The resident population in Spain stood at 48,946,035 as of October 1, 2024, the highest value in the historical series. This population growth was due to the increase in people born abroad, as the number of people born in Spain decreased. In the third quarter, the number of foreigners increased by 101,568, reaching 6,735,487, while the population of Spanish nationality grew by 33,322. During that period, the population grew in all autonomous communities.
The largest increases were seen in the Valencian Community (0.54%), Madrid (0.46%), Catalonia (0.39%), and the Balearic Islands (0.32%), all above the national average (0.28%). These communities were followed by Cantabria and Murcia (both at 0.26), Navarra and Asturias (0.25), La Rioja (0.24), Galicia (0.20), Castilla-La Mancha (0.19), the Basque Country (0.18), Ceuta (0.14), Castilla y León, Aragón, and the Canary Islands (0.13 in all three cases), Andalusia and Melilla (0.6), and Extremadura (0.2%). In total, the resident population in Spain grew by 134,890 people. In annual terms, the estimated population growth was 425,801.
These are data from the Continuous Population Statistics published by the National Institute of Statistics (INE). The main nationalities of immigrants during the third quarter of 2024 were Colombian (34,600 people), Moroccan (25,500), and Spaniards born abroad (25,200). They were followed by Venezuelans (21,200), Peruvians (15,800), Italians (9,000), Argentinians (7,300), Ukrainians (7,000), Romanians (5,700), and Hondurans (5,600)
