Population of Nizhny Novgorod and Nizhny Novgorod Oblast: Rosstat data by year
As of 1 January 2024, 1,204,985 people lived in Nizhny Novgorod. This makes it the seventh city in Russia by number of residents, and it became seventh only recently: Krasnoyarsk overtook it by 488 people. In 2002, Nizhny was fourth. In the whole Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, as of 1 January 2025 Rosstat counted 3,039,421 residents, and in 2024 the region lost 20,914 people.
Below are the numbers by year, Nizhny's rank among million‑plus cities, other cities of the region, births, deaths and migrations. All charts open on the website in interactive form.
How many people live in Nizhny Novgorod
The first two rows are taken from censuses, the rest from Rosstat estimates as of 1 January.
| Date | Thousand people |
|---|---|
| 2002 Census, 9 October | 1,311 |
| 2010 Census, 14 October | 1,251 |
| 1 January 2023 | 1,213 |
| 1 January 2024 | 1,205 |
Since 2002 the city has lost 106 thousand residents, that is 8.1%. A loss of 60 thousand occurred between the two censuses and another loss of 46 thousand in the years after 2010. In a single year, 2023, Nizhny shrank by about 8 thousand people. The average annual population for 2023 was 1,209,231, i.e., there were more people at the beginning of the year than at the end.
In Nizhny Novgorod live 39.4% of the oblast's population.
There are no data newer than 1 January 2024 for cities. In a footnote to the table Rosstat writes that information for 1 January 2025 is temporarily not published, referring to part 10 of article 5 of the law on official statistical accounting. Regional figures for 2025 have been released, but city figures are not yet available.
View the population of all Russian cities with 100 thousand residents →
How Nizhny Novgorod fell from 4th place to 7th
In 2002 only Moscow, St. Petersburg and Novosibirsk were ahead of Nizhny. Yekaterinburg lagged by 17 thousand, Kazan by 206 thousand. By the 2010 census Yekaterinburg was already ahead, and by 2024 Nizhny was overtaken also by Kazan and Krasnoyarsk.
Nizhny lost people gradually, while its neighbours on the list grew quickly. From 2002 to 2024 Krasnoyarsk added 296 thousand residents (plus 32.6%), Yekaterinburg 242 thousand, Kazan 214 thousand. Of the sixteen current million‑plus cities, the population has decreased since 2002 only in two: Omsk by 30 thousand and Nizhny Novgorod by 106 thousand.
The distance to Krasnoyarsk is still tiny. On 1 January 2024 they were separated by 488 people, and by the average annual population for 2023 Nizhny was still ahead: 1,209,231 versus 1,201,193. But in 2023 Krasnoyarsk added about 8 thousand residents, while Nizhny lost about 8 thousand. Behind, in eighth place, is Chelyabinsk, 27,927 people behind it.
Open the table of million‑plus cities →
How the other major cities change is discussed in the article "Largest cities of Russia by population".
Population of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast by year
Population as of 1 January, thousand people.
| Year | Thousand people |
|---|---|
| 2012 | 3,293.6 |
| 2014 | 3,271.6 |
| 2016 | 3,244.1 |
| 2018 | 3,212.5 |
| 2020 | 3,174.2 |
| 2021 | 3,144.5 |
| 2022 | 3,108.9 |
| 2023 | 3,081.8 |
| 2024 | 3,060.3 |
| 2025 | 3,039.4 |
Over 13 years the region lost 254 thousand residents, 7.7%. This is more than the whole Dzerzhinsk, the second‑largest city of the region. Until 2018 the decline stayed at the level of 10–16 thousand people per year. Then it increased, and the hardest years were 2020 and 2021: minus 29.7 and minus 35.6 thousand. In 2023 and 2024 the region lost about 21 thousand per year.
Neighbouring Samara Oblast on 1 January 2025 is larger than Nizhny Novgorod by 73 thousand people. According to 2023 data, Nizhny Novgorod accounts for 2.1% of the country's population and 10.7% of the Volga Federal District. In total decline for 2024 in the district only Bashkortostan outpaced it (minus 21,984 people). Growth in the district was only in Tatarstan: plus 16,590.
Population of all regions since 2012 →
Why the region's population is declining
The population changes in two ways: through the difference between births and deaths and through the difference between those who arrive and those who leave. In Nizhny Novgorod Oblast almost all the decline is due to the first.
| Year | Natural decline | Migration gain | Total for the year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | −21,634 | +152 | −21,482 |
| 2024 | −23,475 | +2,561 | −20,914 |
In 2023 moves compensated 0.7% of the natural decline, in 2024 10.9%. The number of arrivals to the region was only slightly higher than the number of departures.
The raw difference between births and deaths is very large. In 2022 the region had 24,043 births and 47,967 deaths: almost exactly two deaths per birth. In 2023 there were 23,128 births and 44,762 deaths.
