List of countries by English-speaking population

The following is a list of English-speaking population by country, including information on both native speakers and second-language speakers.

Percentage of English native speakers (2017)

Percent of total English-speaking population by country

List

This list may be sorted by column by clicking on the column header.

Some numbers have been calculated by combining data from different sources; figures not attributed to sources and given with a date should be treated with caution.

In most sources, the results shown are of people who say that they can speak English, while that was not verified, which means the actual number of English speakers could be higher or lower.

Country	Eligible population	Total English speakers		As first language		As an additional language[1]		Notes
		No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
United States	312,092,668	297,400,000	95.29	244,232,103	78.26	42,155,719	17.04	Figures are from the 2022 American Community Survey 5-year estimates by the U.S. Census Bureau for persons age 5 and older. Total English speakers are those who either spoke English at home (i.e. as first language), or reported speaking another language at home but could speak English "very well" or "well" (i.e. as an additional language).[2][3]
India	1,450,000,000	228,539,090	15.76	259,678	0.02	228,279,412	15.74	2024 estimate figures for population and first, second, and third languages. English as a first language is only spoken by 259,678 people, as a second language by 182,717,239 and as a third language by 45,562,173.[4]
Nigeria	206,200,000	125,039,680	60.64	20,000,000	9.70	103,198,040	50.05	English is the most widespread language in the country due to the many different languages spoken, with 60 million speakers.[5] This includes speakers of an English creole, accounting for 51% to 57% of the total population.[5][6] It is estimated 10% of Nigerians speak English as a first language.[7]
Pakistan	220,892,331	108,044,691	48.91	8,642	0.0035	108,036,049	48.91	English is one of the official languages under the constitution and is commonly used in education and administration.[8][9][10] According to statistics from various sources, the English-speaking population ranges from 88.69 million[11] to 108 million,[12][13] accounting for 49% to 58% of the total population.[14][15]
United Kingdom	64,000,000	62,912,000	98.30	59,072,000	92.30	3,840,000	6.00	Source: Data from the 2011 census for England and Wales.[16] Additional English speaker figures are for usual residents aged 3 years and over with a main language other than English who can speak English "very well" or "well".
Philippines	110,000,000	70,117,935	63.74	36,935	0.04	70,081,000	63.71	Over 60 million people aged 5 years or more can speak English.[17][18][19] "Six out of 10 people aged 5 and over can speak English (63.71%)."[20]
Germany	80,600,000	45,400,000	56.33	392,000	0.47	45,100,000	55.96	Native speakers: Mikrozensus 2020, Statistisches Bundesamt.[21] Non-native speakers: Eurobarometer report 2012 Does not include foreign military personnel based in Germany.
Uganda	44,270,000	19,800,000	45	0	0	19,800,000	45	Source: Uganda Bureau of Statistics (2016)
France	67,500,000	38,643,750	57.25	0	0	38,643,750	57.25	Note: In Paris, 60.28% of the population has "reasonable competency", while 57.25% of the entire country has "reasonable competency".[22]
Canada	37,138,500	30,480,750	83.06	20,193,335	54.37	10,287,415	28.69	The 2016 count reported that 23,757,525 people were able to conduct a conversation in English only, while 6,216,065 were able to converse in both English and French. The census also asked for the first language learned at home in childhood and still understood by the individual: 52% or 19,460,850 reported English as their only mother tongue, 165,320 reported both English and French as mother tongues, 533,265 reported English and a non-official language as mother tongues, and 33,900 reported English, French and a non-official language as mother tongues. The data also show that 26,007,500 Canadians report English as their first official language spoken.[23]
Egypt	110,990,000	44,373,802	39.98	5,527,302	5	38,846,500	35	Source: Euromonitor International Report 2019[24]
Australia	23,401,892	21,715,910	92.80	17,020,421	72.74	4,695,489	20.06	Source: 2016 census.[25] The 2016 census data is subject to multiple interpretations. The data noted that 17,020,421 persons out of 23,401,892 total only spoke English, and a further 4,695,489 spoke English either "Very Well", "Well" or "Not Well". A further 193,036 persons were listed as speaking English "Not At All". However, 1,492,941 persons provided incomplete information; 1,440,493 provided no language or proficiency details and 52,448 gave no information on proficiency.
Bangladesh	165,323,100	19,838,772	12	709,873	0.43	16,398,158	9.90	[26]
Poland	38,501,000	18,890,000	49.06	103,541	0.3	18,786,459	50	Source: AutoLingual (blog)[27]
Ghana	27,000,000	18,000,000	66.67	0	0	18,000,000	66.67	Source: 2010 Ghanaian Census[28]
