Components of population change

The main components of the population change are natural change, net migration, including the shift from the non-permanent resident population to the permanent resident population, and statistical discrepancies.

• Natural change is the difference between births and deaths.
• Net migration is the difference between immigration and emigration. The change from the non-permanent resident population to the permanent resident population is included in immigration and, therefore, in net migration.
• Statistical discrepancies are changes in population size that cannot be attributed to demographic movements.

Demographic balance of the permanent resident population 2015-2019

	Population on 1 January (in thousand)	Components of population change		Population on 31 December (in thousand)	Variation1)
		Natural change	Net migration		in absolute numbers
2015	8 237.7	19.0	71.9	8 327.1	89.5
2016	8 327.1	22.9	71.0	8 419.6	92.4
2017	8 419.6	20.4	45.9	8 484.1	64.6
2018	8 484.1	20.8	39.9	8 544.5	60.4
2019	8 544.5	16.7	47.6	8 603.9	59.4

1) In the variation are included the statistical discrepancies, which include any change in the population size that cannot be attributed to demographic movements, such as births, deaths, immigration and emigration or changes in the type of population.

2019: provisional annual figures
Sources: FSO – BEVNAT, STATPOP

Despite declines in 1918 due to the Spanish flu epidemic and between 1975 and 1977 due to the economic recession, the population in Switzerland has more than doubled since 1900, when it reached 3.3 million. This increase reached its peak in 1961 and 1962 with average annual growth rates of more than 2%. Since 2017, population growth has been significantly lower, falling back below 1%.

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