Statizoid

Median age in Tonga

Tonga: Median age was 20.7 years in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
20.7 years
Change on year
down 0.1%
World rank
189th
of 236 countries
All-time high
20.92 years
in 2019
All-time low
15.57 years
in 1975
Years of data
74
1950–2023

Median age in Tonga, 1950–2023

05101520195019862023

Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.

Analysis

Tonga recorded 20.7 years for median age in 2023.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.1% on the previous year and up 1.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, median age in Tonga peaked at 20.92 years in 2019 and was at its lowest, 15.57 years, in 1975.

That places Tonga 189th out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.

Median age in Tonga, year by year

Year years Change
1950 16.59 years —
1951 16.53 years -0.4%
1952 16.46 years -0.4%
1953 16.38 years -0.5%
1954 16.3 years -0.5%
1955 16.21 years -0.5%
1956 16.12 years -0.6%
1957 16.06 years -0.4%
1958 16.03 years -0.2%
1959 16 years -0.2%
1960 15.97 years -0.2%
1961 15.95 years -0.1%
1962 15.94 years -0.0%
1963 15.95 years +0.0%
1964 15.94 years -0.1%
1965 15.92 years -0.1%
1966 15.92 years -0.0%
1967 15.85 years -0.4%
1968 15.73 years -0.8%
1969 15.64 years -0.5%
1970 15.59 years -0.3%
1971 15.58 years -0.1%
1972 15.59 years +0.1%
1973 15.62 years +0.2%
1974 15.61 years -0.1%
1975 15.57 years -0.3%
1976 15.57 years +0.0%
1977 15.69 years +0.8%
1978 15.9 years +1.3%
1979 16.1 years +1.2%
1980 16.27 years +1.1%
1981 16.44 years +1.0%
1982 16.58 years +0.9%
1983 16.71 years +0.8%
1984 16.84 years +0.8%
1985 16.97 years +0.8%
1986 17.11 years +0.8%
1987 17.33 years +1.3%
1988 17.62 years +1.7%
1989 17.89 years +1.5%
1990 18.12 years +1.3%
1991 18.31 years +1.1%
1992 18.46 years +0.8%
1993 18.55 years +0.5%
1994 18.59 years +0.2%
1995 18.58 years -0.0%
1996 18.57 years -0.1%
1997 18.68 years +0.6%
1998 18.9 years +1.2%
1999 19.11 years +1.1%
2000 19.3 years +1.0%
2001 19.47 years +0.9%
2002 19.6 years +0.7%
2003 19.7 years +0.5%
2004 19.75 years +0.3%
2005 19.78 years +0.1%
2006 19.77 years -0.0%
2007 19.85 years +0.4%
2008 19.99 years +0.7%
2009 20.1 years +0.5%
2010 20.13 years +0.2%
2011 20.14 years +0.0%
2012 20.23 years +0.5%
2013 20.4 years +0.8%
2014 20.55 years +0.7%
2015 20.66 years +0.5%
2016 20.73 years +0.3%
2017 20.82 years +0.4%
2018 20.91 years +0.4%
2019 20.92 years +0.1%
2020 20.89 years -0.1%
2021 20.8 years -0.4%
2022 20.73 years -0.4%
2023 20.7 years -0.1%

Tonga compared with similar countries

  • Tonga's 20.7 years is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 29.94 years, 69% of the median. (58 countries reporting)
  • Tonga's 20.7 years is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 29.83 years, 69% of the median. (37 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 16.27 years 16 years 16.59 years 10
1960s 15.88 years 15.64 years 15.97 years 10
1970s 15.68 years 15.57 years 16.1 years 10
1980s 16.97 years 16.27 years 17.89 years 10
1990s 18.59 years 18.12 years 19.11 years 10
2000s 19.73 years 19.3 years 20.1 years 10
2010s 20.55 years 20.13 years 20.92 years 10
2020s 20.78 years 20.7 years 20.89 years 4

Countries ranked near Tonga

  1. 186 Namibia 20.96 years compare
  2. 187 Ghana 20.93 years compare
  3. 188 Marshall Islands 20.7 years compare
  4. 190 Nauru 20.43 years compare
  5. 191 Iraq 20.34 years compare
  6. 192 Comoros 20.33 years compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More reference data data for Tonga

All data for Tonga →

Frequently asked questions

What is median age in Tonga?
Median age in Tonga was 20.7 years in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest median age recorded in Tonga?
The highest recorded value was 20.92 years in 2019.
What is the lowest median age recorded in Tonga?
The lowest recorded value was 15.57 years in 1975.
How does Tonga rank for median age?
Tonga ranks 189th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
Is median age rising or falling in Tonga?
Over the last ten years it is up 1.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Tonga data come from?
The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Median age. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Median age in Tonga. Statizoid, drawing on UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/median-age/tonga/

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About this data

Indicator
Median age
Unit
years
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

Age that divides the population into two halves of equal size — half are younger and half are older.