The Population Project has temporarily suspended its activities. Our database of about 700 million and 200 million dead remains freely accessible. Read more.
Total population recorded out of
8,225,280,573
people born
Because every life deserves to be acknowledged
It is estimated that 1 billion people have no legal existence whatsoever. They cannot vote, travel, or open a bank account.
Living people documented in our database
204,652,469
Deceased people documented in our database
52.4 yrs
Average age of a human documented in our database
64.8%
Information we have on average for each human
80.3
Average certainty index for each human
What is The Population Project
The Population Project is a nonprofit organization whose goal is to record the full name and place and date of birth of all humans alive.
About Us
A Monumental Task
Despite the challenges inherent to this task, the Population Project is dedicated to recording the name of every single living person.
300,000 babies born every day
Not all births are registered, which makes tracking them difficult
15% humans without identification
The information that we log is collected from multitudinous sources that must be cross-checked, again and again, for accuracy
0 countries using names in their census reports without identification
Sources we gather data from may contain errors; typos are known to happen even in electoral records and graduation lists
Why we need volunteers?
Calling the Population Project an ambitious initiative might be the understatement of the year. We need to identify up to 8 billion people in countries with highly different linguistic structures and record-keeping traditions. Simply put, we need your time and enthusiasm to gather as many records from as many corners of the world as possible. It means scouring the internet, looking for long lists of names, ideally from official sources.
Why is the website’s counter sometimes down?
It is the star of the Population Project: our counter of living humans is never idle for long. Most of the time, it’s ticking up as we process new public lists. Sometimes thought, it’s inching down. Before explaining how it is possible, it’s worth remembering that the Population Project’s counter reflects the number of LIVING humans in the database. But we also host 152
Is there a way to stay informed about The Population Project’s activities?
Information on newsletters, social media, or other communication channels.
How can I contact The Population Project for more information?
Contact details and methods for reaching out.
How can I contribute to The Population Project?
The world map depicted on the home page should give you an idea of the countries where we need the most help. The ideal list is long, official, and contains some notion of birth year. Counting your family members, friends, schoolmates, and colleagues, you probably know a few hundred people. It’s up to you to see them all on the Population Project! Look
What are the goals of The Population Project?
Simply put, because every life deserves to be acknowledged. It is estimated that one billion people - 15% of the world’s population - has no legal existence whatsoever. They cannot vote, travel, open a bank account. The Population Project might not reverse the legal plight of these people but it can give them that doesn’t cost much but means a lot: dignity.