Population
10. Jun 2024
Population on 1 May: 54,683 – up 0.7% year-on-year
Population growth in the Faroes is continuing for the tenth consecutive year. However, the growth in the past year is the lowest annual growth since 2014. The population growth that began in 2014 peaked in summer 2019, when an annual increase of 900 people was registered. The annual growth has since been on a gradual decline and is now at a similar level as in summer 2014.
The graph below shows the population trend since 1985.
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The population trend is driven by two factors: net migration (the difference in the number of immigrants and emigrants) and the excess of live births over deaths. The population growth in the past year comes from an excess of 141 births and net migration of 242 people. However, the table below reveals that the excess of births declined compared to the previous year because the birth rate fell further than the death rate. Net migration also dipped as immigration dropped further than emigration. These combined trends have contributed to the slower population growth observed in the past year.
Fewer immigrants
The graph below shows the trends for immigration and emigration. While the emigration trend has levelled out in recent months, immigration remains on a slow decline.
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Fewer births
The graph below reveals a steady downward trend in birth rates, while death rates remain relatively stable.
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More long-term residents
The graph below shows that the long-term resident growth appears to have stagnated in the past three years, despite continued overall population growth. Newcomers previously drove this growth, but the trend has shifted. In the past year, 59% (226 out of 383) of new residents were long-term residents, compared to only 28% the previous year.
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Population in municipalities, towns and villages
Tórshavn, Klaksvík, Runavík and Nes municipalities enjoyed the biggest population growth in the past year. Eiði and Hvalba municipalities had the biggest population decline. The table below shows the population across all 29 municipalities, with details for each town and village, on 1 May 2023 and 1 May 2024.
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Population figures have a one-month lag
The figures have a one-month lag due to delays in registrations, especially regarding address changes, where many registrations are made after the month of address change has ended. To accommodate as many corrections as possible, there is a one-month lag in the data.
About the population figures
The population is defined as all individuals registered in the national register as residents of the Faroe Islands. Population data includes date of birth, gender, place of birth, citizenship, relationship status, and, where applicable, information on immigration and emigration, domestically as well as between the Faroe Islands and other nations.
About the trend
The trend describes the population trend by adjusting for seasonal effects and other error components in the population figure.