Swiss population 2026: more people 65+ than under 20

At the end of 2025, Switzerland had 1,810,648 people aged 65 and over and 1,804,540 under 20. More older than young people: that had not happened in any year since the series began in 1860. In 17 of the 26 cantons it happened earlier, in Ticino and Basel-Stadt by 2010 at the latest. Here you find the population figure and why different numbers circulate, all 26 cantons in the Age Turning Point Matrix by ConvivaPlus, the three official scenarios and the Population Time Machine by ConvivaPlus: every year from 1860 to 2075, for the cantons to 2055.

👥 Swiss population 2026: 9,127,125 at the end of 2025

That is the count at the end of 2025, the latest official figure. A year earlier it was 9,051,029. In 2025 Switzerland therefore grew by 76,096 people, or 0.84%. The FSO publishes the figure for the end of 2026 during 2027; this page will then take it over automatically. How many people live in each city is shown in the list of the largest cities in Switzerland.

🔢 How many people live in Switzerland? Two figures, depending on who counts

Depending on who is counted, Switzerland has 9,127,125 or 9,214,332 residents. And 838,622 Swiss citizens are missing from both figures because they live abroad.

Which figure is right? All three; they answer different questions. When people say “population”, they almost always mean the first. That is 221 people per square kilometre.

🧓 More older than young people: a first since 1860

At the end of 2025, Switzerland had 1,810,648 people aged 65 and over and 1,804,540 under 20. More older than young people had not occurred in any of the 165 years before, since the series began in 1860.

In 1860, there were almost eight people under 20 for every person aged 65 or over. In 2010 there were still 1,642,435 young against 1,329,694 older people. Since then the 65+ group has grown by 480,954, the under-20s by 162,105. The turning point did not come in one year but over decades, and in 2025 it became visible.

🗺️ Population by canton: the Age Turning Point Matrix by ConvivaPlus

Basel-Stadt has had more people aged 65+ than under 20 since 2010 at the latest, while Geneva and Vaud still have not. In 17 of the 26 cantons the turning point has already come. The oldest canton is Ticino, with 1.41 people aged 65+ per person under 20; the youngest is Vaud, with 0.79.

Zurich, at 0.90, has not yet turned. In the FSO’s cantonal reference scenario the turning point comes there at the end of 2031. Next in line is Thurgau (reference scenario: 2026), last is Geneva (reference scenario: 2049). Neuchâtel turned in 2025, the latest canton so far. The cantons ranked by population, with area and density, are in the canton ranking.

Method: ConvivaPlus analysis of the FSO population statistics (STATPOP, permanent resident population by canton and single year of age, 2010 to 2025). Turning point = first year with more people aged 65+ than under 20. The cantonal series starts in 2010; a canton that had already turned is shown as “2010 at the latest”. Cantons that have not yet turned: year according to the FSO cantonal reference scenario AR-00-2025.

📈 Swiss population growth: 1860 to 2075 in the Time Machine

In 1860, 2,515,396 people lived in Switzerland. It took 95 years for that number to double, until 1955. The next doubling is hardly faster: in the FSO reference scenario it is reached at the end of 2043, after 88 years. In the low scenario, never.

The Population Time Machine by ConvivaPlus shows every year since 1860: how many people lived here and how many of them were under 20 or 65 and over. From 2026 it follows the three FSO scenarios. In canton mode you see each canton from 2010 to 2055.

🌍 Immigration to Switzerland: where the 2025 growth came from

Of the 76,096 additional residents in 2025, 6,249 came from more births than deaths. Net migration was 70,432, eleven times as much.

In 2025, 204,261 people immigrated and 133,829 emigrated. 78,153 children were born and 71,904 people died. Natural increase and net migration together come to 76,681; the difference to the change (−585) is an FSO adjustment of the population stock. Who lives in Switzerland without a Swiss passport is shown on the page Foreigners in Switzerland.

👶 Births and deaths: 14 cantons with more deaths

In 14 of the 26 cantons, more people died in 2025 than were born. Yet none of them shrank. Schaffhausen shows it most clearly: 76 more deaths than births, and still no canton grew faster (+1.60%). The difference comes from people moving in: a net 904 from abroad and 546 from other cantons.

For Switzerland as a whole, there has been no year with more deaths than births since the balance series began in 1971. In the FSO reference scenario this changes in 2035, in the low scenario as early as 2026.

🚀 Fastest-growing cantons in 2025

In 2025, Zurich lost a net 3,960 residents to other cantons, more than any other canton. Aargau gained 2,092 from other cantons, also more than any other.

In overall growth, Schaffhausen ranks 1st (+1.60%) and Glarus 26th (+0.19%). The table shows what each canton’s growth is made of.

Abroad = immigration minus emigration; other cantons = moves in minus moves out within Switzerland. Source: FSO, demographic balance.

✈️ Swiss abroad: the fourth-largest canton

At the end of 2025, 838,622 Swiss citizens lived abroad. As a canton they would be the fourth-largest, after Zurich, Bern and Vaud, ahead of Aargau. In France alone there are 213,976, more than Basel-Stadt has residents (204,157).

That is 11,914 more than a year earlier. Almost half (47.0%) live in one of the five neighbouring countries, the rest are spread across 197 countries. They are not included in the Swiss population figure. The statistics count everyone registered with a Swiss representation abroad.

🔮 10 million forecast: three scenarios, three answers

Whether Switzerland reaches 10 million residents depends on the scenario: at the end of 2041 in the FSO reference scenario, at the end of 2033 in the high scenario, never in the low one. There the peak is 9,343,290 at the end of 2042, after which the number falls.

Scenarios are not forecasts. The FSO calculates them with different assumptions about births, life expectancy and migration; the reference scenario reflects a continuation of past trends.

The 10 million mark was also the subject of a popular vote: the popular initiative «Keine 10-Millionen-Schweiz! (Nachhaltigkeitsinitiative)» (official German title; there is no official English version) sought to keep the permanent resident population below 10 million before 2050. The people and the cantons rejected it on 14 June 2026, with 45.2% voting yes (FSO).

Written by

Reto Amrein

ConvivaPlus Editor · Money & Work

Writes about wages, taxes, insurance and pensions – verifiable figures with a source.

• Wages
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Researched & sourced · for Switzerland

Profile & all articles →·Our editorial teamUpdated 10/19/2026