# Bolivia Population and Ethnic Groups Explained

> Bolivia's population grew 13% since 2012 with 38.7% identifying as Indigenous.
- Title: Bolivia Population and Ethnic Groups Explained · The Rio Times
- Summary: Bolivia's population grew 13% since 2012 with 38.7% identifying as Indigenous. Bolivia's 2024 census shows 11.3 million people, 38.7% self-identify as…
- Keywords: bolivia, population, indigenous, ethnic, census, quechua, aymara, spanish, language, migration, news, world
- Source: The Rio Times — https://riotimesonline.com/bolivia-population-ethnic-groups-explained-2026
- Author: Contributing Reporter
- Published: 2026-10-29T13:45:09+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: bolivia, population, indigenous, ethnic, census, quechua, aymara, spanish, language, migration, news, world
## Population Growth
Bolivia's population grew 13% since 2012 to 11,365,333 people at the March 2024 census.
## Age Distribution
The median age is 27 years with 27% under 15 and 7% aged 65 or older.
## Urban Concentration
69% of Bolivians live in cities, with Santa Cruz and La Paz departments holding 3 million people each.
## Indigenous Identity
38.7% of people self-identify as Indigenous, mainly Quechua and Aymara peoples.
## Language Patterns
Spanish is the first language of 76.8% of people aged 4 and over, with Quechua and Aymara following.
## Department Breakdown
Santa Cruz leads with 3,122,605 people, followed by La Paz with 3,030,917 and Cochabamba with 2,016,357.
## Migration Trends
Bolivia reports 329,047 relatives living abroad, with Chile as the top destination at 33.3%.
## Indigenous Language Use
37.1% of Bolivians aged 6 and over speak at least one Indigenous language.
## Rural vs Urban Identity
68.1% of rural residents identify as Indigenous versus 25.6% in cities.
## Population by Department
Potosí has 61.8% Indigenous identification, while Santa Cruz has only 16.3%.
## Language Shifts
Quechua and Aymara share 13.2% and 7.3% of the population, down from 17.6% and 10.9% in 2012.
## Emigration Patterns
Bolivia has 175,017 foreign-born residents, with Argentina as the largest group at 58,886.
## Urban Indigenous Population
2 million Indigenous residents live in urban areas, with 37.6% of Bolivians speaking multiple languages.
## What's Next
Bolivia's population continues to age with growing urbanization and Indigenous identity.
## Key takeaway

Bolivia's 2024 census shows 11.3 million people, 38.7% self-identify as Indigenous, and 76.8% speak Spanish first.