China vs India: population pyramids in 2017
ChinaIndia
Each bar is the share of the total population at that single year of age (men left, women right), so countries of different sizes can be compared.
China and India compared
In 2017, China has a population of 1.41 billion and India 1.35 billion; the two are about the same size.
The share aged 65 and over is 10.7% in China and 5.7% in India, 5.0 points higher in China. The median age is 37.1 years in China and 26.8 years in India.
The total fertility rate is 1.80 in China and 2.19 in India, so only China is below the replacement level of about 2.1. Life expectancy at birth is 77.2 years in China and 70.1 years in India.
By 2050, the population of China is projected to shrink by 10.2% and that of India to grow by 24.1% compared with 2017.
GDP per person is $14K in China (2025) and $2,702 in India (2025).
Key figures (2017)
| China | India | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 1.41 billion | 1.35 billion |
| Aged 0–14 | 18.3% | 28.1% |
| Aged 15–64 | 71.0% | 66.2% |
| Aged 65+ | 10.7% | 5.7% |
| Median age | 37.1 yrs | 26.8 yrs |
| Old-age dependency | 15.1 | 8.7 |
| Total fertility rate | 1.80 | 2.19 |
| Life expectancy | 77.2 yrs | 70.1 yrs |
| Population growth | +0.57% | +1.11% |
| Net migration (per year) | -94,625 | -251,642 |
| GDP | $19.5T (2025) | $3.96T (2025) |
| GDP per person | $14K (2025) | $2,702 (2025) |
| Unemployment | 4.6% (2025) | 4.2% (2025) |
Economic figures are the latest year published for each country.