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Data from the 2021 census show that 84% of the current population lived in Estonia ten years ago as well, the proportion of people who have arrived from abroad has risen significantly, and the overall population of immigrants is increasingly international. For the last ten years, internal migration has been predominantly in the direction of Harju county.

The results of the 2021 population and housing census have been published. The data on the Estonian population collected during the census helps us understand what life is like in Estonia today.

According to Statistics Estonia’s population projection, in 2080, there will be approximately 1.2 million people in Estonia. Over the next 60 years, the population of Estonia will decrease by 11%, in the next 25 years, by 35,800 persons, and by 2080, by 145,200 persons.

According to the preliminary data of Statistics Estonia, on 1 January 2021, the population of Estonia was 1,329,460 persons, which is 480 persons more than at the same time a year ago. Population decreased by 2,590 persons due to negative natural increase and increased by 3,070 persons as a result of positive net migration.

The places where people live have been recorded in one way or another for centuries. Previously, the place of registration could have been a church, municipality government, city address board, housing board or the Population Register. In recent decades, developed countries have found that register data are usually more accurate than survey data, and so population censuses have also begun to use them. Back in 2011, eight European Union countries conducted the census on a register basis: in addition to the Nordic countries, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria and Slovenia.