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Spain Population and Religion Percentage

Spain is a country in Southwestern Europe with some pockets of territory across the Strait of Gibraltar and the Atlantic Ocean. As per the UN World Population Prospects, the population of Spain in 2022 is 47,558,629. According to the Population registered in the census (provisional data) as of  01/01/2022, the Population of Spain is 47,435,597 (47.5 million or 4.75 Crores)

Estimated population of Spain in 2023: 47.5 million or 4.75 Crores

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Spain Demographics
Spain2022 Population
Total Population47,558,629
Global Rank31st
Share of World Pop.0.6%
Land Area 498,980 sq. km (192,660 sq. mi)
Area Rank51st
Pop. Density94 per Km2 (243 people per mi2).
Growth rate-0.08%
Fertility Rate* in Spain1.33 
Infant mortality rate** in Spain 2
Median Age in Spain 44.9 years
Life Expectancy in Spain83.99 years
Urban Population of Spain80.3%

Religion in Spain

Christianity is the main religion in Spain and the majority of the Spanish population is Catholic.  However, in the past decades, the Christian percentage has significantly declined and the Unaffiliated percentage has increased.  Law prevents the Spanish census from recording the religious affiliation of the population.

As per the estimates, 68% of the population identified as Christians. The majority of Christians are Catholics and other affiliations are less than a percent. Non-Christian faiths account for 3%, and the remaining 29% are classified as unaffiliated, which can mean agnostic, atheist, or “nothing in particular.” The vast majority of unaffiliated adults in Spain (86%) say they were raised as Christians. 

Other religions include Islam, Jews, Hinduism, Sikh, Buddhism, and other smaller faiths.

The recent waves of immigration, especially during and after the 2000s, have led to a fast-increasing number of Muslims. Nowadays, Islam is the second largest religion, but far behind Roman Catholicism and irreligion.

Jews in Spain form less than 0.2% of the overall population, somewhere between 13,000 and 50,000. They are primarily located in the cities of Barcelona, Madrid, and Málaga.

Hinduism first arrived in Spain through Sindhi immigrants through the British colony of Gibraltar in the early 20th century. There are about 40,000-50,000 Hindus in Spain, about 25,000 from India, 5,000 from Eastern Europe and Latin America, and 10,000 Spanish. There are also small communities of Hindus from Nepal and Bangladesh There are also about 40 Hindu temples/worship places in Spain.

According to an estimation from 2018, there are around 90,000 followers of Buddhism in Spain and a total number of around 300,000 adherents if sympathizers are included. There are also almost 300 centers for Buddhist practice in the country.

Smaller faiths include Paganism and Taoism.

Religion/AffiliationsPercentage
Christianity68%
  Catholicism 67%
  Other Christian -1%
Other Religion3%
  Islam -1.3%
  Hinduism/Sikhism -0.5%
  Judaism -0.2%
  Others-1%
Unaffiliated29%
  Irreligious-16.8%
  Atheism -9.6%
  Did not answer-2.6%

Source: Pew Research Center and estimates

Top Cities in Spain by Population
#CityProvincePopulation
1MadridCommunity of Madrid32,66,126
2BarcelonaCatalonia16,08,746
3ValenciaValencian Community7,94,288
4SevilleAndalusia6,88,592
5ZaragozaAragon6,74,997
6MálagaAndalusia5,74,654
7MurciaRegion of Murcia4,53,258
8PalmaBalearic Islands4,16,065
9Las PalmasCanary Islands3,79,925
10BilbaoBasque Country3,46,843
11AlicanteValencian Community3,34,887
12CórdobaAndalusia3,25,701
13ValladolidCastile and León2,98,412
14VigoGalicia2,95,364
15GijónPrincipality of Asturias2,71,780
16L’HospitaletCatalonia2,54,804
17Vitoria-GasteizBasque Country2,51,774
18A CoruñaGalicia2,45,711
19ElcheValencian Community2,32,517
20GranadaAndalusia2,32,462

Source: 2019 Census

Source: World Population Prospects 2019 and Institute of National Statistics, Spain

*Fertility rate, average number of children born to women during their reproductive years.

**Infant mortality rate is the number of deaths per 1,000 live births of children under one year of age.

Population of Spain 2024 | Religion in Spain