Estonia’s population shrinks 13 percent in 35 years

Estonia’s population has fallen by 207,004 people since the country regained independence in 1991, while life expectancy has increased by 10 years, ERR reported, citing Statistics Estonia.

Estonia had nearly 1.568 million residents in 1991. As of January 1 this year, its population was nearly 1.361 million, or 13 percent smaller.

The share of ethnic Estonians in the population rose from 61.6 percent 35 years ago to 68.5 percent in 2026.

Life expectancy increased from 69.6 years to 79.8 years. The average age of first-time mothers rose from 22.6 in 1991 to 29.4 last year.

Martin and Kristina were the most popular names in the year Estonia regained independence, when 19,413 children were born. Last year, Mark and Sofia were the most common names, while the number of births stood at 10,173, 52 percent fewer than in 1991.

The number of marriages also declined, from 10,292 in 1991 to 5,998 last year.

Average gross monthly pay increased nearly 60-fold during the independence period, from 35 euros in 1992 to 2,092 euros last year.

The number of people working in agriculture, forestry and fishing fell from 152,000 35 years ago to 19,700 last year. Nearly eight times fewer people now work in these fields than at the time Estonia regained independence.

At the same time, the number of active companies has increased sevenfold, from just under 24,000 in the mid-1990s to nearly 160,000 in 2024.