According to Eurostat, the EU’s population grew by 705,756 people last year, and 461,800 of them reside in Spain. Therefore, Spain contributed two out of every three new residents in Europe—whose total population has climbed to 451.9 million (5.6% of the world’s population)—even though the country only accounts for 10.9% of the European population (it is projected to reach 50 million by the end of the year).
The Role of Immigration
The cause, as is well known, is immigration, since the population of Spaniards born in Spain is declining at a quarterly rate of 0.08%, according to official statistics. Of the 49.68 million inhabitants living in Spain (as of the first quarter of 2026), 39.01 million were born in Spain.
Demographic Decline in the Rest of Europe
Conversely, in eleven European countries, the population, far from growing, decreased last year.
- Latvia (-8.3 inhabitants per thousand), Estonia (-6.8), and Hungary (-5.4), in particular, recorded the sharpest declines.
- 21 out of the 27 EU countries experienced negative natural population growth rates (meaning there were more deaths than births).
Long-Term Projections
The latest Eurostat projections, for example, estimate that Europe will peak at 453.3 million people this year, followed by a gradual decline to 420 million inhabitants by the end of the century.
