Lechkhumi and Kvemo Svaneti (-6.8%), Kakheti (-4.6%), and Imereti (-4.3%).
Among municipalities, the sharpest declines were registered in Adjara’s Khulo (-29.9%) and Shuakhevi (-26.2%), followed by Racha-Lechkhumi’s Tsageri (-18.2%), Imereti’s Tskaltubo (-15.1%), and Tkibuli (-14.9%).
Batumi, a coastal city in the Adjara region, recorded the highest growth nationwide, with its population rising by 54.2% to 235,668. Notable increases were also observed in Kazbegi (28.8%), Lentekhi (17.5%), and Marneuli (11%), as well as in the larger cities of Kutaisi (9%) and Rustavi (5.6%).
Ethnic Composition
The number of ethnic Georgians increased by 2.5% to 3,304,075, though their share of the total population declined from 86.8% to 84.1%.
Azerbaijanis remained the largest ethnic minority, numbering 268,832 (6.8% of the population), an increase of 15.4% since 2014. Armenians numbered 169,296 (4.3%), up 0.7% compared to the previous census.
The census also recorded significant increases among several other ethnic groups. The number of ethnic Russians rose by 60.8% to 42,545, while the number of people identifying as Indian increased from 446 to 23,996. The Ukrainian population grew by 139.4% to 14,443. Significant increases were also recorded among Arabs, whose number rose from 609 to 12,533, Belarusians, from 431 to 4,558, and Iranians, from 217 to 4,304.
The number of ethnic Abkhazians increased by 5% to 907. Meanwhile, the number of ethnic Ossetians declined by 12.3% to 12,611, while the number of Yazidis fell by 7% to 11,324.
Religious Affiliation
Orthodox Christians remained the largest religious group, accounting for 82% of the population, or 3,223,206 people. While their number increased by 4.1% compared to 2014, their share of the total population also declined from 83.4% to 82%.
Muslims numbered 437,458, accounting for 11.1% of the population, up 9.7% from the previous census.
The number of followers of the Armenian Apostolic Church declined by 6.7% to 101,736. The number of Catholics remained largely unchanged at 19,593, while the number of Jehovah’s Witnesses decreased by 13% to 10,787.
According to the census, 19,214 people reported no religious affiliation, a slight increase from 2014’s data.
Mother Tongue
According to the census results, Georgian is the mother tongue of 85.1% of the population (3,343,987 people)/ While the number of Georgian-language speakers increased by 2.7% compared to 2014, their share of the total population declined from 87.6% to 85.1%.
Azerbaijani was the second most commonly reported mother tongue, spoken by 265,534 people (6.8%), a 14.7% increase over the decade. Armenian was reported as a mother tongue by 139,438 people (3.5%), down 3.7% compared to the previous census.
Russian-language speakers grew by 18.6% to 54,460. The number of Ossetian speakers declined by 32.6% to 3,839, while 370 people reported Abkhaz as their mother tongue, up 36% from 272 recorded in the 2014 census.
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