Population
191,000 residents in 2024 live across 2,180 square kilometres
According to official population estimates from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the county’s population grew by 1,000 residents (0.5%) between 2023 and 2024. This rate of growth places Herefordshire around the national average among local authorities in England and Wales.
- Total population: 191,000
- Women: 97,200 (51%)
- Men: 93,800 (49%)
- Aged under 16: 30,300 (16%)
- Aged 16 to 64: 109,200 (57%)
- Aged 65 and over: 51,500 (27%)
Herefordshire is a predominantly rural county. With a population density of just 88 people per square kilometre, it is the fourth least densely populated county in England. Only Westmorland and Furness (61), Northumberland (66) and North Yorkshire (79) are less densely populated.
Herefordshire’s age structure remains older than nationally
Herefordshire has an older population than the national average, with a median age of 49.1 years compared with 40.3 years across England and Wales. Around a quarter of residents (27%) are aged 65 or over, compared with 19% nationally. The county also has a slightly higher proportion of older working-age adults aged 45 to 64 (27% versus 25%), but lower proportions of younger working-age adults aged 16 to 44 (30% versus 38%) and children aged under 16 (16% versus 18%).
Growth is entirely dependent on migration
There are consistently fewer births than deaths in Herefordshire each year. In the latest year (2023-24) there were 1,600 births compared to 2,400 deaths. This means that without net migration into the county the total population would fall.
Major events since 2016 have affected migration patterns across England and Wales, including Britain leaving the European Union (EU) and subsequent changes to immigration policy, the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. Herefordshire's population decreased by 800 between mid-2017 and mid-2020, but from mid-2020 to mid-2024, it grew at its fastest rate in 20 years, with an average annual increase of 1,300 residents, driven by net inward migration. Of the new residents, 78% moved from other parts of the UK and 22% from overseas.
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Ageing population
Herefordshire has higher proportions of residents in their early fifties and above than England and Wales as a whole and numbers continue to grow at a relatively higher rate.
Changing population
Since the early 90s Herefordshire’s population growth has been driven entirely by migration, since there have been fewer births than deaths over this period.
Growing population
Herefordshire has seen an overall growth of nine per cent, over the last 16 years (from 2001 to 2017), this is lower than the 12 per cent seen in England and Wales as a whole.
Population around the county
Herefordshire is one of the least densely populated areas of the country, with residents scattered across its 842 square miles. Two-fifths of our residents live in the most rural areas of the county. Hereford city has relatively high proportions of young adults (aged 20-34), whilst the market towns have the highest proportions of people aged 80 and over.