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This publication contains preliminary data from Census 2022 as published in June 2022, which has now been superseded. To view the final data with complete and up-to-date Census 2022 information, please refer to the Census 2022 Main Results publications.
The preliminary population on Sunday 3 April 2022 was 5,123,536 persons. This is the first time that a census has recorded a population of over five million people in over 170 years. The population increased by 361,671 persons, or 8%, since April 2016.
Population growth occurred in every county between 2016 and 2022.
The population increase of 361,671 was made up of a natural increase of 171,338 and estimated net inward migration of 190,333.
The housing stock in Ireland increased by over 120,000 units (6%) between 2016 and 2022.
The number of occupied households increased by over 150,000 (9%) while the number of vacant dwellings fell by over 16,500 (-9%).
At a State level Census vacancy rate has fallen to less than 8% in 2022, down from over 9% in 2016 and 12% in 2011.
The preliminary population enumerated on Census Night, Sunday 3 April 2022 was 5,123,536 persons. This is the first time that a census has recorded a population of over five million people in over 170 years. The population increased by 361,671 persons, or 7.6%, since April 2016. The average annual population increase in the six years since Census 2016 was 1.2%.
| Table 1.1 Change in population 2006-2022 | |||
| Census Year | Population | Actual change since previous census | Average annual percentage change since previous census |
| 2006 | 4,239,848 | 322,645 | 2.1% |
| 2011 | 4,588,252 | 348,404 | 1.6% |
| 2016 | 4,761,865 | 173,613 | 0.8% |
| 2022 | 5,123,536 | 361,671 | 1.2% |
The Census 2022 population of 5,123,536 persons is the highest figure on record for a census since 1841. The graph below shows the change in population over time.
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1841 | 6528799 |
| 1851 | 5111557 |
| 1861 | 4402111 |
| 1871 | 4053187 |
| 1881 | 3870020 |
| 1891 | 3468694 |
| 1901 | 3221823 |
| 1911 | 3139688 |
| 1926 | 2971992 |
| 1936 | 2968420 |
| 1946 | 2955107 |
| 1951 | 2960593 |
| 1956 | 2898264 |
| 1961 | 2818341 |
| 1966 | 2884002 |
| 1971 | 2978248 |
| 1979 | 3368217 |
| 1981 | 3443405 |
| 1986 | 3540643 |
| 1991 | 3525719 |
| 1996 | 3626087 |
| 2002 | 3917203 |
| 2006 | 4239848 |
| 2011 | 4588252 |
| 2016 | 4761865 |
| 2022 | 5123536 |
Figure 1.2 below represents the sex ratio from 1841 to 2022. Based on the preliminary population figures, the sex ratio has declined to the lowest level since 1871. The sex ratio declined from 97.8 in 2016 to 97.5 in 2022.
| Males per 1,000 females | |
| 1841 | 975 |
| 1851 | 953 |
| 1861 | 971 |
| 1871 | 967 |
| 1881 | 977 |
| 1891 | 993 |
| 1901 | 999 |
| 1911 | 1025 |
| 1926 | 1029 |
| 1936 | 1050 |
| 1946 | 1024 |
| 1951 | 1036 |
| 1956 | 1019 |
| 1961 | 1011 |
| 1966 | 1010 |
| 1971 | 1009 |
| 1979 | 1011 |
| 1981 | 1009 |
| 1986 | 999 |
| 1991 | 989 |
| 1996 | 986 |
| 2002 | 987 |
| 2006 | 1001 |
| 2011 | 981 |
| 2016 | 978 |
| 2022 | 975 |
The Preliminary Population Count is based on summaries sent to the Central Statistics Office (CSO) by Census Enumerators across the country prior to the return of the collected census forms. These summaries include counts of males and females from which the sex ratio can be calculated.
The housing stock grew by 120,945 (6%) to over 2.1 million between 2016 and 2022. This represents a marked increase compared with the intercensal period between 2011 and 2016 when the housing stock only increased by 8,800 or less than one percent.
The number of dwellings categorised as vacant declined from 183,312 in 2016 to 166,752 in 2022. This represents a fall of 9%.
| Year | % Housing stock change | % Population change |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 8.5 | 2.8 |
| 2002 | 16 | 8 |
| 2006 | 21.2 | 8.2 |
| 2011 | 12.7 | 8.2 |
| 2016 | 0.4 | 3.8 |
| 2022 | 6 | 7.6 |
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Statistician's Comment
Commenting on the release, Deirdre Lynch, Statistician, said: “This Preliminary Census publication is based on the Census of Population taken on the night of Sunday, 3 April 2022. This is the first publication by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) providing insights into Ireland’s Census of Population and housing figures for 2022. This release includes an analysis of geographical changes of the population, components of population change and housing. The population increased by 7.6% compared with the 2016 census with 5,123,536 persons present in Ireland on Census Night. This is the first time that a census has recorded a population of over five million people in over 170 years. The housing stock in Ireland increased by over 120,000 units (6%) between 2016 and 2022. The number of occupied households increased by over 150,000 (9%) while the number of vacant dwellings fell by over 16,500 (-9%). Our analysis shows where these changes have occurred across the country, with some interesting trends compared with the previous census six years ago”.