Thailand	63,038,247	17,121,187	27.16	0	0	17,121,187	27.16	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Ukraine	33,365,000	17,016,000	51	0	0	17,016,000	51	Source: sociological study by KIIS[29]
Italy	59,619,290	8,121,000	13.74	0	0	8,121,000	13.74	Source: languageknowledge.eu[30]
South Africa	52,981,991	16,424,417	31	4,930,510	9.31	11,493,907	22	Native speakers from 2011 Census.[31] Non-native speakers: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Mexico	120,664,000	15,686,262	12.9	0	0	15,686,262	12.9	Consulta Mitofsky-Tracking Poll Roy Campos: Las Lenguas Extranjeras en México, January 2013;[32] and II Conteo de Población y Vivienda, Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Geografía e Informática (INEGI)[33]
Malaysia	27,170,000	15,580,000	62.57	380,000	1.4	15,200,000	61.1	EF English Proficiency Index[34]
Indonesia	279,118,866	85,968,611	30.8	837,356	0.3	85,131,255	30.5	Indonesians learn English as a major foreign language.[35]
Afghanistan	41,130,000	2,467,800	6	0	0	2,467,800	6	During the two decades since the U.S. military intervened in Afghanistan, English as a foreign language was learned by 6% of Afghans. (see Languages of Afghanistan)[36]
Netherlands	16,770,000	15,250,000	90.90	0	0	15,250,000	90.9	Source: Eurobarometer report 2016
Turkey	80,200,256	12,000,000	17	0	0	12,000,000	17	Source: Eurobarometer report 2006
Zimbabwe	14,439,000	11,850,710	90	505,365	5	11,530,710	79.86	[37][38][39]
Iraq	31,700,000	11,095,000	35.00	95000	0.30	11,000,000	34.70%	Source: Euromonitor International report (2011)
Brazil	216,000,000	12,000,000	5	292,000	0.14	10,250,000	5	Source: British council (2012) and EF. Only 5% of Brazilians have a proficient grasp of English as a second or foreign additional language and an additional 6% have a very rudimentary knowledge.
Spain	47,190,000	10,400,000	22	0	0	10,400,000	22	Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
China	1,432,035,200	10,000,000	0.9	0	0	10,000,000	<1	Figures are for English users in mainland China only (i.e. excluding Hong Kong where English is an official language and Macau). The often-cited figure of 300 million is for "learners."[40]
Sweden	10,377,771	9,236,000	89	0	0	9,236,000	89	Source: Statistics Sweden, 2021
Kenya	52,533,109	41,332,711	78.68	0	0	7,900,000		Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Cameroon	19,740,000	7,500,000	38	0	0	7,500,000	38	Euromonitor International Report (2009)
Morocco	37,340,000	6,883,220	18.3	0	0	6,883,220	18.3	[41]
Belgium	10,584,534	6,250,000	60	0	0	6,250,000	60	Source: Eurobarometer report 2006 The Belgian population is divided in two distinct linguistic regions: The Belgian Dutch-speaking Flanders, and the Belgian French-speaking Wallonia (the region of Brussels also has a majority of native French speakers). Like in the Netherlands, a high percentage of Flemish people speak English fluently, and in Wallonia, a lower percentage of people speak English (as it is the case in France), which brings down the total percentage.
Israel	7,303,000	6,205,000	84.97	100,000	1.37	6,105,000	83.6	Source: Ethnologue (2005)[42] English is widely spoken, both by the Jewish majority and by minority ethnic groups.[43][44]
Austria	8,415,000	6,150,000	73	0	0	6,150,000	73	[45][46]
Romania	19,043,767	5,900,000	31	0	0	5,900,000	31	Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
Hungary	9,603,634	2,428,295	25.29	0	0	2,428,295	25.29	[47]
Greece	10,787,690	5,500,000	51	0	0	5,500,000	51	Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
Czechia	10,562,214	5,350,000	50.65	0	0	5,350,000	50	[48]
Russia	144,699,673	7,000,000	5	0	0	7,000,000	5	Russian population Census, 2021[49]
Sierra Leone	5,866,000	4,900,000	83.53	500,000	8.52	4,400,000	75	Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Denmark	5,543,000	4,770,000	86	0	0	4,770,000	86	Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
Switzerland	7,637,300	4,680,000	61.28	73,400	0.96	4,606,600	60.32	Figure for speakers of English as "main language", according to Federal Statistical Office, Neuchâtel 2008.[50] Source for number of non-native English speakers is 1999 publication by Prof. François Grin[51]
Norway	5,136,700	4,500,000	90	0	0	4,500,000	90	[52]
Papua New Guinea	6,331,000	4,459,191	70.4	0	0	4,459,191	70.4	Source: 2011 Census Note: This statistic is people who are literate in Standard English, not including Tok Pisin.
Ireland	4,422,100	4,350,000	98.37	4,112,100	93.22	237,900	5.38	Source: Eurobarometer report 2006; Central Statistics Office; Travbla[53]
New Zealand	4,275,100	4,181,902	97.82	3,673,623	85.93	508,279	11.89	There were 4,027,947 responses to 2006 Census: Language spoken. 3,673,679 gave English as a response, 81,936 had no English but another language. The balance of 272,382 were; no language (too young) 75,195, no response 196,221, response unidentifiable 588, response outside scope 378. Hence it is most meaningful to express the English-speaking per cent without including the figures for these 272,382. This gives 97.8% English-speaking, 2.2% non-English-speaking (3,673,679 and 81,936 divided by 3,755,565) Crystal (2003), p. 109, gives figures of 3,700,000 native speakers and 150,000-second language speakers.
