| Source | 2011 - Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation |
| 2024 - Report of The Technical Group On Population Proiecttons (page no 89) | |
| Date | 10 Apr 2024 |
As per the report of the Technical Group by the National Commission, the population of Tamil Nadu is projected to be 77,165,000, or 77.17 million, or 7.71 crores, as of July 1, 2024. Tamil Nadu is the 7th most populous state in India and most populous state in South India. Tamil Nadu’s population is projected to peak in 2031 with 7.81 crore people.
The size of the population of Tamil Nadu is equivalent to that of Thailand, the 20th most populous country in the world. Only one country in South America, two countries in Europe and North America, and four countries in Africa have more people than Tamil Nadu.
In 2024, the sex ratio of the total population in Tamil Nadu will be 99.611 males per 100 females. There are 38,491,000, or 38.49 million, or 3.85 crore, males and 38,674,000, or 38.67 million, or 3.87 crore, females in Tamil Nadu. Tamil Nadu has 150,000, or 150k, more females than males.
Tamil Nadu accounts for 5.49 percent of the Indian population, which is 3.12% less than the peak level of 8.61% in 1921. The population growth rate for 2024 is projected at 0.30%, which is the lowest among states. Tamil Nadu will add 229k more people in 2024.
According to the Census of India 2011, the population of the state of Tamil Nadu was 7.21 crore, increasing from 6.24 crore in 2001. There were 36,137,975 males and 36,009,055 females, with a sex ratio of 100.358 males per 100 females. The percentage of decadal growth during 2001–2011 was 15.61%, 3.89% higher than the 1991–2001 period. The population of Tamil Nadu had increased by 9.74 million during the decade 2001–2011.
The population of Tamil Nadu, which at the turn of the twentieth century was only around 19.25 million, increased by approximately four times in a period of 123 years to reach 77.17 million in 2024. In 1901, Tamil Nadu was the 4th most populous state, but as of 2024, it has been surpassed by three states: West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan.
| Year | Population | Growth | Share (%) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Male | Female | Net Change | rate (%) | India | |
| 2011 | 72,313,000 | 36,218,000 | 36,095,000 | - | - | 5.95 |
| 2012 | 72,811,000 | 36,459,000 | 36,352,000 | 498,000 | 0.689 | 5.91 |
| 2013 | 73,308,000 | 36,700,000 | 36,608,000 | 497,000 | 0.683 | 5.87 |
| 2014 | 73,806,000 | 36,940,000 | 36,865,000 | 498,000 | 0.679 | 5.84 |
| 2015 | 74,303,000 | 37,181,000 | 37,122,000 | 497,000 | 0.673 | 5.80 |
| 2016 | 74,753,000 | 37,397,000 | 37,356,000 | 450,000 | 0.606 | 5.77 |
| 2017 | 75,106,000 | 37,561,000 | 37,545,000 | 353,000 | 0.472 | 5.73 |
| 2018 | 75,460,000 | 37,726,000 | 37,734,000 | 354,000 | 0.471 | 5.70 |
| 2019 | 75,813,000 | 37,891,000 | 37,923,000 | 353,000 | 0.468 | 5.66 |
| 2020 | 76,167,000 | 38,055,000 | 38,111,000 | 354,000 | 0.467 | 5.63 |
| 2021 | 76,479,000 | 38,198,000 | 38,281,000 | 312,000 | 0.410 | 5.59 |
| 2022 | 76,707,000 | 38,295,000 | 38,412,000 | 228,000 | 0.298 | 5.56 |
