As of 2023, an estimated 1.46 billion people speak English around the World.
Incredibly, this amounts to 18.07% of the global population, almost 1 in 5 people.
More people speak English than any other language.
The total number of English speakers is estimated to be around 28% higher than Mandarin Chinese, which is the second-most popular language.
26% of English speakers speak it as a first-language and 74% of English speakers speak it as a second-language.
English is taught as a foreign language more frequently than any other language.
By 2050, the total number of English speakers is anticipated to grow to 2 billion people.
“The Anglosphere” is a term used to describe regions with a cultural connection to England, where English is often spoken by many in the population.
The United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand are known as the “Core Anglosphere”, where English is the official language.
In addition to its popularity in many regions, the English language is also used for professional contexts, across the fields of science, navigation and law.
People who speak English are sometimes referred to as “Anglophones”.
Number of English speakers over time
The total number of English speakers increased annually from 1.13 billion in 2019 to 1.46 billion in 2023.
Over the given 5-year period, the total number of English speakers increased by 29.20%.
As of 2023, the number of English native speakers is 0.38 billion, equalling that of 2019.
The number of English second-language speakers showed several increases over the period, rising from 0.75 billion in 2019 to 1.08 billion in 2023.
In terms of change, English second-language speakers increased by 44.00% over the given period.
Year
Native speakers
Second-language speakers
Total speakers
Total change
2023
0.38 billion
1.08 billion
1.46 billion
+ 0.69%
2022
0.37 billion
1.08 billion
1.45 billion
+ 7.41%
2021
0.37 billion
0.98 billion
1.35 billion
+ 6.30%
2020
0.37 billion
0.90 billion
1.27 billion
+ 12.39%
2019
0.38 billion
0.75 billion
1.13 billion
A graph is given below to show the number of English speakers over time:
Countries where English is an official language
Predominant language
4 countries list English as a predominant language.
The total population of these countries is around 439 million people.
The United States represents around 77% of the population of English predominant languagecountries alone, with its population of approximately 340 million people.
For each of the listed countries, English is spoken by:
Around 265 million people in the United States (78%).
Around 66 million people in the United Kingdom (98%).
Around 19 million people in Australia (72%).
Around 5 million people in New Zealand (95%).
#
Country
Population (2023)
1
United States
339,996,563
2
United Kingdom
67,736,802
3
Australia
26,439,111
4
New Zealand
5,228,100
De jure official language
53 countries list English as a de jure official language (according to law).
The total population of these countries is 2.55 billion people.
India represents around 56% of the population of English de jure official languagecountries alone, with its population of approximately 1.43 billion people.
There are approximately 143 million English speakers in India, around 10% of its population.
Nigeria’s English speaking population is estimated at around 60%, which makes for over 134 million people.
In Pakistan, around 50% of the population can speak English, which amounts to over 120 million people.
#
Country
Population (2023)
1
India
1,428,627,663
2
Pakistan
240,485,658
3
Nigeria
223,804,632
4
Philippines
117,337,368
5
Tanzania
67,438,106
6
South Africa
60,414,495
7
Kenya
55,100,586
8
Uganda
48,582,334
9
Sudan
48,109,006
10
Canada
38,781,291
11
Ghana
34,121,985
12
Cameroon
28,647,293
13
Malawi
20,931,751
14
Zambia
20,569,737
15
Zimbabwe
16,665,409
16
Rwanda
14,094,683
17
Burundi
13,238,559
18
South Sudan
11,088,796
19
Papua New Guinea
10,329,931
20
Sierra Leone
8,791,092
21
Singapore
6,014,723
22
Liberia
5,418,377
23
Ireland
5,056,935
24
Jamaica
2,825,544
25
The Gambia
2,773,168
26
Botswana
2,675,352
27
Namibia
2,604,172
28
Lesotho
2,330,318
29
Trinidad and Tobago
1,534,937
30
Eswatini
1,210,822
31
Fiji
936,375
32
Guyana
813,834
33
Solomon Islands
740,424
34
Micronesia
544,321
35
Malta
535,064
36
The Bahamas
412,623
37
Belize
410,825
38
Vanuatu
334,506
39
Barbados
281,995
40
Samoa
225,681
41
Saint Lucia
180,251
42
Kiribati
133,515
43
Grenada
126,183
44
Tonga
107,773
45
Seychelles
107,660
46
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
103,698
47
Antigua and Barbuda
94,298
48
Dominica
73,040
49
Saint Kitts and Nevis
47,755
50
Marshall Islands
41,996
51
Palau
18,058
52
Nauru
12,780
53
Tuvalu
11,396
De facto working language
10 countries list English as a de facto working language (used for official purposes but not by law).
The total population of these countries is around 254 million people.
Bangladesh represents around 68% of the population of English de facto working languagecountries alone, with its population of approximately 173 million people.
An estimated 12% of Bangladesh’s population can speak English, around 21 million people.
#
Country
Population (2023)
1
Bangladesh
172,954,319
2
Malaysia
34,308,525
3
Sri Lanka
21,893,579
4
United Arab Emirates
9,516,871
5
Israel
9,174,520
6
Qatar
2,716,391
7
Timor-Leste
1,360,596
8
Mauritius
1,300,557
9
Bhutan
787,424
10
Brunei
452,524
If you are learning English and are looking for some assistance in word games, check out the WordsRated Word Finder and boost your vocabulary!
English proficiency index
As of 2023, the English proficiency index shows that The Netherlands has the highest proficiency scores of the countries analyzed.
Comparing countries by their proficiency level:
12 countries scored very high proficiency levels (10.62%).
18 countries scored high proficiency levels (15.93%).
33 countries scored moderate proficiency levels (29.20%).
28 countries scored low proficiency levels (24.78%).
22 countries scored very low proficiency levels (19.47%).
Comparing average scores by continent:
Europe ranks first with an average score of 570.
Latin America ranks second with an average score of 508.
Asia ranks third with an average score of 486.
Africa ranks fourth with an average score of 469.
The Middle East ranks fifth with an average score of 455.
