India population by state
India’s projected population on 1 March 2026 is 142.59 crore. Uttar Pradesh is the largest state with 24.29 crore, followed by Bihar (13.23 crore) and Maharashtra (12.93 crore). These are official projections, not a count: the last census was in 2011.
Population by state
| Rank | State or UT | Population, 2026 | Share of India | Change since 2011 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Uttar Pradesh | 24.29 cr | 17.0% | +21.5% | |
| 2 | Bihar | 13.23 cr | 9.3% | +27.1% | |
| 3 | Maharashtra | 12.93 cr | 9.1% | +15.1% | |
| 4 | West Bengal | 10.05 cr | 7.0% | +10.1% | |
| 5 | Madhya Pradesh | 8.97 cr | 6.3% | +23.5% | |
| 6 | Rajasthan | 8.36 cr | 5.9% | +22.0% | |
| 7 | Tamil Nadu | 7.75 cr | 5.4% | +7.5% | |
| 8 | Gujarat | 7.41 cr | 5.2% | +22.6% | |
| 9 | Karnataka | 6.90 cr | 4.8% | +12.9% | |
| 10 | Andhra Pradesh | 5.37 cr | 3.8% | +8.3% | |
| 11 | Odisha | 4.71 cr | 3.3% | +12.3% | |
| 12 | Jharkhand | 4.10 cr | 2.9% | +24.2% | |
| 13 | Telangana | 3.86 cr | 2.7% | +10.4% | |
| 14 | Assam | 3.67 cr | 2.6% | +17.7% | |
| 15 | Kerala | 3.62 cr | 2.5% | +8.4% | |
| 16 | Punjab | 3.13 cr | 2.2% | +12.9% | |
| 17 | Haryana | 3.13 cr | 2.2% | +23.5% | |
| 18 | Chhattisgarh | 3.12 cr | 2.2% | +22.2% | |
| 19 | Delhi | 2.25 cr | 1.6% | +34.3% | |
| 20 | Jammu & Kashmir | 1.39 cr | 1.0% | +13.3% | |
| 21 | Uttarakhand | 1.20 cr | 0.8% | +18.9% | |
| 22 | Himachal Pradesh | 75.8 lakh | 0.5% | +10.4% | |
| 23 | Tripura | 42.6 lakh | 0.3% | +15.9% | |
| 24 | Meghalaya | 34.4 lakh | 0.2% | +15.9% | |
| 25 | Manipur | 33.1 lakh | 0.2% | +15.9% | |
| 26 | Nagaland | 22.9 lakh | 0.2% | +15.9% | |
| 27 | Puducherry | 17.6 lakh | 0.1% | +40.8% | |
| 28 | Arunachal Pradesh | 16.0 lakh | 0.1% | +15.9% | |
| 29 | Goa | 16.0 lakh | 0.1% | +9.6% | |
| 30 | Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu | 15.4 lakh | 0.1% | +162.5% | |
| 31 | Mizoram | 12.7 lakh | 0.1% | +16.0% | |
| 32 | Chandigarh | 12.7 lakh | 0.1% | +20.1% | |
| 33 | Sikkim | 7.1 lakh | 0.0% | +15.9% | |
| 34 | Andaman & Nicobar Islands | 4.1 lakh | 0.0% | +6.6% | |
| 35 | Ladakh | 3.0 lakh | 0.0% | +11.3% | |
| 36 | Lakshadweep | 0.7 lakh | 0.0% | +9.4% |
India total for 2026: 142.59 crore. The five largest states hold 49% of the population in 2026. 1 crore is 10 million.
Which states are growing fastest
Among the 21 states and UTs that had at least 1 crore people in 2011, between the Census and 2026 Delhi (+34.3%), Bihar (+27.1%), Jharkhand (+24.2%) grew fastest and Tamil Nadu (+7.5%), Andhra Pradesh (+8.3%), Kerala (+8.4%) grew slowest. For 2026 to 2036, Delhi and Bihar are projected to add the most (+18.0% and +12.3%), while Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu add the least (+1.0% and +0.7%).
Questions
What is the population of India in 2026?
The official projection is 142.59 crore on 1 March 2026. It is a projection built from the 2011 Census, not a count.
Which is the most populous state in India?
Uttar Pradesh, with a projected 24.29 crore in 2026, about 17% of India. Bihar and Maharashtra come next.
Where do these numbers come from?
From the Report of the Technical Group on Population Projections 2011-2036, published by the National Commission on Population under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in July 2020. It projects each state from the 2011 Census using assumptions about births, deaths and migration.
Why do other sites show different figures?
Sites use different projections, the UN estimates, or a simple extrapolation of 2011. The projections here are the Indian government’s own and will be replaced once a new census is published.
Use this data
Download the figures on this page. If you use them, please credit India in Data and the original source.
Cite this
India in Data, "Projected population of Indian states, 2011 to 2036". https://indiaindata.online/population-by-state. Original source: National Commission on Population, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Report of the Technical Group on Population Projections 2011-2036, Table 8.
Source: National Commission on Population, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Report of the Technical Group on Population Projections 2011-2036 (July 2020), Table 8, projected total population as on 1 March. State figures add up to the India total within rounding. Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu are combined. The report projects the seven north-eastern states other than Assam together, so several show the same growth, and very small UTs such as Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu show large swings from its migration assumptions. See our methodology.