North Rhine-Westphalia
Germany
Overview Population Over Time Population By Age and Gender Population Density Projected Population Human Development Index (HDI) Weather Districts in North Rhine-Westphalia
World  »  Germany  »  North Rhine-Westphalia

North Rhine-Westphalia

State of Germany

North Rhine-Westphalia is a state of Germany.

North Rhine-Westphalia is located in western Germany covering an area of 34,084 square kilometres (13,160 sq mi). With a population of 17.9 million, it is the most populous state in Germany. It is also the most densely populated German state apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, and the fourth-largest by area. Düsseldorf is the state capital and Cologne is the largest city. North Rhine-Westphalia features four of Germany's 10 largest cities: Düsseldorf, Cologne, Dortmund, and Essen, and the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan area, the largest in Germany and the third-largest on the European continent. Source: Wikipedia

Area of North Rhine-Westphalia 34,112.4 km²
Population 17.6 million
Male Population 8,552,677 (48.6%)
Female Population 9,041,551 (51.4%)
Population change from 1975 to 2015 +2.5%
Population change from 2000 to 2015 -1.9%
Median Age 44.5 years
Male Median Age 43.3 years
Female Median Age 45.6 years
Timezone Central European Standard Time

Map of North Rhine-Westphalia

Population Over Time

Years 1975 to 2015
Data1975199020002015
Population 17,163,381 17,295,119 17,932,393 17,594,228
Population Density 503.1 / km² 507.0 / km² 525.7 / km² 515.8 / km²
Sources: JRC (European Commission's Joint Research Centre) work on the GHS built-up grid

Population change from 2000 to 2015

Decrease of 1.9% from year 2000 to 2015
LocationChange since 1975Change since 1990Change since 2000
North Rhine-Westphalia +2.5% +1.7% -1.9%
Germany +2.6% +2.2% -1.5%
Sources: JRC (European Commission's Joint Research Centre) work on the GHS built-up grid

Median Age

Median Age: 44.5 years
LocationMedian AgeMedian Age (Male)Median Age (Female)
North Rhine-Westphalia 44.5 years 43.3 years 45.6 years
Germany 44.8 years 43.6 years 46 years
Sources: CIESIN (Center for International Earth Science Information Network)

Population By Age and Gender

North Rhine-Westphalia Population Tree
AgeMaleFemaleTotal
Under 5 373,649 353,275 726,924
5-9 408,520 386,932 795,453
10-14 469,379 445,943 915,323
15-19 492,902 469,326 962,229
20-24 531,275 513,065 1,044,341
25-29 517,640 520,209 1,037,849
30-34 501,594 511,429 1,013,023
35-39 515,493 526,965 1,042,459
40-44 715,592 706,426 1,422,019
45-49 778,087 758,276 1,536,364
50-54 681,653 680,809 1,362,462
55-59 570,669 592,521 1,163,190
60-64 490,140 519,153 1,009,293
65-69 414,643 457,855 872,498
70-74 476,452 560,429 1,036,881
75-79 312,210 409,928 722,138
80-84 198,762 323,611 522,373
85 Plus 104,017 305,401 409,418
Sources: CIESIN (Center for International Earth Science Information Network)

Population Density

Population Density: 515.8 / km²
LocationPopulationAreaPopulation Density
North Rhine-Westphalia 17.6 million 34,112.4 km² 515.8 / km²
Germany 80.7 million 359,624.2 km² 224.3 / km²
Sources: JRC (European Commission's Joint Research Centre) work on the GHS built-up grid

Historical Population

Estimated Ancient Population until 2015
YearEst. PopulationAvg 10 Year Growth %Avg 10 Year Growth
0 598,445 n/a n/a
100 648,177 0.8% 4,973
200 697,875 0.7% 4,969
300 697,200 0% -67
400 696,484 0% -71
500 645,373 -0.8% -5,111
600 594,060 -0.8% -5,131
700 618,431 0.4% 2,437
800 643,592 0.4% 2,516
900 668,457 0.4% 2,486
1000 692,935 0.4% 2,447
1100 793,321 1.4% 10,038
1200 1,195,617 4.2% 40,229
1300 1,801,753 4.2% 60,613
1400 1,294,633 -3.3% -50,712
1500 1,798,161 3.3% 50,352
1600 2,402,041 2.9% 60,388
1700 2,603,121 0.8% 20,108
1800 4,577,862 5.8% 197,474
1900 10,543,762 8.7% 596,590
1910 12,171,927 15.4% 1,628,165
1920 11,664,434 -4.2% -507,493
1930 12,417,843 6.5% 753,409
1940 13,283,742 7% 865,899
1950 12,916,617 -2.8% -367,125
1960 16,030,434 24.1% 3,113,817
1970 17,154,377 7% 1,123,943
1990 17,295,119 0.4% 70,371
2000 17,932,393 3.7% 637,274
Sources:
1. JRC (European Commission's Joint Research Centre) work on the GHS built-up grid
2. CIESIN (Center for International Earth Science Information Network)
3. [Link] Klein Goldewijk, K., Beusen, A., Doelman, J., and Stehfest, E.: Anthropogenic land use estimates for the Holocene – HYDE 3.2, Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 9, 927–953, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-9-927-2017, 2017.

Human Development Index (HDI)

Statistic composite index of life expectancy, education, and per capita income.
Sources: [Link] Kummu, M., Taka, M. & Guillaume, J. Gridded global datasets for Gross Domestic Product and Human Development Index over 1990–2015. Sci Data 5, 180004 (2018) doi:10.1038/sdata.2018.4

Top Districts in North Rhine-Westphalia

Other States in Germany

Name Area Population Population Density
Baden-Württemberg 36,013.1 km² 10.6 million 765.6 / mi²
Bavaria 70,596.8 km² 12.7 million 465.1 / mi²
Berlin 889.8 km² 3.3 million 9,733 / mi²
Brandenburg 29,650.7 km² 2.5 million 215.0 / mi²
Free Hanseatic City of Bremen 411.4 km² 655,948 4,129 / mi²
Hamburg 751.4 km² 1.7 million 5,991 / mi²
Hesse 21,109.8 km² 6.0 million 742.1 / mi²
Lower Saxony 47,891.3 km² 7.8 million 423.0 / mi²
Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania 24,310.7 km² 1.6 million 167.4 / mi²
Rhineland-Palatinate 19,854.9 km² 4.0 million 528.0 / mi²
Saarland 2,571.5 km² 984,948 992.0 / mi²
Saxony 18,449.2 km² 4.0 million 560.1 / mi²
Saxony-Anhalt 20,554.5 km² 2.2 million 277.7 / mi²
Schleswig-Holstein 16,247.3 km² 2.8 million 452.2 / mi²
Thuringia 16,209.4 km² 2.1 million 337.9 / mi²
The data on this page is estimated using a number of publicly available tools and resources. It is provided without warranty, and could contain inaccuracies. Use at your own risk. See here for more information.