Median Age

The median age splits the population into two equal groups, with as many people older as younger. Future projections are based on the UN medium scenario.

Scale: Higher values indicate higher median age.      

Direction of Change

THE POPULATION HAS STEADILY AGED OVER THREE DECADES

The data shows a clear and uninterrupted upward trajectory in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s median age from 1995 to 2025. Starting at just over 32 years in the mid-1990s, the median age remains relatively stable through the late 1990s before entering a period of consistent, gradual increase throughout the 2000s. The pace of ageing accelerates slightly after 2010, with each five-year interval adding approximately one to two years to the median age. By 2020, the country will have surpassed 43 years, and projections for 2025 place the median age at around 45.7. This steady rise reflects sustained demographic pressures: low fertility, outward migration of younger cohorts, and increased longevity. Together, these forces produce a long-term shift toward an older population profile with fewer young people entering the working-age base.

Global Rank

Compared with all geographic entities listed in the Index

Note: Population-weighted averages for Europe and the world.

Regional Rank

Compared with six former Yugoslav countries and Albania

Note: In 1995, Montenegro, Serbia, and Kosovo were part of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

1995 (highest → lowest): Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Albania, Kosovo.

2025 (highest → lowest): Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania, Kosovo.

Conclusion

By 2025, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s demographic structure will be firmly characterised by progressive ageing, signalling mounting pressures on labour markets, social protection systems, and long-term economic resilience.

Source: UN, World Population Prospects.