Japan Population Crisis 2025 Sees Record Low of Newborns
JAPAN – The number of newborns recorded in 2025 was lowest, deepening the Japan population crisis, according to government data.
The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said on Thursday that 705,809 babies were born in 2025, marking a 2.1% decline compared with the previous year and the lowest figure since records began in 1899. The number of births has now declined for 10 consecutive years.
Japan’s annual births peaked at 2.69 million in 1949 before falling to 2.09 million in 1973 and 1.5 million in 1983. The figure dropped below 1 million for the first time in 2016.
The National Institute of Population and Social Security Research had previously forecast that “the number of newborns would not fall below 710,000 before 2042.”
The projection was effectively missed, as the threshold was reached 17 years earlier than expected.
Meanwhile, deaths in Japan totaled 1.61 million in 2025, down by 13,030 compared with the previous year.
The number of marriages recorded last year rose 1.1% from 2024 to 505,656, according to official data.
