People & Society
Paraguay
Literacy
male
95.4% (2024 est.)
female
94.3% (2024 est.)
total population
94.9% (2024 est.)
Languages
Languages
Spanish (official) and Guarani (official) 46.3%, exclusively Guarani 34%, exclusively Spanish 15.2%, other languages (including Portuguese, German, and various Indigenous tongues) 4.1%, no answer 0.4% (2012 estimate)
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 80.4%, Protestant 7% (Evangelical (non-specific) 6.7%, Evangelical Pentecostal <0.1%, Adventist <0.1%, Protestant (non-specific) <0.1%), Believer (not belonging to the church) 5.7%, other 0.6%, agnostic <0.1%, none 0.2%, unspecified 6.2% (2023 est.)
Sex ratio
at birth
1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years
1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years
1.01 male(s)/female
total population
1 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
65 years and over
0.91 male(s)/female
Birth rate
15.66 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Death rate
4.97 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Median age
male
31.6 years
total
32.3 years (2025 est.)
female
32 years
Population
male
3,809,407
total
7,604,044 (2025 est.)
female
3,794,637
Nationality
noun
Paraguayan(s)
adjective
Paraguayan
Tobacco use
male
15.5% (2025 est.)
total
9.3% (2025 est.)
female
3.3% (2025 est.)
Urbanization
urban population
63.1% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization
1.64% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years
22.2% (male 850,191/female 821,237)
15-64 years
68.4% (male 2,582,021/female 2,561,962)
65 years and over
9.4% (2024 est.) (male 337,164/female 369,974)
Ethnic groups
Mestizo (of mixed Spanish and Indigenous heritage) 95%, others 5%
Child marriage
women married by age 15
3.6% (2016)
women married by age 18
21.6% (2016)
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio
46.7 (2025 est.)
youth dependency ratio
32.4 (2025 est.)
potential support ratio
7 (2025 est.)
elderly dependency ratio
14.3 (2025 est.)
Physician density
3.89 physicians/1,000 population (2022)
Health expenditure
Health expenditure (as % of GDP)
8% of GDP (2021)
Health expenditure (as % of national budget)
17.4% of national budget (2022 est.)
Net migration rate
-0.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Hospital bed density
1 beds/1,000 population (2020 est.)
Total fertility rate
1.88 children born/woman (2025 est.)
Drinking water source
improved: rural
rural: 99.1% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 99.6% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 99.9% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 0.9% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 0.4% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 0.1% of population (2022 est.)
Education expenditure
Education expenditure (% GDP)
3.4% of GDP (2023 est.)
Education expenditure (% national budget)
11.7% national budget (2025 est.)
Infant mortality rate
male
26.1 deaths/1,000 live births
total
21.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2025 est.)
female
17.7 deaths/1,000 live births
Population growth rate
1.06% (2025 est.)
Gross reproduction rate
0.92 (2025 est.)
Population distribution
a majority of the populace is located in the eastern portion of the nation; the Gran Chaco region (a semi-arid lowland area) is situated to the west, covering 60% of the land area, yet housing only 2% of the total population
Life expectancy at birth
male
76.2 years
female
81.6 years
total population
78.8 years (2024 est.)
Maternal mortality ratio
58 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)
Sanitation facility access
improved: rural
rural: 94.9% of population (2022 est.)
improved: total
total: 98.1% of population (2022 est.)
improved: urban
urban: 100% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: rural
rural: 5.1% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: total
total: 1.9% of population (2022 est.)
unimproved: urban
urban: 0% of population (2022 est.)
Alcohol consumption per capita
beer
3.27 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine
0.59 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
total
5.47 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits
1.59 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols
0.03 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Major urban areas - population
3.511 million ASUNCION (capital) (2023)
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
20.3% (2016)
Mother's mean age at first birth
22.9 years (2008 est.)
Currently married women (ages 15-49)
54.8% (2022 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
1.3% (2016 est.)