According to the agency, Estonia’s population has declined by 13.2 percent over the last 35 years, falling to 1.36 million inhabitants, while the birth rate has dropped by 52.4 percent since 1991.

Equal to the year of independence, Estonia’s population has decreased by 207,000 people; in 1991, the country was home to 1,567,749 people.

The Statistics Office reported that as of January 1 of this year, the number of residents in the country stood at 1,360,745.

It also notes that in 2025, there were 10,173 fewer births in the country than in 1991. Meanwhile, the average life expectancy for Estonians rose by 10.2 years, reaching 79.8 years. The average age of first-time mothers increased from 22.6 to 29.4 years.

The number of marriages fell by 41.7 percent, dropping from 10,292 in 1991 to 5,998 in 2025. While the number of deaths was nearly equal to the number of births in 1991, by 2025 there were nearly 6,500 more deaths than births.

Furthermore, the text highlights that the economic crisis—which has led to the closure of many businesses—is causing Estonian city dwellers to emigrate en masse to other countries, a trend that also impacts the total population size.

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