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

Japan vs France: population pyramids in 1959

1959Swap

JapanFrance

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.

Japan and France compared

In 1959, Japan has a population of 95.2 million and France 45.7 million; Japan is about 2.1 times the size of France.

The share aged 65 and over is 5.6% in Japan and 11.4% in France, 5.9 points higher in France. The median age is 25.1 years in Japan and 32.7 years in France.

The total fertility rate is 2.03 in Japan and 2.75 in France, so only Japan is below the replacement level of about 2.1. Life expectancy at birth is 67.5 years in Japan and 70.2 years in France.

By 2050, the population of Japan is projected to grow by 10.3% and that of France to grow by 49.0% compared with 1959.

GDP per person is $36K in Japan (2025) and $49K in France (2025).

Key figures (1959)

JapanFrance
Population95.2 million45.7 million
Aged 0–1430.4%26.2%
Aged 15–6464.1%62.4%
Aged 65+5.6%11.4%
Median age25.1 yrs32.7 yrs
Old-age dependency8.718.3
Total fertility rate2.032.75
Life expectancy67.5 yrs70.2 yrs
Population growth+0.81%+1.04%
Net migration (per year)-202,601+147,992
GDP$4.44T (2025)$3.37T (2025)
GDP per person$36K (2025)$49K (2025)
Unemployment2.5% (2025)7.5% (2025)

Economic figures are the latest year published for each country.

Compare other years