Demographics of Edinburgh
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| Demographics of Edinburgh | |
|---|---|
 Population pyramid of Edinburgh | |
| Population | 530,680 (2024) |
The demography of Edinburgh, the capital city and second largest city of Scotland, is analysed by the National Records of Scotland.[1] The population of the council area of Edinburgh was 530,680 in 2024.[2]
Historical
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1801 | 82,560 | — |
| 1811 | 102,987 | +24.7% |
| 1821 | 138,235 | +34.2% |
| 1831 | 161,909 | +17.1% |
| 1841 | 166,450 | +2.8% |
| 1851 | 193,929 | +16.5% |
| 1901 | 303,638 | +56.6% |
| 1911 | 320,318 | +5.5% |
| 1921 | 420,264 | +31.2% |
| 1931 | 439,010 | +4.5% |
| 1951 | 466,761 | +6.3% |
| Source: [3] | ||
In the 18th and 19th centuries, the population expanded rapidly, rising from 49,000 in 1751 to 136,000 in 1831, primarily due to migration from rural areas.[4]: 9 As the population grew, problems of overcrowding in the Old Town, particularly in the cramped tenements that lined the present day Royal Mile and the Cowgate, were exacerbated.[4]: 9 Poor sanitary arrangements resulted in a high incidence of disease,[4]: 9 with outbreaks of cholera occurring in 1832, 1848 and 1866.[5]
Age
Sex
Ethnicity
| Ethnic Group | 1991[6][7] | 2001[8][9] | 2011[8][9] | 2022[10] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | |
| White: Total | 409,044 | 97.64% | 430,369 | 95.9% | 437,167 | 91.5% | 436,742 | 84.9% |
| White: Scottish | – | – | 354,053 | 78.9% | 334,987 | 70.2% | 298,533 | 58.0% |
| White: Other British | – | – | 51,407 | 11.4% | 56,132 | 11.7% | 69,829 | 13.6% |
| White: Irish | 5,518 | 1.31% | 6,470 | 1.4% | 8,603 | 1.8% | 10,326 | 2.0% |
| White: Gypsy/Traveller[a] | – | – | – | – | 388 | – | 256 | – |
| White: Polish[a] | – | – | – | – | 12,820 | 2.68% | 16,351 | 3.18% |
| White: Other | – | – | 18,439 | 4.1% | 24,237 | 5.1% | 41,449 | 8.1% |
| Asian, Asian Scottish or Asian British: Total | 6,979 | 1.66% | 11,600 | 2.5% | 26,264 | 5.5% | 44,070 | 8.6% |
| Asian, Asian Scottish or Asian British: Indian | 1,176 | 0.28% | 2,384 | 0.53% | 6,470 | 1.35% | 12,414 | 2.41% |
| Asian, Asian Scottish or Asian British: Pakistani | 2,625 | 0.62% | 3,928 | 0.87% | 5,858 | 1.22% | 7,454 | 1.45% |
| Asian, Asian Scottish or Asian British: Bangladeshi | 328 | – | 636 | 0.14% | 1,277 | 0.26% | 2,685 | 0.52% |
| Asian, Asian Scottish or Asian British: Chinese | 1,940 | 0.46% | 3,532 | 0.78% | 8,076 | 1.69% | 15,076 | 2.93% |
| Asian, Asian Scottish or Asian British: Asian Other | 910 | 0.21% | 1,201 | 0.26% | 4,583 | 0.96% | 6,441 | 1.25% |
| Black, Black Scottish or Black British[b] | 1,171 | 0.3% | 1,577 | 0.3% | 5,505 | 1.2% | 10,881 | 2.1% |
| African: Total | 603 | - | 1,285 | 0.2% | 4,474 | 0.9% | 9,462 | 1.84% |
| African: African, African Scottish or African British | 603 | – | 1,285 | 0.2% | 4,364 | 0.91% | 809 | 0.16% |
| African: Other African | – | – | – | – | 110 | – | 8,653 | 1.68% |
| Caribbean or Black: Total | 568 | – | 292 | – | 1,031 | 0.2% | 1,419 | 0.3% |
| Caribbean | 175 | – | 292 | – | 505 | 0.1% | 477 | 0.1% |
| Black | – | – | – | – | 403 | – | 80 | – |
| Caribbean or Black: Other | 393 | – | – | – | 123 | – | 862 | 0.17% |
| Mixed or multiple ethnic groups: Total | – | – | 2,776 | 0.6% | 4,087 | 0.8% | 12,882 | 2.5% |
| Other: Total | 1,720 | 0.41% | 2,047 | 0.45% | 3,603 | 0.8% | 9,966 | 1.9% |
| Other: Arab[a] | – | – | – | – | 2,500 | 0.52% | 4,119 | 0.8% |
| Other: Any other ethnic group | 1,720 | 0.41% | 2,047 | 0.45% | 1,103 | 0.23% | 5,849 | 1.14% |
| Total: | 418,914 | 100% | 448,624 | 100% | 476,626 | 100% | 514,543 | 100% |
Country of birth
The proportion of people residing in Edinburgh born outside the UK was 23.5% in 2022, compared with 15.9% in 2011 and 8.3% in 2001. Below are the largest overseas-born groups in Edinburgh according to the 2022 census, alongside the two previous censuses.
