Real data
Population by sex and 5-year age group for 40 countries on every continent, from the World Bank and the United Nations, with the source on every sheet.
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Teaching Guide: Population Pyramids
A population pyramid (age-sex pyramid) is a double bar chart of the men and women in each age group. Its shape tells a country’s demographic story: birth rate, mortality, life expectancy and migration. This free generator creates A4 worksheets with real data from 40 countries in four years (1960, 1980, 2000 and 2023) to read, draw, work out indicators and compare pyramids, with a full answer key.
Read and interpret
Questions to read bars, classify the pyramid and explain its shape, from simple to open-ended.
Draw the pyramid
The table and a grid with the axes drawn, in 10-year or 5-year groups. The answer key shows the finished pyramid.
Demographic indicators
Percentage of young people, adults and older people, dependency ratio, ageing index and sex ratio.
Compare and see change
Two countries on the same scale, or one country in 1960 and 2023, to understand the demographic transition.
Explained answer key
Every pyramid type is justified with the printed data: base width, widest adult group and percentages.
Frequently Asked Questions about Population Pyramids
What are the types of population pyramid?
Expansive or progressive (a wide base narrowing upwards: high birth rate and a young population), stationary (base and adult groups of similar width: a low, steady birth rate) and constrictive or regressive (a base narrower than the middle: low birth rate and an ageing population).
How does the answer key decide the type of pyramid?
It compares the mean width of the three groups under 15 with the widest group aged 15 to 49. A pyramid is expansive if the base is at least 15 % wider and under-15s are a third of the population or more; stationary if the base is 90 % to 108 % as wide; and constrictive if it is under 78 % and people aged 65 and over are more than 14 %. Pyramids in transition are never asked to be classified.
How do you draw a population pyramid?
Men go on the left and women on the right, with the age groups from the bottom (0–4) to the top (80 and over). Each bar is as long as its percentage on the horizontal axis, which starts at zero in the middle. The worksheet has the axes and scale already drawn.
How do you work out the dependency ratio and the ageing index?
The dependency ratio is (young people aged 0–14 + older people aged 65 and over) / adults aged 15–64 × 100. The ageing index is older people / young people × 100. The sex ratio is men / women × 100. The answer key writes out each division with the numbers in the table.
Where does the data come from?
From the World Bank (Health Nutrition and Population Statistics), based on the United Nations World Population Prospects, under a CC BY 4.0 licence. There are 40 countries in 1960, 1980, 2000 and 2023, and percentages are rounded to one decimal place so they add up to 100.
How do I print only the answer key?
Click Print and choose “Answer key”, or “Worksheet and answer key” for both. Your browser’s print dialog can also save it as a PDF.
Is any student data sent to a server?
No. Every sheet is created in your browser and no student data is stored. Templates are kept in your browser’s memory.
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