Cyprus is among the countries with the highest population growth in the European Union for 2025, according to the latest Eurostat data.
With a growth rate of 13.7 inhabitants per 1,000 people, the country ranked second among the 27 member states, behind only Malta (24.1 per 1,000) and ahead of Luxembourg (13.1).
While the EU population as a whole increased slightly during 2025 (growth rate of 1.6 per 1,000 people), the change was not evenly distributed across EU countries: 16 countries observed an increase in their respective populations, while the population decreased in 11 countries.
Malta (24.1 per 1,000 people), Cyprus (13.7) and Luxembourg (13.1) recorded the highest population growth rates in 2025, while Latvia (-8.3), Estonia (-6.8) and Hungary (-5.4) recorded the largest decreases.
The population of individual EU countries on 1 January 2026 ranged from 0.6 million in Malta to 83.5 million in Germany. Germany, France and Italy together made up almost half (47%) of the total EU population on 1 January 2026. In Cyprus, the population in January 2026 is recorded at 996,600.
Eurostat data confirm that Cyprus continues to show one of the most dynamic demographic performances in the European Union, with the growth of its population being based on both natural growth and migration flows, in contrast to the general European trend of demographic aging and declining births.
Cyprus was one of only six EU countries to record positive natural change, i.e. more births than deaths. On the other hand, net migration remained strongly positive, reaching 11.3 immigrants per 1,000 inhabitants, which contributed significantly to the overall population growth.
Cyprus is among the countries where both natural growth and net migration have boosted population growth, along with Denmark, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta and Sweden. The largest negative rates of natural change were observed in Latvia and Bulgaria (both -7.7 per 1,000 people), followed by Lithuania (-6.9) and Romania (-5.5).
All EU countries except Estonia and Latvia had positive net migration rates in 2025, with the highest rates observed in Malta (23.9 per 1,000 people), Spain (11.8) and Cyprus (11.3).
On the other hand, the picture at European level remains problematic. For another year, deaths in the EU exceeded births, leaving the natural change negative by about 1.35 million people.
Specifically, in 2025, 4.81 million deaths were recorded compared to 3.46 million births. The overall increase in the Union's population was made possible solely by positive net migration, which amounted to around 2.05 million people. The Eurostat report states that this development confirms that immigration is now the main driver of demographic development in the European Union.
This trend is not recent. Since the mid-1980s, net migration has been steadily increasing and since the 1990s it has been the most important driver of population growth. The data underlines that, without the contribution of net migration, the European Union would already be on a path of shrinking population, highlighting the importance of migration in retaining the workforce, supporting economies and addressing the effects of ageing populations.
