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Colombia's population, regions and labor market: where people live and work

Last verified: 2026-10-26 · Status: Stable

DANE projects Colombia's population at 53.4 million in 2026, with 75.9 percent in municipal urban centres and Bogotá, Antioquia and Valle del Cauca together holding 36.7 percent. The country is ageing fast: people aged 60 and over are projected to rise from 13.2 percent of the population in 2018 to 24.6 percent in 2050. In August 2026, 23.7 million people were employed and unemployment was 9.4 percent, while 54.8 percent of workers were informal in June to August, from 34.1 percent in Bogotá to 83.1 percent in rural areas.

Key facts

Population projection for 2026	53399171 peopleDANE population projections, 2025 update, as of 2026-06-30 · in force
Population in 2018, census based (CNPV 2018)	48258494 peopleDANE population projections, 2025 update, base year 2018, as of 2018-12-31 · in force
Share of 2026 population in municipal urban centres (cabeceras, calculated)	75.9 %DANE population projections, 2025 update, as of 2026-06-30 · in force
Bogotá D.C. share of 2026 population (calculated)	14.9 %DANE departmental population projections, 2025 update, as of 2026-06-30 · in force
Bogotá D.C. population projection for 2026	7945996 peopleDANE departmental population projections, 2025 update, as of 2026-06-30 · in force
Projected share of people aged 60 and over in 2050 (13.2 percent in 2018)	24.6 %DANE projections technical note, table 3, as of 2025-07-18 · in force
Projected share of children under 15 in 2050 (25.2 percent in 2018)	13.6 %DANE projections technical note, table 3, as of 2025-07-18 · in force
Ageing index projected for 2050 (people 65 and over per 100 under 15; 36.7 in 2018)	135.9 indexDANE projections technical note, section 3, as of 2025-07-18 · in force
First level territorial units: 32 departments plus the Capital District of Bogotá	33 unitsConstitución art. 286; DANE departmental projections, as of 2026-06-30 · in force
Municipal level units in DANE's 2026 municipal projections (municipalities and districts, including Bogotá)	1123 unitsDANE municipal population projections, 2025 update, as of 2026-06-30 · in force
National unemployment rate, August 2026	9.4 %DANE GEIH bulletin, 30 September 2026, as of 2026-08-31 · in force
People employed, August 2026	23685 thousand peopleDANE GEIH bulletin, 30 September 2026, as of 2026-08-31 · in force
Labor force participation rate, August 2026	63.3 %DANE GEIH bulletin, 30 September 2026, as of 2026-08-31 · in force
Employment rate, August 2026	57.4 %DANE GEIH bulletin, 30 September 2026, as of 2026-08-31 · in force
Share of employed people who are informal, national, June to August 2026	54.8 %DANE informal employment bulletin, 13 October 2026, as of 2026-08-31 · in force
Informality, 13 main cities and metropolitan areas, June to August 2026	40.7 %DANE informal employment bulletin, 13 October 2026, as of 2026-08-31 · in force

The rule

1. The territorial entities are departments, districts, municipalities and indigenous territories; the law may also give territorial entity status to regions and provinces. They have autonomy to govern themselves through their own authorities, exercise their powers, manage resources and set the taxes they need, and share in national revenue. In practice an investor deals with 32 departments and the Capital District of Bogotá, and with the municipality where the plant, shop or office sits, which sets local taxes and land use within the law.Constitución Política de Colombia de 1991, Art. 286 and art. 287, 1991-07-04 official text · verified 2026-10-26

2. Each department has an elected governor, head of the departmental administration and the President's agent for public order and general economic policy, and each municipality an elected mayor; both serve four year terms and cannot be reelected for the following term. Only municipalities may tax real estate, and Congress cannot grant exemptions from, or surcharges on, territorial taxes.Constitución Política de Colombia de 1991 (art. 303 and art. 314 as amended by Acto Legislativo 2 de 2002), Art. 294, art. 303, art. 314 and art. 317, 1991-07-04 official text · verified 2026-10-26

3. Official population figures come from DANE's projections based on the 2018 National Population and Housing Census (48,258,494 people as the base for 2018), updated in July 2025 for lower fertility and changes in international migration. DANE projects 53,399,171 people in 2026 (40,529,928 in municipal urban centres and 12,869,243 in small settlements and dispersed rural areas), 54.5 million in 2030 and a peak of about 56.0 million in 2043, falling slightly to 55.7 million by 2050. Children under 15 fall from 25.2 percent of the population in 2018 to 13.6 percent in 2050, people of working age (15 to 59) stay near 62 percent, and those aged 60 and over rise from 13.2 percent to 24.6 percent; the ageing index (people 65 and over per 100 under 15) rises from 36.7 in 2018 to 135.9 in 2050.DANE, Proyecciones de población, actualización 2025 (technical note July 2025 and national series 2018 to 2070), Technical note section 3 and table 3; national series sheet PobNacionalxÁrea, 2025-07-18 official text · verified 2026-10-26 · changed: In July 2025 DANE updated the national projections (series dated 18 July 2025) and the departmental and municipal series (30 July 2025) with a lower fertility scenario and new international migration assumptions, replacing the March 2023 post COVID update.