Madagascar	23,042,300	4,147,614	18	0	0	4,147,614	18	The main languages are French and Malagasy. [54]
Tanzania	40,454,000	4,000,000	9.89	0	0	4,000,000	9.89	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Sri Lanka	21,803,000	3,994,174	18.32	10,000	0.05	3,994,174	18.32	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109; Department of Census and Statistics, 2012. 23.8% of the population aged over 10 could speak English.[55]
Singapore	4,044,200	3,900,000	96.43	1,953,348	48.3	1,946,652	48.13	Figures indicate Singaporean residents (citizen and permanent resident population). Source: Census 2020 "Language Spoken at Home Among Residents Aged 5 Years and Over"
Finland	5,410,000	3,800,000	70	0	0	3,800,000	70	Source: Eurobarometer report 2022
Cambodia	15,766,292	3,500,000	22.2	0	0	3,500,000	22.2	Source: quote of a Ministry of Education spokesman[56]
Hong Kong	6,808,433	3,136,784	46.07	238,288	3.5	2,898,496	42.57	According to 2011 population census, Hong Kong has approximately 3.1 million speakers, of whom 238,288 regard English as their "usual" language.[57]
Liberia	3,750,000	3,100,000	82.67	600,000	16	2,500,000	66.67	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Jordan	6,598,000	2,969,370	45	0	0	2,969,370	45	Source: Euromonitor International report (2011)
Portugal	10,623,000	2,900,000	27	0	0	2,900,000	27	Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
Argentina	42,192,500	2,752,681	6.52	0	0	2,752,681	6.52	Source:.[58] Percentage of people who state they have a high level of English. Another 19.49% and 16.23% of people said they had an intermediate and low level, respectively, of English.
Jamaica	2,714,000	2,650,000	97.64	45,900	1.69	2,604,100	95.95	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Croatia	4,555,000	2,600,000	60			3,950,000	87.8	Source: Eurobarometer report 2019
Algeria	35,954,000	2,516,780	7	0	0	2,516,780	7	Source: Euromonitor International report (2011)
Myanmar	53,900,000	2,400,000	4.45	0	0	2,400,000	4.45	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Yemen	24,800,000	2,232,000	9	0	0	2,232,000	9	Source: Euromonitor International report 2011
Colombia	47,661,368	2,012,950	4.22	75,600	0.16	1,937,350	4.06	Total was estimated by multiplying projected population for 2014 (DANE) by percentage of Colombian population who speak English, 4.09%,[59] then 63,600 was added to that figure which is the total of American and British residents. Figures for native speakers are as follows: 60,000 U.S. citizens who reside in Colombia. 12,000 are Colombian Raizal from San Andrés and Isla de Providencia where they speak San Andrés–Providencia Creole.[60] 3,600 British expatriates.[61]
Puerto Rico	3,991,000	1,940,000	48.61	100,000	2.51	1,840,000	46.1	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Zambia	11,922,000	1,910,000	16.02	110,000	0.92	1,800,000	15.1	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Bulgaria	7,640,238	1,900,000	25	2,605	0.03	1,902,605	25	Source: Eurobarometer report 2012 and 2011 Census[62]
Kazakhstan	12,156,705	1,874,583	15.42	602	0	1,873,981	15.42	Number of those who understand spoken English, from these 1.9 million: 311,435 (2.6%/16.6%) can only read, 931,444 (7.7%/49.6%) can read and write in English. The number of native speakers is the sum of Americans and Englishmen "by nationality". (Census 2009)
Lebanon	4,265,600	1,706,000	40	0	0	1,706,000	40	Source: Euromonitor International report (2011)
Chile	16,634,603	1,585,027	9.53	0	0	1,585,027	9.53	Source: 2012 Census.[63]
Rwanda	10,137,400	1,520,610	15	0	0	1,520,610	15	Source: Euromonitor International report 2009
Slovakia	5,397,036	1,400,000	26	0	0	1,400,000	26	Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
Slovenia	2,050,000	1,210,000	59	0	0	1,210,000	59	Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
Lithuania	3,053,800	1,160,000	38	0	0	1,160,000	38	Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
Trinidad and Tobago	1,305,000	1,145,000	87.74	0	0	1,145,000	87.74	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Latvia	2,070,371	950,000	46	0	0	950,000	46	Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
Nepal	29,890,686	896,720	3.00	20,000	0.07	876,720	2.93	Source: Census. (date not verified)[citation needed]
Uruguay	3,500,000	840,000	24	0	0	840,000	24.0	Source: 2019 National Statistics Institute poll.[64]
Guyana	751,000	680,000	90.55	0	0	680,000	90.55	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Estonia	1,294,236	650,000	50.22	0	0	650,000	50	Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
Botswana	1,639,833	630,000	38.42	0	0	630,000	38.42	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Sudan	46,874,204	43,921,129	93.7	4,781,168	10.2	39,139,960	83.5	Source: Countries That Speak English[65] and the World Bank[66]
South Sudan	10,913,164	10,258,374	94	818,487	7.5	9,439,887	86.5	Source: Countries That Speak English[65] and the World Bank[66]
Cyprus	839,000	630,000	75	0	0	630,000	75	Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
Panama	4,176,869	584,762	14	0	0	584,762	14
