People & Society
Ecuador
Literacy
male
96.8% (2022 est.)
female
95.7% (2022 est.)
total population
96.3% (2022 est.)
Languages
Languages
Spanish (Castilian; official) 98.6%, indigenous 3.9% (Quechua 3.2%, other indigenous 0.7%), foreign 2.8%, other 0.6% (including Ecuadorian sign language) (2022 est.)
major-language sample(s)
La Libreta Informativa del Mundo, la fuente indispensable de información básica. (Spanish)
The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Religions
Roman Catholic 68.2%, Protestant 19% (Evangelical 18.3%, Adventist 0.6%, other Protestant 0.2%), Jehovah's Witness 1.4%, other 2.3%, none 8.2%, don't know/no response 1% (2023 est.)
Sex ratio
at birth
1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years
1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years
0.97 male(s)/female
total population
0.97 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
65 years and over
0.81 male(s)/female
Birth rate
17.42 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Death rate
7.12 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Median age
male
27 years
total
28.2 years (2025 est.)
female
28.9 years
Population
male
9,097,614
total
18,479,841 (2025 est.)
female
9,382,227
Nationality
noun
Ecuadorian(s)
adjective
Ecuadorian
Tobacco use
male
17.2% (2025 est.)
total
9.7% (2025 est.)
female
2.4% (2025 est.)
Urbanization
urban population
64.8% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization
1.62% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years
26.8% (male 2,505,729/female 2,395,198)
15-64 years
64.1% (male 5,771,234/female 5,972,938)
65 years and over
9.1% (2024 est.) (male 746,207/female 918,678)
Ethnic groups
Mestizo (mixed Indigenous and White) 77.5%, Montubio 7.7%, Indigenous 7.7%, White 2.2%, Afroecuadorian 2%, Mulatto 1.4%, Black 1.3%, other 0.1% (2022 est.)
Child marriage
women married by age 15
3.8% (2018)
women married by age 18
22.2% (2018)
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio
55.3 (2025 est.)
youth dependency ratio
41 (2025 est.)
potential support ratio
7 (2025 est.)
elderly dependency ratio
14.3 (2025 est.)
Physician density
2.31 physicians/1,000 population (2020)
Health expenditure
Health expenditure (as % of GDP)
8.3% of GDP (2021)
Health expenditure (as % of national budget)
11.9% of national budget (2022 est.)
Net migration rate
-1.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Hospital bed density
1.3 beds/1,000 population (2021 est.)
Total fertility rate
2.17 children born/woman (2025 est.)
Drinking water source
improved: rural
rural: 87.9% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 95.7% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 100% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 12.1% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 4.3% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 0% of population (2022 est.)
Education expenditure
Education expenditure (% GDP)
3.9% of GDP (2023 est.)
Education expenditure (% national budget)
15.5% national budget (2025 est.)
Infant mortality rate
male
12.2 deaths/1,000 live births
total
11.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)
female
10.2 deaths/1,000 live births
Population growth rate
0.91% (2025 est.)
Gross reproduction rate
1.06 (2025 est.)
Population distribution
approximately half of the population is situated in the interior, with significant numbers also located along the western coastal region; the eastern rainforests are largely uninhabited
Life expectancy at birth
male
69.7 years
female
80.4 years
total population
74.9 years (2024 est.)
Maternal mortality ratio
55 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)
Sanitation facility access
improved: rural
rural: 98.2% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 99.4% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 100% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 1.8% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 0.6% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 0% of population (2022 est.)
Alcohol consumption per capita
beer
2.32 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine
0.09 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
total
3.05 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits
0.61 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols
0.03 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Major urban areas - population
3.142 million Guayaquil, 1.957 million QUITO (capital) (2023)
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
19.9% (2016)
Currently married women (ages 15-49)
45.3% (2022 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
4.9% (2024 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)
male
14 years (2022 est.)
total
15 years (2022 est.)
female
15 years (2022 est.)