According to the results of 2025, the population growth was the lowest in the last 15 years.
Only five regions of Kazakhstan showed growth exceeding the national average: three major cities, as well as Almaty and Mangistau regions.
In particular, the population of Astana increased by 7.16%, reaching 1.64 million people due to significant migration influx. Shymkent grew by 2.98%, and Almaty by 2.44%. More than a quarter of the country's population lives in these three major cities.
In 11 out of 20 regions of Kazakhstan, a decrease in population was observed due to high migration. These regions include Zhambyl, Turkestan, West Kazakhstan, Kostanay, North Kazakhstan, and Pavlodar regions, as well as Karaganda, East Kazakhstan, Abai, Zhetysu, and Ulytau.
The North Kazakhstan region was the leader among regions with the largest population losses (-1.53%), followed by Abai (-1.19%) and Ulytau (-1.04%). In three regions, including North Kazakhstan, East Kazakhstan, and Kostanay, a natural decrease in population was recorded, where the number of deaths exceeded the number of newborns.
A positive migration balance was observed only in megacities, as well as in Almaty and Mangistau regions. In other regions, the number of people leaving exceeded the number of incoming migrants. The largest migration outflow in 2025 was recorded in Turkestan region (-42.2 thousand people), Zhambyl region (-21.4 thousand), and Zhetysu (-12.4 thousand).
The urban population of Kazakhstan increased by 2.01%, reaching 13,030 thousand people, while the rural population decreased by 0.59%, totaling 7,466 thousand people. The share of the urban population rose to 63.6%, while the rural population accounted for 36.4%.