Eswatini	1,141,000	550,000	48.2	0	0	550,000	48.2	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Official language, business conducted in English; primary school language.
Malawi	13,931,831	540,209	3.88	209	<0.1	540,000	3.87	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109 and Kayambizinthu.[67]
Lesotho	1,795,000	500,000	27.86	0	0	500,000	27.86	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Suriname	470,784	410,000	87.09					Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Malta	453,000	400,000	89	48,000	10.6	352,000	77.7	Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
Iceland	376,248	368,723	98					Source:[68]
Namibia	1,820,916	314,000	17.24	14,000	0.77	300,000	16.48	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Luxembourg	509,000	290,000	56	0	0	290,000	56	Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
Bahamas	330,549	288,000	87.13					Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Barbados	296,000	296,000	100	10,000	3.38	286,000	96.62	This includes speakers of an English creole.
Belize	301,270	246,000	81.65	16,870	5.6	229,130	81.65	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Costa Rica	4,910,526	400,415	8.2	0	0	400,415	8.2	Source: Encuesta Nacional de Hogares 2017[69]
Mauritius	1,264,866	202,000	15.97	2,000	0.16	200,000	15.81	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Ecuador	18,213,749	225,000	7.1%					There are 225,000 English speakers in Ecuador. The great majority resides in Quito.[citation needed]
Vanuatu	215,446	180,000	83.55	60,000	27.85	120,000	55.7	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Fiji	853,445	176,000	20.62	6,000	0.7	170,000	19.92	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Solomon Islands	552,438	175,000	31.68	10,000	1.81	165,000	29.87	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Guam	173,456	158,000	91.09	58,000	33.44	100,000	57.65	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Brunei	381,371	144,000	39.07	10,000	2.62	134,000	35.14	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	120,000	114,000	95					Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
U.S. Virgin Islands	107,000	86,000	80.37	86,000	80.37			Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Grenada	110,000	100,000	90.91					Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Samoa	188,540	94,000	49.86	1,000	0.53	93,000	49.33	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Isle of Man	80,058	80,000	99.93	80,000	99.93
Saint Lucia	165,000	71,000	43.03	31,000	18.79	40,000	24.24	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Northern Mariana Islands	84,000	70,000	83.33	5,000	5.95	65,000	77.38	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Antigua and Barbuda	85,000	68,000	80					Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Federated States of Micronesia	111,000	64,000	57.66	4,000	3.6	60,000	54.05	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Bermuda	65,000	63,000	96.92	63,000	96.92			Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Dominica	67,000	63,000	94.03	3,000	4.48	60,000	89.55	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Marshall Islands	59,000	58,000	98.31	57500	97.46%	500	0.85	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
American Samoa	57,345	45,933	80.1	1,791	3.12	44,142	76.98	Source: The World Factbook – American Samoa
Aruba	104,000	44,000	42.31	9,000	8.65	35,000		Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
The Gambia	1,709,000	40,000	2.34	0	0	40,000	2.34	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Saint Kitts and Nevis	50,000	39,000	78					Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Cayman Islands	47,000	36,000	76.6	36,000	76.6			Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Seychelles	87,000	33,000	37.93	3,000	3.45	30,000	34.48	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Tonga	100,000	30,000	30	0	0	30,000	30	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Gibraltar	28,875	28,875	100	28,000	96.97	875	3.03	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Kiribati	95,000	23,000	24.21	0	0	23,000	24.21	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
British Virgin Islands	23,000	20,000	86.96	20,000	86.96			Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Palau	20,000	18,500	92.5	500	2.5	18,000		Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Andorra	81,222	17,869	22			17,869	22	Source Census: Linguistic knowledge 2004.
Anguilla	13,000	12,000	92.31					Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Nauru	12,000	11,600	96.67	900	7.5	10,700	89.17	English is spoken as the language of government and commerce.
Cook Islands	20,200	4,000	19.8	1,000	4.95	3,000	14.85	Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
Montserrat	5,900	4,000	67.8	4,000	67.8			Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. This includes speakers of an English creole.
Sum of listed nations	6,348,600,913	1,537,048,257	24.21%	392,391,852	6.18%	1,140,031,875	17.96%	Not all countries are listed here. This is merely a summation of all listed countries and the respective percentages.

