Rank #136 by World Population

🇳🇨New Caledonia

New Caledonia has a population of 289,870, ranking #136 in the world. The capital is Noum'ea. Located in East Asia & Pacific.

World Bank: High income

289,870

Population

#136

World Rank

78.8

Life Expectancy

$33,702

GDP Per Capita

New Caledonia, #136 by world population

New Caledonia Population History (1960-2024)

The country of New Caledonia had a population of 79,819 in 1960 and 292,639 in 2024, a 3.7× growth over 64 years. The peak was 292,639 in 2024. Average annual growth rate: 2.06%.

292,639

Population (2024)

79,819

Population (1960)

292,639

Peak (2024)

2.06%

Avg Annual Growth

Year	Population	Change	Annual %	Source
1960	79,819	-	-	estimate
1961	82,521	+2,702	+3.39%	estimate
1962	85,334	+2,813	+3.41%	estimate
1963	88,050	+2,716	+3.18%	estimate
1964	90,602	+2,552	+2.90%	estimate
1965	93,159	+2,557	+2.82%	estimate
1966	95,820	+2,661	+2.86%	estimate
1967	98,587	+2,767	+2.89%	estimate
1968	101,441	+2,854	+2.89%	estimate
1969	104,849	+3,408	+3.36%	estimate
1970	109,338	+4,489	+4.28%	estimate
1971	114,514	+5,176	+4.73%	estimate
1972	119,931	+5,417	+4.73%	estimate
1973	125,585	+5,654	+4.71%	estimate
1974	131,452	+5,867	+4.67%	estimate
1975	137,462	+6,010	+4.57%	estimate
1976	142,091	+4,629	+3.37%	estimate
1977	144,599	+2,508	+1.77%	estimate
1978	146,392	+1,793	+1.24%	estimate
1979	148,132	+1,740	+1.19%	estimate
1980	149,817	+1,685	+1.14%	estimate
1981	151,441	+1,624	+1.08%	estimate
1982	153,001	+1,560	+1.03%	estimate
1983	155,003	+2,002	+1.31%	estimate
1984	157,583	+2,580	+1.66%	estimate
1985	160,234	+2,651	+1.68%	estimate
1986	162,898	+2,664	+1.66%	estimate
1987	165,650	+2,752	+1.69%	estimate
1988	168,502	+2,852	+1.72%	estimate
1989	172,029	+3,527	+2.09%	estimate
1990	176,456	+4,427	+2.57%	estimate
1991	181,238	+4,782	+2.71%	estimate
1992	186,072	+4,834	+2.67%	estimate
1993	190,857	+4,785	+2.57%	estimate
1994	195,614	+4,757	+2.49%	estimate
1995	200,379	+4,765	+2.44%	estimate
1996	205,034	+4,655	+2.32%	estimate
1997	209,560	+4,526	+2.21%	estimate
1998	214,047	+4,487	+2.14%	estimate
1999	218,527	+4,480	+2.09%	estimate
2000	223,098	+4,571	+2.09%	estimate
2001	227,707	+4,609	+2.07%	estimate
2002	232,236	+4,529	+1.99%	estimate
2003	236,678	+4,442	+1.91%	estimate
2004	240,852	+4,174	+1.76%	estimate
2005	244,381	+3,529	+1.47%	estimate
2006	247,547	+3,166	+1.30%	estimate
2007	250,725	+3,178	+1.28%	estimate
2008	253,825	+3,100	+1.24%	estimate
2009	257,250	+3,425	+1.35%	estimate
2010	261,582	+4,332	+1.68%	estimate
2011	266,543	+4,961	+1.90%	estimate
2012	271,633	+5,090	+1.91%	estimate
2013	276,822	+5,189	+1.91%	estimate
2014	281,224	+4,402	+1.59%	estimate
2015	283,168	+1,944	+0.69%	estimate
2016	283,423	+255	+0.09%	estimate
2017	283,546	+123	+0.04%	estimate
2018	283,541	-5	-0.00%	estimate
2019	283,606	+65	+0.02%	estimate
2020	284,176	+570	+0.20%	estimate
2021	285,214	+1,038	+0.37%	estimate
2022	287,123	+1,909	+0.67%	estimate
2023	289,870	+2,747	+0.96%	estimate
2024	292,639	+2,769	+0.96%	estimate

Demographics

Population	289,870
Population Growth Rate	0.95%
Urban Population	67.8%
Fertility Rate	1.98 births/woman
Life Expectancy	78.8 years
Infant Mortality Rate	-
Literacy Rate	-

Economy & Trade

$33,702

GDP Per Capita

10.9%

Unemployment Rate

High income

Income Level

51.6%

Trade (% of GDP)

31,000

Tourism Arrivals

Health & Education

Development & Connectivity

100.0%

Electricity Access

Mobile Subs per 100

15.9

People per km2

485

Net Migration

Environment

45.8%

Forest Area

Other Countries in East Asia & Pacific

American Samoa Australia Brunei Darussalam Cambodia China

New Caledonia in global context

New Caledonia is one of 212 countries tracked. See how it ranks globally, regional shares of world population, and projections to 2050 / 2100.

World Population 2026: Top 10 Countries, Regions & Trends →

Other related entities

American Samoa (47,521)Australia (26,659,922)Brunei Darussalam (458,949)Cambodia (17,423,880)China (1,410,710,000)All countries →

Country rankings

Populated Countries in the World Countries With Highest GDP Per Capita Countries With Highest Life Expectancy Countries With Highest Fertility Rates Countries With Highest Literacy Rates Urbanized Countries in the World Fastest Growing Countries by Population Countries With Highest Infant Mortality Countries With Highest Income Inequality Countries With Most International Tourism All rankings →

Frequently Asked Questions

New Caledonia has a population of 289,870, ranking #136 in the world. The annual population growth rate is 0.95%.

Life expectancy in New Caledonia is 78.8 years.

New Caledonia's GDP per capita is $33,702. It is classified as a high income country by the World Bank.

67.8% of New Caledonia's population lives in urban areas. The overall population density is 15.9 people per square kilometer.

Literacy data for New Caledonia is available from the World Bank.

Sources: World Bank Open Data

International data from the World Bank Open Data API. Population figures are latest available estimates. GDP per capita in current US dollars.

The this entity record above pulls directly from the U.S. Census Bureau ACS and decennial files. What follows is the per-entity context — how this entity sits in the broader U.S. population demographics distribution and which underlying factors drive the headline numbers.

The methodology behind every numeric value on this page is publicly documented on the the U.S. Census Bureau ACS and decennial files portal and described in detail on this site’s methodology page. Refresh cadence varies by underlying series; the page surfaces the as-of date for each number so readers can trace any figure back to the source release.

Practical use of this page is in combination with the comparison and ranking pages elsewhere on the site, which surface the same data for this entity’s peers within U.S. states, metros, cities, and ZIPs. A single-entity reading without peer context can be misleading when an entity is an outlier on one axis but typical on another.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS, 2026.