Age dependency ratio, old in Bulgaria
Bulgaria: Age dependency ratio, old was 35.1% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Age dependency ratio, old in Bulgaria, 1960–2025
Source: World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Population Division. Measured in % of working-age population.
Analysis
Bulgaria recorded 35.1% for age dependency ratio, old in 2025. That is the highest value across all 66 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.1% on the previous year and up 14.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age dependency ratio, old in Bulgaria peaked at 35.1% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 11.2%, in 1960.
That places Bulgaria 19th out of 217 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Age dependency ratio, old in Bulgaria, year by year
| Year | % of working-age population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 11.2% | — |
| 1961 | 11.5% | +2.4% |
| 1962 | 11.7% | +2.0% |
| 1963 | 11.9% | +1.4% |
| 1964 | 12.1% | +1.5% |
| 1965 | 12.4% | +2.8% |
| 1966 | 12.8% | +3.3% |
| 1967 | 13.1% | +2.3% |
| 1968 | 13.4% | +2.6% |
| 1969 | 13.8% | +2.8% |
| 1970 | 14.2% | +2.9% |
| 1971 | 14.7% | +3.1% |
| 1972 | 15.1% | +2.8% |
| 1973 | 15.5% | +2.6% |
| 1974 | 15.8% | +2.5% |
| 1975 | 16.3% | +2.6% |
| 1976 | 16.7% | +2.5% |
| 1977 | 17.1% | +2.4% |
| 1978 | 17.2% | +1.0% |
| 1979 | 17.5% | +1.3% |
| 1980 | 17.9% | +2.7% |
| 1981 | 17.9% | -0.3% |
| 1982 | 17.3% | -3.2% |
| 1983 | 16.7% | -3.3% |
| 1984 | 16.6% | -0.9% |
| 1985 | 17.0% | +2.2% |
| 1986 | 17.5% | +3.2% |
| 1987 | 18.0% | +3.0% |
| 1988 | 18.5% | +2.7% |
| 1989 | 19.1% | +3.1% |
| 1990 | 19.8% | +3.8% |
| 1991 | 20.5% | +3.5% |
| 1992 | 21.1% | +3.1% |
| 1993 | 21.7% | +2.6% |
| 1994 | 22.1% | +2.1% |
| 1995 | 22.5% | +1.9% |
| 1996 | 22.9% | +1.6% |
| 1997 | 23.3% | +1.5% |
| 1998 | 23.7% | +1.7% |
| 1999 | 24.1% | +1.9% |
| 2000 | 24.5% | +1.5% |
| 2001 | 24.7% | +1.0% |
| 2002 | 24.9% | +0.8% |
| 2003 | 25.0% | +0.3% |
| 2004 | 25.0% | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 25.1% | +0.4% |
| 2006 | 25.3% | +0.5% |
| 2007 | 25.4% | +0.7% |
| 2008 | 25.7% | +1.1% |
| 2009 | 26.1% | +1.4% |
| 2010 | 26.5% | +1.8% |
| 2011 | 27.2% | +2.7% |
| 2012 | 28.1% | +3.0% |
| 2013 | 28.9% | +2.9% |
| 2014 | 29.8% | +3.0% |
| 2015 | 30.7% | +3.0% |
| 2016 | 31.5% | +2.6% |
| 2017 | 32.1% | +2.1% |
| 2018 | 32.8% | +2.1% |
| 2019 | 33.5% | +2.1% |
| 2020 | 33.9% | +1.4% |
| 2021 | 34.0% | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 34.0% | +0.1% |
| 2023 | 34.3% | +0.8% |
| 2024 | 34.7% | +1.1% |
| 2025 | 35.1% | +1.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 12.4% | 11.2% | 13.8% | 10 |
| 1970s | 16.0% | 14.2% | 17.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 17.7% | 16.6% | 19.1% | 10 |
| 1990s | 22.2% | 19.8% | 24.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 25.2% | 24.5% | 26.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 30.1% | 26.5% | 33.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 34.3% | 33.9% | 35.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Bulgaria
More health data for Bulgaria
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -2.5 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate -0.615 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,422 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 39 deaths (2100)
- Total tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 1 (2025)
- Total tetanus - number of reported cases, per capita 0 units per person (2025)
- Diphtheria - number of reported cases, gaps filled 0 (2025)
- Diphtheria - number of reported cases, per capita 0 units per person (2025)
- Measles - number of reported cases, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Measles - number of reported cases, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is age dependency ratio, old in Bulgaria?
- Age dependency ratio, old in Bulgaria was 35.1% in 2025, according to World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Population Division.
- What is the highest age dependency ratio, old recorded in Bulgaria?
- The highest recorded value was 35.1% in 2025.
- What is the lowest age dependency ratio, old recorded in Bulgaria?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.2% in 1960.
- How does Bulgaria rank for age dependency ratio, old?
- Bulgaria ranks 19th out of 217 countries with data for 2025.
- Is age dependency ratio, old rising or falling in Bulgaria?
- Over the last ten years it is up 14.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Bulgaria data come from?
- The figures come from World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Population Division, published as part of Age dependency ratio, old (% of working-age population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Age dependency ratio, old, is the ratio of older dependents--people older than 64--to the working-age population--those ages 15-64. Data are shown as the proportion of dependents per 100 working-age population.