Countries and regions of the world › Asia › Western Asia
Syria
The capital is Damascus, with 4.3 million inhabitants in the city. It has 26.5 million inhabitants (57th in the world) on 185,180 km² (87th in the world), with a density of 144 people per km². Life expectancy at birth is 73.4 years, women have 2.62 children on average and half the population is older than 25. GDP per capita is $1,057 (177th in the world, 2022 figure).
See on the map Population pyramid In the bubble chart
Key data, 2026
| Indicator | Value | Rank | World | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Territory | ||||
| Total area (km²) | 185,180 (2024) | 87th / 195 | 137 million | |
| Land area (km²) | 183,630 (2024) | 87th / 194 | 130 million | |
| Density (people per km²) | 144.2 | 65th / 194 | 63.8 | |
| Population | ||||
| Population | 26,472,496 | 57th / 194 | 8.30 billion | |
| Population growth (% a year) | +3.33 | 2nd / 194 | +0.84 | |
| Median age (years) | 24.8 | 133rd / 194 | 32.1 | |
| Under 15 (%) | 27.9 | 79th / 194 | 24.1 | |
| 65 and over (%) | 5.0 | 131st / 194 | 10.6 | |
| Urban population (%) | 72.1 (2025) | 66th / 194 | 57.7 | |
| Births and health | ||||
| Children per woman | 2.62 | 66th / 194 | 2.23 | |
| Life expectancy (years) | 73.4 | 104th / 194 | 73.8 | |
| Life expectancy, men (years) | 71.0 | 96th / 194 | 71.2 | |
| Life expectancy, women (years) | 75.9 | 111th / 194 | 76.4 | |
| Infant mortality (‰ births) | 13.3 | 83rd / 194 | 26.1 | |
| Migration | ||||
| Net migration (‰ people) | +11.6 | 2nd / 194 | 0.0 | |
| Economy and environment | ||||
| GDP (dollars) | $23.7B (2022) | 123rd / 193 | $117.32T | |
| GDP per capita (dollars) | $1,057 (2022) | 177th / 193 | $14,306 | |
| GDP growth (%) | -0.2 (2022) | 179th / 193 | +4.3 | |
| GNI per capita PPP (international dollars) | $4,740 (2022) | 159th / 190 | $25,266 | |
| Unemployment (%) | 13.6 (2025) | 20th / 179 | 5.1 | |
| Greenhouse gases per capita (t CO₂e) | 1.9 (2024) | 139th / 186 | 6.3 | |
Sources: United Nations, World Population Prospects 2024 (after 2023 projections, dashed), and World Bank (the latest published figure, with the year in brackets if older). Rank among the 195 states. For regions the World Bank values are computed from the member countries.