• The European Union is a supranational union composed of 27 member states. The total English-speaking population of the European Union and the United Kingdom combined (2012) is 256,876,220^[70] (out of a total population of 500,000,000,^[71] i.e. 51%) including 65,478,252 native speakers and 191,397,968 non-native speakers, and would be ranked 2nd if it were included. English native speakers amount to 13% of the whole population of the EU and the UK, while the percentage of people that speak English "well enough in order to be able to have a conversation", either as first (32%), second (11%) or third (3%) foreign language, was 38%.
• When taken from this list and added together, the total number of English speakers in the world adds up to around 1,430,000,000. Likewise, the total number of native English speakers adds up to around 410,000,000. This implies that there are approximately 1,020,000,000 people who speak English as an additional language.

See also

• Language portal
• World portal

• EF English Proficiency Index
• English medium education
• English-speaking world
• List of countries and territories where English is an official language
• World Englishes
• English-based creole languages

Non-English speaking populations by language:

• Arabophone
• Bengali language
• Francophone
• Geographical distribution of Dutch speakers
• Geographical distribution of German speakers
• Hispanophone
• List of countries and territories where Hindustani is an official language
• List of countries and territories where Persian is an official language
• List of countries where Tamil is an official language
• Lusophone
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• Swahili language
• List of link languages

Non-English speaking populations by language, historical:

• Latin language
• Mobilian trade language
• Phonecian language
• Sanskritisation (linguistics)

Non-English speaking populations by country:

• Indosphere

Linguistic topics:

• Dialect continuum
• Geolinguistics
• Language geography
• Link language