According to Statistics Estonia, the preliminary estimate of the population of Estonia as of 1 January 2019 was 1,323,820, which is 4,690 people more than at the same time a year ago.
The population decreased by 1,400 due to negative natural increase (the number of deaths exceeded the number of births) and increased by 6,090 due to positive net migration (more people immigrated to Estonia than emigrated). In total, the population of Estonia increased by nearly 0.4% in 2018.
More than 14,270 children were born in Estonia in 2018, which is 500 children more than the year before. An increase in the number of births in a situation where the number of women exiting active childbearing age (20–44) is larger than the number of women entering it indicates an increase in fertility rates.
There were 15,670 deaths in Estonia in 2018. The number of deaths has remained in the range of 15,200-15,800 in the recent years. As life expectancy continues to increase, the share of older people increases in the population.
13,030 persons immigrated to Estonia and 6,940 persons emigrated from Estonia in 2018.
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Cover: People forming the map of Estonia (the image is illustrative/Shutterstock).
