The Local Government Finance and Improvement team closely follow the outcomes of the Census as it influences the level of funding provided to a local authority. It also provides a wide range of information about the people, housing and employment in the local area that supports evidence-based policy development and the planning, delivery and monitoring of local services.
Find information about your local borough below:
Basic findings for London
The population for London was recorded as 8,799,800 people across a total of 3,423,800 households.
The overall response rate for London was 95%, which could mean not getting information about nearly 0.5million people.
This figure of 8,799,800 is an increase in population of 625,859 people and a percentage increase of 7.7% from the figures collected by the 2011 Census.
| Population | Census 2021 | Census 2011 | % change 2011 to 2021 |
| London | 8,799,800 | 8,173,941 | 7.7% |
| England | 56,489,800 | 53,012,456 | 6.6% |
Age groups
Historically London has a younger age profile compared to the other regions, which continues to be the case. Looking at the ages of the residents in London shows a small increase in the percentage of people over 65yrs of age.
| Population | Census 2021 | Census 2011 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % age 0-14 | % age 15-64 | % age 65+ | % age 0-14 | % age 15-64 | % age 65+ | |
| London | 18.1% | 70.0% | 11.9% | 18.7% | 70.2% | 11.1% |
| England | 17.4% | 64.2% | 18.4% | 17.7% | 66.0% | 16.3% |
Households
The number of households has only increased by 36,545 from the 2011 Census.
| Household numbers | Census 2021 | Census 2011 | % change 2011 to 2021 |
| London | 3,423,800 | 3,387,255 | 1.1% |
| England | 23,435,700 | 23,044,097 | 1.7% |
Population density
London is far more densely populated that elsewhere at 5,598 people per square kilometre compared to the England average of 434. Which is nearly 13 times higher than the national average. This reflects the far higher population densities in inner London which remains 2.5 times higher than for outer London.
| Population density | Census 2021 Density | Census 2011 density | % change 2011 to 2021 |
| London | 5,598 | 5,200 | 7.7% |
| Inner London | 10,662 | 10,122 | 5.3% |
| Outer London | 4307 | 3945 | 9.2% |
| England | 434 | 410 | 5.9% |
Reasons the population figures may be lower than expected
Capturing all of London’s diverse communities is challenging at the best of times because of the capital’s higher levels of internal migration, language and cultural barriers, and high levels of homelessness.
London’s population may have been lower than expected because the 2021 Census was taken during the third lCovid-19 lockdown. Some boroughs are concerned that at this time many of their residents – particularly students, young people on furlough, and migrant workers from abroad – may have temporarily relocated to family homes outside of the capital.