Population of Spain over 65 years 2002-2024

As of January 2024, the population aged over 65 years in Spain amounted to 9.93 million people, thus continuing the upward trend witnessed in previous years. Between 2002 and 2024, the elderly population increased by almost three million. According to recent data, people aged over 65 years represent nearly a fifth of the Spanish population.

Ageism, a growing concern

As it is happening in most advanced economies, the Spanish population is getting older. The Mediterranean country featured a median age of 43.5 years in 2020, and it is forecast to reach 51.8 years in 2050. Life expectancy and the fertility rate are experiencing opposite trends, and while the former keeps improving, the latter continue to decrease. As a result, the Spanish population pyramid is turning into the contracting type, which has worrying social and economic consequences.

Poverty among seniors

The average amount of a retirement pension in the country is just over 1,374 euros a month, though this figure depends on the scheme and place of residence. There were almost one million persons receiving a monthly retirement pension which amounted to 600 euros or less in 2023. This scarce allowance can be insufficient to provide a good quality of life. Most recent data shows that over 18 percent of those aged 65 or older were at risk of poverty, an extremely high rate even though this was one of the age groups that featured the lowest risk of poverty. On average, 39 percent of the spending among this age group is channeled towards housing, water, electricity and fuels, which leaves little room for spending on other items (food, dress, services, etc.) for those millions of people whose retirement pension is not even close to the national minimum wage.

For more data on this topic, check Statista's report on Seniors in Spain.