São Tomé and Príncipe

Country in Africa

In brief

Population: 240.3K (2025). World rank 181 of 216; in Africa, 53 of 54. Aged 15–64: 58.6% (2025). World rank 179 of 216; in Africa, 24 of 54. Births per 1,000 people: 28.1 (2024). World rank 38 of 216; in Africa, 36 of 54. From 2015 to 2025: population 200.3K → 240.3K, population growth per year +1.8% → +2%, and living in cities 67.4% → 69.2%.

Population and migration

Population: 240,254 2025
Population density: 249.2 per km² 2025
Population growth per year: +2% 2025
Living in cities: 69.2% 2025
Net migration per year: -650 2025
Born in another country: 0.8% 2024

Age and life expectancy

Aged 0–14: 37.5% 2025
Aged 15–64: 58.6% 2025
Aged 65 and over: 3.9% 2025
Life expectancy: 69.9 years 2024
Life expectancy, women: 73.9 years 2024
Life expectancy, men: 66.4 years 2024

Births and deaths

Children per woman: 3.6 2024
Births per 1,000 people: 28.1 2024
Deaths per 1,000 people: 5.5 2024

Society

Languages: Portuguese
Religions: Catholic 55.7%, no religion 21.2%, other 10.5%, Protestant 10.4%, and other Christian 1.2% (2012)