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Japan vs Viet Nam: population pyramids in 1981

1981Swap

JapanViet Nam

2%1.5%1%0.5%0%0.5%1%1.5%2%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 Viet Nam compared

In 1981, Japan has a population of 118.7 million and Viet Nam 53.1 million; Japan is about 2.2 times the size of Viet Nam.

The share aged 65 and over is 9.2% in Japan and 5.3% in Viet Nam, 3.8 points higher in Japan. The median age is 33.0 years in Japan and 19.4 years in Viet Nam.

The total fertility rate is 1.72 in Japan and 4.67 in Viet Nam, so only Japan is below the replacement level of about 2.1. Life expectancy at birth is 76.6 years in Japan and 65.8 years in Viet Nam.

By 2050, the population of Japan is projected to shrink by 11.5% and that of Viet Nam to grow by 107.1% compared with 1981.

GDP per person is $36K in Japan (2025) and $5,066 in Viet Nam (2025).

Key figures (1981)

JapanViet Nam
Population118.7 million53.1 million
Aged 0–1423.3%40.2%
Aged 15–6467.5%54.5%
Aged 65+9.2%5.3%
Median age33.0 yrs19.4 yrs
Old-age dependency13.69.8
Total fertility rate1.724.67
Life expectancy76.6 yrs65.8 yrs
Population growth+0.43%+2.33%
Net migration (per year)-278,525-109,259
GDP$4.44T (2025)$515B (2025)
GDP per person$36K (2025)$5,066 (2025)
Unemployment2.5% (2025)1.5% (2025)

Economic figures are the latest year published for each country.

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