| 2023 | 76,936,000 | 38,393,000 | 38,543,000 | 229,000 | 0.299 | 5.53 |
| 2024 | 77,165,000 | 38,491,000 | 38,674,000 | 229,000 | 0.298 | 5.49 |
| 2025 | 77,394,000 | 38,589,000 | 38,805,000 | 229,000 | 0.297 | 5.46 |
| 2026 | 77,582,000 | 38,666,000 | 38,916,000 | 188,000 | 0.243 | 5.43 |
| 2027 | 77,689,000 | 38,701,000 | 38,988,000 | 107,000 | 0.138 | 5.40 |
| 2028 | 77,796,000 | 38,736,000 | 39,060,000 | 107,000 | 0.138 | 5.36 |
| 2029 | 77,903,000 | 38,771,000 | 39,132,000 | 107,000 | 0.138 | 5.33 |
| 2030 | 78,011,000 | 38,807,000 | 39,204,000 | 108,000 | 0.139 | 5.30 |
| 2031 | 78,081,000 | 38,824,000 | 39,257,000 | 70,000 | 0.090 | 5.27 |
| 2032 | 78,078,000 | 38,806,000 | 39,272,000 | -3,000 | -0.004 | 5.24 |
| 2033 | 78,075,000 | 38,788,000 | 39,287,000 | -3,000 | -0.004 | 5.21 |
| 2034 | 78,072,000 | 38,769,000 | 39,303,000 | -3,000 | -0.004 | 5.18 |
| 2035 | 78,069,000 | 38,751,000 | 39,318,000 | -3,000 | -0.004 | 5.15 |
| 2036 | 78,066,000 | 38,733,000 | 39,333,000 | -3,000 | -0.004 | 5.12 |
| Year | Population | Growth | Share (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net Change | rate (%) | to India | ||
| 1901 | 19,252,630 | - | - | 8.08 |
| 1911 | 20,902,616 | 1,649,986 | 8.57 | 8.29 |
| 1921 | 21,628,518 | 725,902 | 3.47 | 8.61 |
| 1931 | 23,472,099 | 1,843,581 | 8.52 | 8.41 |
| 1941 | 26,267,507 | 2,795,408 | 11.91 | 8.24 |
| 1951 | 30,119,047 | 3,851,540 | 14.66 | 8.34 |
| 1961 | 33,686,953 | 3,567,906 | 11.85 | 7.67 |
| 1971 | 41,199,168 | 7,512,215 | 22.30 | 7.52 |
| 1981 | 48,408,077 | 7,208,909 | 17.50 | 7.08 |
| 1991 | 55,858,946 | 7,450,869 | 15.39 | 6.60 |
| 2001 | 62,405,679 | 6,546,733 | 11.72 | 6.07 |
| 2011 | 72,147,030 | 9,741,351 | 15.61 | 5.96 |
| Age group | Male | Female | Total | M per 100 F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Persons | Share (%) | ||||
| 00-04 | 2,714,578 | 2,564,123 | 5,278,701 | 7.32 | 105.868 |
| 05-09 | 2,851,293 | 2,699,962 | 5,551,255 | 7.69 | 105.605 |
| 10-14 | 3,188,990 | 2,988,557 | 6,177,547 | 8.56 | 106.707 |
| 15-19 | 3,229,838 | 3,023,954 | 6,253,792 | 8.67 | 106.808 |
| 20-24 | 3,154,804 | 3,256,739 | 6,411,543 | 8.89 | 96.870 |
| 25-29 | 3,237,374 | 3,426,372 | 6,663,746 | 9.24 | 94.484 |
| 30-34 | 2,908,749 | 2,906,811 | 5,815,560 | 8.06 | 100.067 |
| 35-39 | 2,815,205 | 3,021,251 | 5,836,456 | 8.09 | 93.180 |
| 40-44 | 2,549,846 | 2,514,363 | 5,064,209 | 7.02 | 101.411 |
| 45-49 | 2,374,915 | 2,338,141 | 4,713,056 | 6.53 | 101.573 |
| 50-54 | 1,875,563 | 1,827,897 | 3,703,460 | 5.13 | 102.608 |
| 55-59 | 1,540,924 | 1,560,218 | 3,101,142 | 4.30 | 98.763 |
| 60-64 | 1,378,039 | 1,404,569 | 2,782,608 | 3.86 | 98.111 |
| 65-69 | 896,412 | 971,958 | 1,868,370 | 2.59 | 92.227 |
| 70-74 | 693,167 | 713,362 | 1,406,529 | 1.95 | 97.169 |
| 75-79 | 353,746 | 356,495 | 710,241 | 0.98 | 99.229 |
| 80-84 | 210,812 | 245,927 | 456,739 | 0.63 | 85.721 |
| 85-89 | 82,854 | 94,104 | 176,958 | 0.25 | 88.045 |
| 90-94 | 31,547 | 43,138 | 74,685 | 0.10 | 73.130 |
| 95-99 | 9,007 | 11,967 | 20,974 | 0.03 | 75.265 |
| 100+ | 5,642 | 7,012 | 12,654 | 0.02 | 80.462 |
| Age not stated | 34,670 | 32,135 | 66,805 | 0.09 | 107.889 |
| Total | 36,137,975 | 36,009,055 | 72,147,030 | 100.358 | |