| Place of birth | 2022[11] | 2011[12] | 2001[13] |
|---|---|---|---|
 Poland |
13,842 | 11,651 | 416 |
 India |
9,445 | 4,888 | 1,733 |
 Mainland China[c] |
8,229 | 4,188 | 978 |
 United States |
6,539 | 3,715 | 2,184 |
 Italy |
4,885 | 1,716 | 1,257 |
 Spain |
4,837 | 2,011 | 1,058 |
 Ireland |
4,774 | 4,743 | 3,324 |
 Germany |
3,843 | 3,526 | 2,760 |
 Hong Kong |
3,556 | 1,622 | 1,416 |
 Pakistan |
3,220 | 2,472 | 1,663 |
 Nigeria |
2,978 | 1,186 | 231 |
 France |
2,973 | 2,039 | 1,412 |
 South Africa |
2,464 | 1,824 | 1,331 |
 Greece |
2,377 | 992 | 575 |
 Australia |
2,189 | 2,086 | 2,012 |
 Canada |
2,079 | 1,760 | 1,332 |
| Overall – all overseas-born | 120,978 | 75,698 | 37,420 |
Religion
The following table shows the religion of respondents in the 2001, 2011 and 2022 censuses in Edinburgh.
| Current religion | 2001[14] | 2011[15] | 2022[10] | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | |
| Christianity | 245,876 | 54.81% | 206,565 | 43.34% | 154,899 | 30.10% |
| –Church of Scotland | 158,305 | 35.29% | 115,634 | 24.26% | 69,356 | 13.48% |
| –Roman Catholic | 48,712 | 10.86% | 57,868 | 12.14% | 51,950 | 10.10% |
| –Other Christian | 38,859 | 8.66% | 33,063 | 6.94% | 33,593 | 6.53% |
| Islam | 6,759 | 1.51% | 12,434 | 2.61% | 18,034 | 3.50% |
| Hinduism | 1,209 | 0.27% | 3,996 | 0.84% | 8,459 | 1.64% |
| Buddhism | 1,193 | 0.27% | 2,380 | 0.50% | 2,796 | 0.54% |
| Sikhism | 792 | 0.18% | 1,110 | 0.23% | 1,395 | 0.27% |
| Judaism | 774 | 0.17% | 855 | 0.18% | 1,270 | 0.25% |
| Paganism[d] | N/a | N/a | N/a | N/a | 2,055 | 0.40% |
| Other religion | 5,696 | 1.27% | 1,864 | 0.39% | 1,629 | 0.32% |
| No religion | 163,930 | 36.54% | 213,651 | 44.83% | 289,944 | 56.35% |
| Religion not stated | 22,395 | 4.99% | 33,771 | 7.09% | 34,061 | 6.62% |
| No religion/Not stated total | 186,325 | 41.53% | 247,422 | 51.91% | 324,005 | 62.97% |
| Total population | 448,624 | 100.00% | 476,626 | 100.00% | 514,543 | 100.00% |
National identity
The 2022 census found that of the 514,543 people residing in Edinburgh, 47.9% identified with the Scottish identity only, 16.6% identified with the British identity only and 8.9% identified with both identities. 5.0% identified with other UK identities (including English identity), 16.5% identified with an other identity only and the final 0.9% identified with at least one UK identity and an other identity.[16]
