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The least populated country in the world is Vatican City, which in fact is a sovereign state. An enclave within Italy's capital Rome, Vatican City numbers just 764 citizens (2023 figure), of which only 246 (including 104 members of the Swiss Guard) live within its walls.
Sources: (Nations Online Project) (WorldAtlas) (United Nations)
The Federated States of Micronesia consist of four states: Chuuk (pictured), Kosrae, Pohnpei, and Yap. As of 2024, this island country has a population of 113,000.
Aruba, a constituent country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, currently has a population of 111,000 (according to 2020 figures, the latest published). Aruba lies off the coast of Venezuela, in the Caribbean Sea.
The United States Virgin Islands has a population of 104,000. Most of the residents of this unincorporated and organized territory of the US are ensconced on the main islands of Saint Croix, Saint John, and Saint Thomas.
The latest population count on the Caribbean island destinations of Antigua and Barbuda numbers a total of 104,000 people.
The Polynesian archipelago of Tongo in the South Pacific also numbers 104,000. A sizeable proportion of people reside in the capital Nukuʻalofa (pictured).
An island country in the Lesser Antilles in the eastern Caribbean, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines has a population of 101,000.
This landlocked microstate in the eastern Pyrenees, sandwiched between France and Spain, currently has a population of 86,400 souls.
The Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory anchored in the Western Caribbean. Between them the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman have a population numbering 86,300.
Dominica, a mountainous island country in the Caribbean, has a population of 66,200, with many concentrated in the capital, Roseau.
At the latest count, 64,600 people reside in Bermuda, a British Overseas Territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Bermuda is in fact an archipelago of 181 islands, though most of the significant islands appear to form one landmass, connected as they are by bridges.
The world's largest island has a headcount of just 56,700 people. An autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark, Greenland is in fact the least crowded country in the world, with a population density of less than one person per square kilometer.
Another autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark, the Faroe Islands, a rocky archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean, has a population of 54,800.
Moored in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, the Marshall Islands comprise 29 coral atolls and five isolated islands on which 54,300 people reside.
An unincorporated territory and commonwealth of the United States, the Northern Mariana Islands consist of 14 islands in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, including Saipan, Rota, and Tinian. All in all, 51,100 people call this remote island group home.
A British Overseas Territory, the Turks and Caicos Islands in the western North Atlantic Ocean has a population of 49,300. This is the latest figure, from 2023.
Situated in the northern Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean Sea, Saint Kitts and Nevis is the smallest sovereign state in the Western Hemisphere. The population numbers 46,800.
American Samoa is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the Polynesia region of the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of a group of seven islands and atolls, of which Tutuila is the main island. The population count currently stands at 43,900.
Sint Maarten is the southern half of the divided island of Saint-Martin, located in the Caribbean Sea. A constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Sint Mateen has a population of 42,900 (2023 figure). The island is well known for the low glide slope followed by aircraft as they fly over Maho Beach on approach to Princess Juliana International Airport.
The German-speaking microstate in the central European Alps known as Liechtenstein has a population of 40,100. The tiny nation is wedged between Austria and Switzerland.
Set in the Caribbean east of Puerto Rico, the British Virgin Islands is a British Overseas Territory with a population of 39,400, divided between 16 of the roughly 54 islands and cays that make up the territory.
Monaco, a city-state on the French Riviera, is the second-smallest sovereign state in the world, after Vatican City. Its 2023 population of 38,400, while low, still makes Monaco the world's most densely populated sovereign state.
Another European microstate, San Marino is a landlocked country surrounded by Italy. It has a population of 35,300.
Saint Martin is the French part of the Caribbean island of Saint-Martin, which it shares with the previously mentioned Dutch portion Sint Maarten. The population on this side of the island numbers 32,000 residents.
Officially a geographic region of the Netherlands outside the European Union, the Caribbean Netherlands, consisting of three special municipalities, the islands of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba (pictured), has an overall population of 30,400.
Palau is an island nation in Micronesia in the western Pacific Ocean. Consisting of an archipelago of over 500 islands, of which Babeldaob is the largest, Palau currently numbers a population of 17,700.
A British Overseas Territory anchored in the Caribbean Sea, Anguilla has a population of 14,600.
The small Micronesian island of Nauru has a population of 11,900. Nauru is the smallest republic and island nation in the world. Photo courtesy of the US Department of Energy's Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program.
The Polynesian archipelago of nine islands and atolls in the South Pacific Ocean known as Tuvalu numbers a population below 10,000—in fact, 9,600 according to latest figures.
The population of Montserrat used to be much higher than the current 4,400. In July 1995, an estimated 8,000 people fled the British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean after the previously dormant Soufrière Hills volcano in the southern end of the island became active and its eruptions destroyed Plymouth, Montserrat's Georgian-era capital city. Volcanic activity is still present today.
The world's population is expected to increase by nearly two billion people in the next 30 years, according to the United Nations. Fortunately, there are still some places on the planet that remain relatively uncrowded. In fact, there are several countries whose populations number less than 120,000. But where on Earth are these roomy nations and territories located?
If you're looking for a place to stretch your legs in practically your own company, click through this list and find out where!
The 30 least populated countries and territories in the world
Where can you find uncrowded nations?
TRAVEL Population
The world's population is expected to increase by nearly two billion people in the next 30 years, according to the United Nations. Fortunately, there are still some places on the planet that remain relatively uncrowded. In fact, there are several countries whose populations number less than 120,000. But where on Earth are these roomy nations and territories located?
If you're looking for a place to stretch your legs in practically your own company, click through this list and find out where!