| Source | UN (World Population Prospects 2024) |
| Date | 27 Apr 2025 |
As of 2025, the population of Lesotho is projected at 2.36 million, compared to 2.34 million in 2024. It ranks 147th in the world by population and 45th in Africa. The population growth rate in 2025 is projected at 1.09 percent, the 95th highest among 237 countries and dependent territories.
There are 1.15 million males and 1.21 million females in Lesotho. The percentage of the male population is 48.75%, compared to 51.25% of the female population. Lesotho has 59k more females than males. The sex ratio in Lesotho in 2025 will be 95.129 males per 100 females. Lesotho is in the 60th position in terms of the female-to-male ratio.
| Year | Population | Growth (%) | M per 100 F | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | Female | Total | |||
| 1950 | 243,624 | 335,928 | 579,551 | 1.76 | 72.523 |
| 1955 | 279,184 | 363,003 | 642,188 | 2.29 | 76.910 |
| 1960 | 326,337 | 410,163 | 736,500 | 2.98 | 79.563 |
| 1965 | 381,434 | 472,656 | 854,090 | 2.93 | 80.700 |
| 1970 | 474,128 | 545,144 | 1,019,273 | 3.58 | 86.973 |
| 1975 | 589,973 | 623,670 | 1,213,643 | 3.46 | 94.597 |
| 1980 | 689,563 | 716,958 | 1,406,521 | 2.91 | 96.179 |
| 1985 | 799,750 | 824,629 | 1,624,379 | 2.82 | 96.983 |
| 1990 | 883,997 | 925,699 | 1,809,696 | 1.85 | 95.495 |
| 1995 | 950,381 | 1,001,055 | 1,951,437 | 1.17 | 94.938 |
| 2000 | 974,570 | 1,029,343 | 2,003,913 | -0.07 | 94.679 |
| 2005 | 949,339 | 1,003,737 | 1,953,076 | -1.02 | 94.580 |
| 2010 | 969,930 | 1,026,321 | 1,996,251 | 0.80 | 94.506 |
| 2015 | 1,022,731 | 1,081,880 | 2,104,611 | 1.19 | 94.533 |
| 2020 | 1,087,804 | 1,147,922 | 2,235,727 | 1.22 | 94.763 |
| 2021 | 1,100,677 | 1,160,865 | 2,261,542 | 1.08 | 94.815 |
| 2022 | 1,112,982 | 1,173,129 | 2,286,110 | 1.08 | 94.873 |
| 2023 | 1,125,727 | 1,185,745 | 2,311,472 | 1.12 | 94.938 |
| 2024 | 1,138,892 | 1,198,530 | 2,337,423 | 1.11 | 95.024 |
| 2025 | 1,152,167 | 1,211,158 | 2,363,325 | 1.09 | 95.129 |
| Year | Life expectancy | Median age | Fertility rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 44.629 | 17.657 | 5.701 |
| 1955 | 47.959 | 16.597 | 5.786 |
| 1960 | 50.171 | 16.320 | 5.784 |
| 1965 | 50.326 | 16.234 | 5.772 |
| 1970 | 51.501 | 16.973 | 5.698 |
| 1975 | 53.454 | 17.822 | 5.825 |
| 1980 | 56.534 | 17.709 | 5.746 |
| 1985 | 59.211 | 17.355 | 5.401 |
| 1990 | 59.317 | 17.355 | 4.813 |
| 1995 | 56.368 | 17.448 | 4.125 |
| 2000 | 48.783 | 18.179 | 3.605 |
| 2005 | 43.611 | 18.893 | 3.428 |
| 2010 | 46.045 | 19.705 | 3.250 |
| 2015 | 51.830 | 20.346 | 3.217 |
| 2020 | 55.133 | 20.993 | 2.846 |
| 2021 | 54.209 | 21.129 | 2.769 |
| 2022 | 56.812 | 21.264 | 2.716 |
| 2023 | 57.375 | 21.427 | 2.694 |
| 2024 | 57.798 | 21.622 | 2.664 |
| 2025 | 58.217 | 21.847 | 2.637 |
| Year | Total | Crude(per 1000) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Death | Birth | Crude death | Crude birth | |
| 1950 | 14,079 | 25,260 | 24.293 | 43.585 |
