Malawi vs Zambia: Number of children under 5

Malawi
3.08 million people
in 2023
Zambia
3.15 million people
in 2023
Malawi rank
48th
Zambia rank
46th

Number of children under 5 over time

  • Malawi
  • Zambia
01.0M2.0M3.0M195019862023

How they compare

Zambia currently reports 3.15 million people against 3.08 million people in Malawi, a difference of 71,860 people.

The two have swapped places 1 time across 74 shared years of data; in 1950 it was Malawi ahead.

Malawi ranks 48th and Zambia ranks 46th of 236 countries.

Across the 8 decades both report, Malawi averaged higher in 7 and Zambia in 1.

Head to head by decade

Decade Malawi Zambia Difference Ahead
1950s 578,414 people 505,730 people 72,683 people Malawi
1960s 763,797 people 704,138 people 59,659 people Malawi
1970s 1.01 million people 986,791 people 21,315 people Malawi
1980s 1.44 million people 1.29 million people 148,581 people Malawi
1990s 1.91 million people 1.66 million people 257,674 people Malawi
2000s 2.33 million people 2.16 million people 171,556 people Malawi
2010s 2.84 million people 2.78 million people 60,115 people Malawi
2020s 3.01 million people 3.08 million people 68,140 people Zambia

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher number of children under 5, Malawi or Zambia?
Zambia, at 3.15 million people against 3.08 million people in Malawi as of 2023.
What is the difference in number of children under 5 between Malawi and Zambia?
71,860 people, with Zambia ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Malawi and Zambia?
74 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2023.
How do Malawi and Zambia rank globally for number of children under 5?
Malawi ranks 48th and Zambia ranks 46th of 236 countries.
Where does this data come from?
UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Number of children under 5. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Malawi vs Zambia: Number of children under 5. Statizoid, drawing on UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/compare/children-under-age-5/malawi/zambia/

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About this data

Indicator
Number of children under 5
Unit
people
Source
UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
236 places, 17,464 data points, 1950–2023
Last refreshed

Total population, measured on 1 July of the year shown. This only includes people aged 0-4.