Grenada Population 2026 | LIVE Population Clock
Grenada Is Growing Today: The UN Thinks It Will Shrink by a Third Before This Century Ends.
Grenada’s population sits at approximately 113,372 in 2026, and on the surface, the trend line looks stable: modest, steady growth of roughly 0.1 to 0.3 percent annually, up from about 105,000 in 1996 and 110,000 in 2006. But look further out, and the picture inverts sharply.
United Nations medium-variant projections suggest Grenada’s population could decline by nearly 37 percent from its current level by 2100, falling to somewhere around 74,300 people, a long-range forecast that stands in genuine tension with the modest growth Grenada is actually recording right now.
How a Small Island Ends Up With a Trajectory Like That
The mechanics behind this apparent contradiction come down to fertility that has already fallen close to replacement level, at around 1.7 to 1.9 children per woman depending on the year, combined with sustained net emigration that, while modest in any single year, compounds meaningfully across decades. In 2023 alone, Grenada’s net migration ran at approximately -190 people, a small number on its own but part of a persistent pattern rather than a one-off.
Over the past decade, 73.9 percent of Grenada’s population change came from natural increase while 26.1 percent came from net migration losses, meaning births still outpace deaths for now, but not by nearly enough to offset the compounding effect of people leaving over a long enough time horizon.
| Indicator | Figure |
|---|---|
| 2026 population | 113,372 |
| 1996 population | 105,000 |
| 2006 population | 110,000 |
| Projected 2100 population | Approximately 74,300 |
| Median age | 34.9 to 35.9 years |
| Total fertility rate | 1.7 to 1.9 children per woman |
The Invasion That Still Shapes How Grenada Is Discussed
No account of Grenada’s modern history, demographic or otherwise, avoids October 1983 for long. Grenada achieved independence from Britain in 1974, and just five years later, a 1979 coup led by Maurice Bishop installed a Marxist government that drew significant international concern. That government’s internal collapse in 1983, amid a violent power struggle within its own ranks, triggered a United States-led invasion, Operation Urgent Fury, framed at the time around restoring order and protecting American citizens on the island.
The invasion marked the return of democratic governance to Grenada and remains, over four decades later, one of the defining reference points in how the island’s political history gets told, even though it has receded from Grenada’s actual demographic trajectory, which has since followed patterns more typical of small, aging Caribbean economies than any lingering effect of that specific crisis.
Nutmeg, Tourism, and What They Mean for Population Distribution
Grenada’s economy, and by extension its population geography, has shifted from a spice-export-dominated model toward one centered more on tourism, agriculture, and continued spice trade, particularly nutmeg, for which Grenada remains internationally known and which continues to define much of the island’s culinary and cultural identity.
St. George’s, the capital, and its surrounding metropolitan area now account for roughly 40 percent of the national population, a concentration that has grown as economic activity has increasingly clustered around the capital’s port, tourism infrastructure, and government administration, leaving the island’s rural interior comparatively thinner in population than it was a generation ago.
Despite this urban concentration around the capital, Grenada remains one of the more rural nations in this dataset by strict classification, with only around 36 percent of the population formally counted as urban, a reminder that “concentrated near the capital” and “urbanized” are not always the same measurement in small island geographies.
Who Grenadians Are
Grenada’s population is overwhelmingly of African descent, estimated at anywhere from 82 to 89 percent depending on the census year and methodology, a legacy of the transatlantic slave trade and the sugar and later nutmeg plantation economy that shaped the island under both French and British colonial rule before British control became permanent. A significant mixed-race population, around 8 to 13 percent, along with smaller East Indian, European, Lebanese, and Chinese communities, completes the ethnic composition.
Protestant Christianity holds the largest single religious affiliation at approximately 49 percent, spanning multiple denominations, with Roman Catholicism representing a substantial minority, a religious split that traces back to Grenada’s shifting colonial history between French Catholic and British Protestant administration before independence.
An Aging Population Following the Fertility Decline
Grenada’s median age, now around 35 to 36 years, has climbed steadily from about 22.8 years in 1960, tracking the island’s fertility decline from levels well above four children per woman in the mid-twentieth century down to today’s near-replacement rate. Nearly 11 percent of the population is now 65 or older, a share that will only continue growing given how far fertility has already fallen, adding to the same long-range demographic momentum behind the UN’s projected population decline later this century.
What Makes Grenada’s Case Distinct
Grenada isn’t in crisis. Its growth today is real, if modest, and its economy, gradually diversifying beyond its historical dependence on spice exports, is neither collapsing nor especially fragile compared with regional peers. What makes Grenada worth watching demographically is precisely that its long-range UN projection points toward substantial population decline despite a currently stable, even mildly positive, growth picture, a reminder that fertility already near replacement level combined with steady, unspectacular emigration can produce a very different long-term outcome than short-term population figures alone would suggest.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Grenada’s population in 2026?
Approximately 113,372 people, reflecting modest but steady growth in recent years.
Is Grenada’s population expected to decline?
United Nations medium-variant projections suggest Grenada’s population could fall to roughly 74,300 by 2100, a decline of nearly 37 percent from current levels, despite currently positive growth.
What happened in Grenada in 1983?
A violent internal power struggle within Grenada’s Marxist government triggered a United States-led invasion, Operation Urgent Fury, which restored democratic governance to the island.
What is the largest ethnic group in Grenada?
Residents of African descent make up the large majority of the population, estimated between 82 and 89 percent depending on the census methodology.
What is Grenada’s fertility rate? Approximately 1.7 to 1.9 children per woman, close to replacement level.
What is Grenada known for economically?
Nutmeg and other spice exports historically, alongside a growing tourism sector and continued agricultural production.
What is the capital of Grenada?
St. George’s, which along with its surrounding metropolitan area holds approximately 40 percent of the national population.
What religion is most common in Grenada?
Protestant Christianity, at approximately 49 percent of the population, with Roman Catholicism as a substantial minority.
What is Grenada’s median age?
Approximately 35 to 36 years, up considerably from around 22.8 years in 1960.
Why is Grenada’s population projected to decline despite growing now?
Fertility near replacement level combined with sustained, modest net emigration compounds over the long term, producing a projected decline even though short-term growth remains positive.
Sources
- United Nations World Population Prospects 2024
- Grenada Central Statistical Office
- World Bank
- CIA World Factbook