| 1955 | 12,798 | 28,865 | 19.928 | 44.949 |
| 1960 | 12,843 | 32,825 | 17.438 | 44.568 |
| 1965 | 14,255 | 37,010 | 16.691 | 43.333 |
| 1970 | 15,642 | 41,577 | 15.347 | 40.791 |
| 1975 | 16,990 | 49,300 | 13.999 | 40.622 |
| 1980 | 17,183 | 56,801 | 12.217 | 40.384 |
| 1985 | 17,040 | 61,614 | 10.490 | 37.931 |
| 1990 | 18,516 | 63,575 | 10.231 | 35.130 |
| 1995 | 22,274 | 59,643 | 11.414 | 30.564 |
| 2000 | 31,820 | 56,606 | 15.879 | 28.248 |
| 2005 | 39,950 | 55,781 | 20.455 | 28.561 |
| 2010 | 36,340 | 58,218 | 18.204 | 29.163 |
| 2015 | 29,322 | 61,408 | 13.932 | 29.178 |
| 2020 | 26,575 | 57,297 | 11.887 | 25.628 |
| 2021 | 28,497 | 56,302 | 12.601 | 24.896 |
| 2022 | 24,961 | 55,764 | 10.918 | 24.392 |
| 2023 | 24,612 | 55,728 | 10.648 | 24.109 |
| 2024 | 24,491 | 55,542 | 10.478 | 23.762 |
| 2025 | 24,376 | 55,434 | 10.314 | 23.456 |
| Year | Population | Urban (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Urban | Rural | ||
| 1950 | 12,844 | 721,101 | 1.750 |
| 1955 | 16,146 | 771,660 | 2.049 |
| 1960 | 29,906 | 821,685 | 3.512 |
| 1965 | 59,437 | 874,218 | 6.366 |
| 1970 | 88,923 | 944,127 | 8.608 |
| 1975 | 124,517 | 1,026,118 | 10.822 |
| 1980 | 150,006 | 1,160,112 | 11.450 |
| 1985 | 173,014 | 1,299,178 | 11.752 |
| 1990 | 224,016 | 1,379,922 | 13.967 |
| 1995 | 298,639 | 1,462,720 | 16.955 |
| 2000 | 365,288 | 1,503,411 | 19.548 |
| 2005 | 433,749 | 1,515,794 | 22.249 |
| 2010 | 506,015 | 1,534,536 | 24.798 |
| 2015 | 585,146 | 1,589,499 | 26.908 |
| 2020 | 674,092 | 1,648,125 | 29.028 |
| 2021 | 693,232 | 1,658,271 | 29.480 |
| 2022 | 712,787 | 1,667,714 | 29.943 |
| 2023 | 732,775 | 1,676,472 | 30.415 |
| 2024 | 753,231 | 1,684,609 | 30.897 |
| Age group | Male | Female | Total | M per 100 F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Persons | Share (%) | ||||
| 00-04 | 131,752 | 129,549 | 261,301 | 11.06 | 101.701 |
| 05-09 | 137,524 | 135,714 | 273,238 | 11.56 | 101.334 |
| 10-14 | 136,216 | 135,186 | 271,402 | 11.48 | 100.762 |
| 15-19 | 122,677 | 122,219 | 244,896 | 10.36 | 100.375 |
| 20-24 | 111,924 | 112,337 | 224,260 | 9.49 | 99.632 |
| 25-29 | 100,225 | 102,305 | 202,530 | 8.57 | 97.967 |
| 30-34 | 97,219 | 100,749 | 197,969 | 8.38 | 96.496 |
| 35-39 | 92,686 | 97,858 | 190,544 | 8.06 | 94.715 |
| 40-44 | 69,626 | 75,743 | 145,370 | 6.15 | 91.924 |
| 45-49 | 46,421 | 50,749 | 97,170 | 4.11 | 91.472 |
| 50-54 | 30,718 | 33,480 | 64,198 | 2.72 | 91.750 |
| 55-59 | 23,884 | 29,114 | 52,998 | 2.24 | 82.036 |
| 60-64 | 18,953 | 26,787 | 45,739 | 1.94 | 70.754 |
| 65-69 | 14,408 | 22,334 | 36,741 | 1.55 | 64.512 |
| 70-74 | 8,505 | 15,767 | 24,271 | 1.03 | 53.942 |
| 75-79 | 4,986 | 10,541 | 15,527 | 0.66 | 47.301 |
| 80-84 | 2,663 | 6,098 | 8,761 | 0.37 | 43.670 |
| 85-89 | 1,323 | 3,317 | 4,641 | 0.20 | 39.885 |
| 90-94 | 393 | 1,078 | 1,471 | 0.06 | 36.456 |
| 95-99 | 59 | 209 | 269 | 0.01 | 28.230 |
| 100+ | 4 | 24 | 28 | 0.00 | 16.667 |
| Total | 1,152,166 | 1,211,158 | 2,363,324 | 95.129 | |