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Ecuador Population 2024

Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador is a country in northwestern South America. It is bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. Ecuador also includes the Galápagos Islands in the Pacific, about 1,000 kilometers (621 mi) west of the mainland. Ecuador is divided into 24 provinces, each with its own administrative capital. The provinces are divided into cantons and further subdivided into parishes.

According to The Ecuador Census population of Ecuador as of Aug 2021 is 17,715,822 (17.7 million). As per the World Population Prospects, 2019 by the United Nations, the population of  Ecuador in 2024 is 18,377,366 (18.3 million) 

Source: UN World Population Prospects

Estimated Population of Ecuador in 2024 – 18.3 million
 Ecuador  2023 Population
Total Population 18,190,484
SA Rank 7
Urban Population 63%
Land Area  256,369  sq.km (98,985 sq. mi)
Area Rank 9
Pop. Density 71 people/sq. km
Capital City Quito

Religion in Ecuador

Christianity is the largest religion in Ecuador and  86.7% of the population follows Christianity. Among Christians in Ecuador, Catholics have the most adherents followed by the Protestants

According to the Ecuadorian National Institute of Statistics and Census 2012, 80.44% of population are Roman Catholic, 11.30% are Evangelical Protestants, 1.29% are Jehovah’s Witnesses, and 6.97% are other Christians and faiths.  7.94% are atheists and 0.11% are agnostics.

For the Latest figures, According to the 2020 report by the Latino barometer,  68.8% of the population followed Roman Catholicism; 10.6% Evangelical Protestantism; 1.2% Adventist, 1% Jehovah’s Witnesses, and 0.1% Mormon.

Other Non-Christian-based faiths population is at 1%. 12.5% of the population don’t affiliate with any religion.

Non-Christian Faith includes Jewish, Islam, Baháʼí Faith, and Buddism are the main minority religions.

According to a 2020 report by the Latino barometer religion percentage in Ecuador is as follows

Religion/AffiliationsPercentage
Christianity86.7%
Catholic68.8%
Evangelical Protestant10.6%
Evangelican baptism0.9%
Evangelical methodist0.2%
Evangelical Pentecostal3.7%
Adventist1.2%
Jehovah’s Witnesses1.0%
Mormón0.1%
Protestant0.2%
Other Faiths1%
Other0.4%
Believer, not belong to the church0.6%
Unaffiliated12.5%
None10.1%
Agnostic0.3%
Atheist1.1%
Don´t know0.5%
No answer0.5%

Source: https://www.latinobarometro.org/

Race and Ethnicity in Ecuador

Ecuador is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different races, ethnicity, and national backgrounds.

71.90% of the people identified themselves as Mestizo (mixed race people of Amerindian and European descent, typically from Spanish colonists), 43.60% identified themselves as Montubio (coastal Mestizo population).

The White Ecuadorians (White Latin American) are a minority accounting for 6.1% of the population of Ecuador. White people are predominantly descendants from Spain with and people from Italy, Germany, France, and Switzerland who have settled in the early 20th century. In addition, there is a small European Jewish (Ecuadorian Jews) population, which is based mainly in Quito and to a lesser extent in Guayaquil.

Amerindians account for 7% of the current population. The Afro-Ecuadorians are a minority population (7%) in Ecuador, that includes the Mulattos (African & European ancestry) and zambos ( African and Indigenous ancestry)

Ecuador also has a small population of Asian origins, mainly those from West Asia, descendants of Lebanese and Palestinian immigrants, who are either Christian or Muslim, and an East Asian community mainly consisting of those of Japanese and Chinese descent

The racial composition is as follows

Ethnic groupPercent
Mestizo (mixed Amerindian and White)71.90%
Montubio (coastal Mestizos)7.40%
Amerindian7%
White6.10%
Afro Ecuadorian4.30%
Mulato (African & European ancestry)1.90%
Black1%
Other0.40%

Source: 2017 Peru Census

Top Cities in Ecuador by Population

#CityProvincePopulation
1QuitoPichincha2,781,641
2GuayaquilGuayas2,723,665
3CuencaAzuay636,996
4Santo DomingoSanto Domingo458,580
5AmbatoTungurahua387,309
6PortoviejoManabí321,800
7DuránGuayas315,724
8MachalaEl Oro289,141
9LojaLoja274,112
10MantaManabí264,281
11RiobambaChimborazo264,048
12IbarraImbabura221,149
13EsmeraldasEsmeraldas218,727
14QuevedoLos Ríos213,842
15LatacungaCotopaxi205,624
16MilagroGuayas199,835
17Santa ElenaSanta Elena188,821
18BabahoyoLos Ríos175,281
19DauleGuayas173,684
20QuinindéEsmeraldas145,879
Ecuador Population 2024 | Religion in Ecuador