World Population PyramidsPopulation pyramids and indicators by country and year日本語

China vs Japan: population pyramids in 1990

1990Swap

ChinaJapan

1.5%1%0.5%0%0.5%1%1.5%0102030405060708090100MaleFemale

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 Japan compared

In 1990, China has a population of 1.14 billion and Japan 123.2 million; China is about 9.3 times the size of Japan.

The share aged 65 and over is 5.3% in China and 11.9% in Japan, 6.6 points higher in Japan. The median age is 24.6 years in China and 37.7 years in Japan.

The total fertility rate is 2.51 in China and 1.51 in Japan, so only Japan is below the replacement level of about 2.1. Life expectancy at birth is 68.2 years in China and 79.0 years in Japan.

By 2050, the population of China is projected to grow by 10.6% and that of Japan to shrink by 14.7% compared with 1990.

GDP per person is $14K in China (2025) and $36K in Japan (2025).

Key figures (1990)

ChinaJapan
Population1.14 billion123.2 million
Aged 0–1428.8%18.4%
Aged 15–6465.9%69.7%
Aged 65+5.3%11.9%
Median age24.6 yrs37.7 yrs
Old-age dependency8.017.1
Total fertility rate2.511.51
Life expectancy68.2 yrs79.0 yrs
Population growth+1.74%+0.38%
Net migration (per year)-11,187+124,582
GDP$19.5T (2025)$4.44T (2025)
GDP per person$14K (2025)$36K (2025)
Unemployment4.6% (2025)2.5% (2025)

Economic figures are the latest year published for each country.

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