| District | Rank | Population | Rural (%) | Urban (%) | Sex ratio | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | Female | Total | Share (%) | F per 1000 M | M per 100 F | ||||
| Thiruvallur | 4 | 1,876,062 | 1,852,042 | 3,728,104 | 5.17 | 34.86 | 65.14 | 987 | 101.297 |
| Chennai | 1 | 2,335,844 | 2,310,888 | 4,646,732 | 6.44 | 0.00 | 100.00 | 989 | 101.080 |
| Kancheepuram | 2 | 2,012,958 | 1,985,294 | 3,998,252 | 5.54 | 36.51 | 63.49 | 986 | 101.393 |
| Vellore | 3 | 1,961,688 | 1,974,643 | 3,936,331 | 5.46 | 56.76 | 43.24 | 1,007 | 99.344 |
| Tiruvannamalai | 13 | 1,235,889 | 1,228,986 | 2,464,875 | 3.42 | 79.92 | 20.08 | 994 | 100.562 |
| Viluppuram | 6 | 1,740,819 | 1,718,054 | 3,458,873 | 4.79 | 84.99 | 15.01 | 987 | 101.325 |
| Salem | 5 | 1,781,571 | 1,700,485 | 3,482,056 | 4.83 | 49.05 | 50.95 | 954 | 104.768 |
| Namakkal | 21 | 869,280 | 857,321 | 1,726,601 | 2.39 | 59.68 | 40.32 | 986 | 101.395 |
| Erode | 15 | 1,129,868 | 1,121,876 | 2,251,744 | 3.12 | 48.57 | 51.43 | 993 | 100.712 |
| The Nilgiris | 31 | 360,143 | 375,251 | 735,394 | 1.02 | 40.76 | 59.24 | 1,042 | 95.974 |
| Dindigul | 16 | 1,080,938 | 1,078,837 | 2,159,775 | 2.99 | 62.59 | 37.41 | 998 | 100.195 |
| Karur | 29 | 528,184 | 536,309 | 1,064,493 | 1.48 | 59.18 | 40.82 | 1,015 | 98.485 |
| Tiruchirappalli | 10 | 1,352,284 | 1,370,006 | 2,722,290 | 3.77 | 50.85 | 49.15 | 1,013 | 98.706 |
| Perambalur | 32 | 282,157 | 283,066 | 565,223 | 0.78 | 82.81 | 17.19 | 1,003 | 99.679 |
| Ariyalur | 30 | 374,703 | 380,191 | 754,894 | 1.05 | 88.90 | 11.10 | 1,015 | 98.557 |
| Cuddalore | 11 | 1,311,697 | 1,294,217 | 2,605,914 | 3.61 | 66.03 | 33.97 | 987 | 101.351 |
| Nagapattinam | 23 | 798,127 | 818,323 | 1,616,450 | 2.24 | 77.44 | 22.56 | 1,025 | 97.532 |
| Thiruvarur | 27 | 626,693 | 637,584 | 1,264,277 | 1.75 | 79.61 | 20.39 | 1,017 | 98.292 |
| Thanjavur | 14 | 1,182,416 | 1,223,474 | 2,405,890 | 3.33 | 64.61 | 35.39 | 1,035 | 96.644 |
| Pudukkottai | 22 | 803,188 | 815,157 | 1,618,345 | 2.24 | 80.45 | 19.55 | 1,015 | 98.532 |
| Sivaganga | 26 | 668,672 | 670,429 | 1,339,101 | 1.86 | 69.17 | 30.83 | 1,003 | 99.738 |
| Madurai | 9 | 1,526,475 | 1,511,777 | 3,038,252 | 4.21 | 39.22 | 60.78 | 990 | 100.972 |
| Theni | 28 | 625,683 | 620,216 | 1,245,899 | 1.73 | 46.18 | 53.82 | 991 | 100.881 |
| Virudhunagar | 17 | 967,709 | 974,579 | 1,942,288 | 2.69 | 49.53 | 50.47 | 1,007 | 99.295 |
| Ramanathapuram | 25 | 682,658 | 670,787 | 1,353,445 | 1.88 | 69.66 | 30.34 | 983 | 101.770 |
| Thoothukkudi | 20 | 865,021 | 885,155 | 1,750,176 | 2.43 | 49.90 | 50.10 | 1,023 | 97.725 |
| Tirunelveli | 8 | 1,520,912 | 1,556,321 | 3,077,233 | 4.27 | 50.60 | 49.40 | 1,023 | 97.725 |
| Kanniyakumari | 19 | 926,345 | 944,029 | 1,870,374 | 2.59 | 17.67 | 82.33 | 1,019 | 98.127 |
| Dharmapuri | 24 | 774,303 | 732,540 | 1,506,843 | 2.09 | 82.68 | 17.32 | 946 | 105.701 |
| Krishnagiri | 18 | 960,232 | 919,577 | 1,879,809 | 2.61 | 77.21 | 22.79 | 958 | 104.421 |
| Coimbatore | 7 | 1,729,297 | 1,728,748 | 3,458,045 | 4.79 | 24.27 | 75.73 | 1,000 | 100.032 |
| Tiruppur | 12 | 1,246,159 | 1,232,893 | 2,479,052 | 3.44 | 38.64 | 61.36 | 989 | 101.076 |