Per thousand residents this is 7.5 births and 14.6 deaths, compared with the Russian average of 8.6 and 12.1. The region's natural decline (minus 7.1 per thousand) is twice as deep as the national figure (minus 3.5).
The latest operational data on the website refer to January–February 2025. Birth rate in the region for these two months was 7.0 per thousand versus 7.4 a year earlier, mortality fell from 16.9 to 15.4. Natural decline amounted to 8.4 per thousand, compared with the Russian average of 5.0.
Births, deaths and natural increase by region →
Why people die more often than the national average
In 2023 the region had 1,457.5 deaths per 100,000 residents, versus 1,206.2 in Russia. Almost the entire excess is due to one group of causes: diseases of the circulatory system, 793.4 deaths per 100,000 versus 556.7 nationwide. They account for 54% of all deaths in the region. For neoplasms and external causes, Nizhny Novgorod residents die slightly less often than average: 184.1 and 97.5 per 100,000 versus 197.4 and 107.1.
Partly this is age. As of January 1, 2024, 797.4 thousand residents of the region, 26.1%, were older than working age, compared with 23.7% nationwide. Heart and vascular diseases hit the elderly hardest. How mortality is distributed across the country is examined in the article "Mortality by Russian regions".
Mortality by main causes in each region →
Other cities of the Nizhny Novgorod region
There are three cities in the region with more than 100 thousand inhabitants. As of 1 January 2024, Dzerzhinsk had 215,259 residents, Arzamas 103,629. Together with Nizhny, these three cities are home to 49.8% of the region's population.
Dzerzhinsk is losing people faster than the regional centre. According to the 2002 census, it had 261 thousand people; on 1 January 2024 it had 215 thousand: a loss of 46 thousand, or 17.6%. Arzamas declined over the same period from 109 to 104 thousand.
The region is noticeably more urban than the country as a whole. According to Rosstat data on population and migration for 2023, 80.0% of its residents live in cities, compared with 74.9% in Russia. For every thousand city dwellers there are 250 rural residents, versus 336 in the country.
Cities of Russia with 100 to 250 thousand residents →
Who lives in the Nizhny Novgorod region: 2020 census
The 2020 All‑Russian census counted 3,119,115 people in the region. Of them, 1,707,186 were women and 1,411,929 were men: 1,209 women per thousand men. Nationality was not indicated by 546,979 people, that is 17.5%, and the shares below are calculated from those who did indicate.
| Nationality | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Russians | 2,448,926 | 95.2% |
| Tatars | 26,685 | 1.0% |
| Armenians | 9,547 | 0.4% |
| Mordva | 7,432 | 0.3% |
| Ukrainians | 6,260 | 0.2% |
| Azerbaijanis | 5,041 | 0.2% |
| Chuvash | 4,584 | 0.2% |
Russians are mainly urban: 1,893,034 of the 2,448,926 live in cities, that is 77%. Tatars, Mordva and Chuvash are predominantly rural. Of the 26,685 Tatars, 14,624 live in rural areas; of the 7,432 Mordva, 3,807 live in rural areas; of the 4,584 Chuvash, 2,451 live in rural areas. For a region where four out of five people live in cities, this is a notable exception.
National composition of the Nizhny Novgorod region according to the census →
Questions and Answers
How many people live in Nizhny Novgorod in 2025?
The latest published estimate refers to 1 January 2024: 1,204,985 people. Rosstat temporarily does not publish city figures for 1 January 2025.
Is Nizhny Novgorod a million‑city?
Yes. The 2002 census also counted 1,311 thousand residents in the city. As of 1 January 2024 it is the seventh of Russia’s sixteen million‑city towns.
Which city is larger, Nizhny Novgorod or Krasnoyarsk?
On 1 January 2024 Krasnoyarsk is larger by 488 people. According to the average annual population for 2023 Nizhny still leads, 1,209,231 versus 1,201,193, but Krasnoyarsk is growing while Nizhny is shrinking.
How many people live in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast?
On 1 January 2025 there are 3,039,421 people. Since 2012 the region has become smaller by 254 thousand.
Why is the population of Nizhny Novgorod decreasing?
The main reason is that twice as many people die in the region as are born. Migration almost does not close this gap: in 2024 the migratory increase covered about 11% of the natural decline.
How does Rosstat calculate population between censuses?
It takes the result of the latest census and each year adds births and arrivals, subtracts deaths and departures. After a new census the series is recalculated, so figures for the same years may differ slightly across publications.
In short
- In Nizhny Novgorod on 1 January 2024 lived 1,204,985 people, 7th place among Russian cities.
- In 2002 Nizhny was fourth. Since then it has lost 106 thousand residents, while Krasnoyarsk, Kazan and Yekaterinburg have grown and moved ahead.
- In Nizhny Novgorod Oblast on 1 January 2025 there are 3,039,421 people, a decline of 254 thousand over 13 years.
- Deaths in the region are twice as many as births, and newcomers cover about a tenth of the difference.
- Dzerzhinsk has decreased by 17.6% since 2002, more sharply than the regional centre.