Japan has recorded another population drop, and this time, by the most extraordinary figure in history. According to official data released in April 2025, by the end of October 2024, the country’s population stood at 120.3 million, down by 898,000 over the previous year.
largest annual drop recorded since 1950.
The great decline in population has had access to Japan’s very low birth rate, one of the lowest in the world. Fewer babies lead to fewer young people, and fewer young people mean a shrinking workforce, lowered consumer spending, and companies are finding it increasingly difficult to fill worker positions.
It has pledged support to the young families who would like to have children, but they feel they do not earn enough to afford them. “We know many people want to have kids but aren’t able to,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said in a media briefing.
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Even counting the foreign residents, Japan’s population recorded a drop of 550,000 persons to 123.8 million. This record puts Japan in its 14th consecutive year with a recorded population decline apparent indication that the process still finds itself facing long challenges on demographic claws.
The ageing society is a major hurdle. The increasing population of people aged 80 years and above has now reached a level where approximately 1 in every 10 persons is referred to as such. Many younger Japanese, however, have their reasons for delaying marriage and/or not having children: they cite unstable employment, high costs of living, as well changing social values that no longer put pressure on families to start nests.
Japan has tried to attract more young foreign workers to fill the openings, but the strict immigration laws mean that most can only stay temporarily.
