Immigrants help population increase steadily

The total population of Finland at the end of 2020 was 5,533,793, according to Statistics Finland.

In the course of 2020, Finland’s population grew by 8,501 persons. The relative population increase was 0.2 per cent. The number of persons speaking Finnish, Swedish or Sami as their native language went down by 11,702 persons, and the number of foreign-language speakers grew by 20,203 persons.

A total of 432,847 persons speaking a foreign language as their mother tongue were living permanently in Finland at the end of 2020. The proportion of foreign-language speakers in the total population is eight per cent. The biggest foreign-language speaking groups were Russian speakers, 84,190 persons, Estonian speakers, 49,551, and Arabic speakers, 34,282.

Examined by region, the share of foreign-language speakers was at the end of 2020 highest in the region of Uusimaa, 15 per cent of the population, and lowest in South Ostrobothnia, two per cent.

Russian native language speakers are the largest foreign-language group in the regions apart from the regions of Kanta-Häme and Ostrobothnia and the Åland Islands. In Kanta-Häme, the largest foreign-language speaking group is those who speak Estonian, in Ostrobothnia, the largest foreign-language speaking group is those who speak Vietnamese, and In Åland those who speak Romanian as their native language.

Examined by municipality, the share of foreign-language speakers among the population was highest in Vantaa, 22 per cent, in Espoo, 19 per cent, and in Närpiö and Helsinki, 17 per cent.

Of the 309 municipalities in Finland, Russian was the largest foreign-language speaking group in 151 municipalities.

During 2020, the population grew in 89 and diminished in 220 municipalities. In 2019, just 54 municipalities increased their population.