With an estimated 48 million people in 2015, Colombia is the third-most populous country in Latin America, after Brazil and Mexico.[3] It is also home to the third-largest number of Spanish speakers in the world after Mexico and the United States.[215] At the beginning of the 20th century, Colombia's population was approximately 4 million.[216] The birth rate remained at high levels until the early 1970s, but since then, Colombia has experienced steady declines in its fertility, mortality, and population growth rates.[217] Colombia is projected to have a population of 50.2 million by 2020 and 55.3 million by 2050.[218] These trends are reflected in the country's age profile. In 2005 over 30% of the population was under 15 years old, compared to just 6.3% aged 65 and over.[219] The total fertility rate was 1.9 births per woman in 2014.[220]
The population is concentrated in the Andean highlands and along the Caribbean coast, also the population densities are generally higher in the Andean region. The nine eastern lowland departments, comprising about 54% of Colombia's area, have less than 6% of the population.[120][121] Traditionally a rural society, movement to urban areas was very heavy in the mid-20th century, and Colombia is now one of the most urbanized countries in Latin America. The urban population increased from 31% of the total in 1938 to nearly 60% in 1973, and by 2014 the figure stood at 76%.[221][222] The population of Bogotá alone has increased from just over 300,000 in 1938 to approximately 8 million today.[223] In total seventy-two cities now have populations of 100,000 or more (2015).[224] As of 2012 Colombia has the world's largest populations of internally displaced persons (IDPs), estimated to be up to 4.9 million people.
The life expectancy is 74.8 years in 2015 and infant mortality is 13.6 per thousand in 2015.[226][227] In 2013, 93.6% of adults and 98.2% of youth are literate and the government spends about 4.9% of its GDP in education.
Colombia is ranked third in the world in the Happy Planet Index.
