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

United States of America vs India: population pyramids in 1978

1978Swap

United States of AmericaIndia

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.

United States of America and India compared

In 1978, the United States of America has a population of 224.3 million and India 648.4 million; India is about 2.9 times the size of the United States of America.

The share aged 65 and over is 10.7% in the United States of America and 3.9% in India, 6.8 points higher in the United States of America. The median age is 29.4 years in the United States of America and 19.6 years in India.

The total fertility rate is 1.80 in the United States of America and 4.89 in India, so only the United States of America is below the replacement level of about 2.1. Life expectancy at birth is 73.4 years in the United States of America and 52.4 years in India.

By 2050, the population of the United States of America is projected to grow by 69.5% and that of India to grow by 158.7% compared with 1978.

GDP per person is $90K in the United States of America (2025) and $2,702 in India (2025).

Key figures (1978)

United States of AmericaIndia
Population224.3 million648.4 million
Aged 0–1423.5%40.2%
Aged 15–6465.8%55.9%
Aged 65+10.7%3.9%
Median age29.4 yrs19.6 yrs
Old-age dependency16.27.0
Total fertility rate1.804.89
Life expectancy73.4 yrs52.4 yrs
Population growth+0.94%+2.24%
Net migration (per year)+556,521-210,444
GDP$30.8T (2025)$3.96T (2025)
GDP per person$90K (2025)$2,702 (2025)
Unemployment4.2% (2025)4.2% (2025)

Economic figures are the latest year published for each country.

Compare other years