4. In August 2026 the national unemployment rate was 9.4 percent (8.6 percent a year earlier), the participation rate 63.3 percent and the employment rate 57.4 percent, with 23,685 thousand people employed. In the June to August 2026 rolling quarter national unemployment was 8.5 percent; among 23 cities it was highest in Quibdó (23.8 percent), Cartagena (14.4 percent) and Sincelejo (12.9 percent) and lowest in Bucaramanga (7.3 percent), Medellín (7.5 percent) and Bogotá (7.9 percent).DANE, Gran Encuesta Integrada de Hogares (GEIH), technical bulletin August 2026, Sections 1, 2 and 4, 2026-09-30 official text · verified 2026-10-26

5. DANE classifies as informal all employees and domestic workers without health and pension contributions from their employment, all unpaid workers, and own account workers and employers classified in the informal sector (which takes into account, among other things, registration with the chamber of commerce). In the June to August 2026 rolling quarter, 54.8 percent of the employed were informal nationally (55.2 percent a year earlier), 40.7 percent in the 13 main cities and metropolitan areas, 42.0 percent in 23 cities and 83.1 percent in small settlements and rural areas; men 57.1 percent and women 51.7 percent. The most informal cities were Sincelejo (65.4 percent), Cúcuta (62.4 percent) and Riohacha (61.6 percent), the least Bogotá (34.1 percent), Tunja (34.7 percent) and Manizales (35.3 percent).DANE, GEIH Empleo informal y seguridad social, technical bulletin June to August 2026, Methodology note and section 1, 2026-10-13 official text · verified 2026-10-26

Department	Population 2026	Share
Bogotá, D.C.	7,945,996	14.9%
Antioquia	6,963,990	13.0%
Valle del Cauca	4,714,987	8.8%
Cundinamarca	3,601,277	6.7%
Atlántico	2,885,904	5.4%
Santander	2,410,700	4.5%
Bolívar	2,251,190	4.2%
Córdoba	2,014,312	3.8%

Largest departments by projected 2026 population. Source: DANE departmental projections (2025 update); shares calculated on the national total of 53,399,171.

Municipality	Population 2026
Bogotá, D.C.	7,945,996
Medellín	2,526,795
Cali	2,269,983
Barranquilla	1,275,854
Cartagena de Indias	1,010,995
Soacha	895,878

Largest municipalities by projected 2026 population. Source: DANE municipal projections (2025 update).

Location	Unemployment rate	Informality
National	8.5%	54.8%
Bogotá D.C.	7.9%	34.1%
Medellín A.M.	7.5%
Bucaramanga A.M.	7.3%
Cartagena	14.4%
Sincelejo	12.9%	65.4%
Quibdó	23.8%
Small settlements and rural areas		83.1%

Labor market by location, June to August 2026. Source: DANE GEIH bulletins of 30 September and 13 October 2026.

Worked example

Sizing a formal labor pool. Of 23.7 million employed people nationally in August 2026, roughly 45 percent are formal on DANE's June to August informality rate (100 minus 54.8), about 10.7 million people. A consumer business pricing payroll deducted credit or formal sector products should size its market on that number, not on total employment.
Choosing a city. A shared services centre needing many formal hires will find the lowest informality in Bogotá (34.1 percent) and the lowest unemployment among large cities in Bucaramanga, Medellín and Bogotá (7.3 to 7.9 percent), while cities such as Cartagena (14.4 percent unemployment) offer slack labor supply but more informal competition.

Step by step

Use DANE's municipal projections for market sizing and site selection; they are the official figures that also feed transfer formulas.
Check the monthly GEIH bulletin (end of each month for the previous month) and the informality bulletin for the city you plan to hire in.
Before choosing a site, review the municipality's local taxes and land use plan; see taxes/local-taxes and real-estate/buying-and-owning-property.
For hiring rules, wages and payroll costs, go to labor/employing-people, labor/minimum-wage and labor/social-security-and-payroll-levies.

Common traps

Mixing population series. DANE updated its projections in July 2025; older figures from the March 2023 update or the raw 2018 census count differ, so use one vintage consistently.
Reading unemployment alone. With 54.8 percent informality nationally and 83.1 percent in rural areas, low unemployment in a region can coexist with a thin pool of workers used to formal contracts and social security.
Assuming national rules settle local costs. Municipalities alone tax real estate and set their own local taxes within the law (Constitución art. 287 and art. 317), so the same project can face different local tax bills in neighbouring municipalities.

Sources

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