Prague continues to grow steadily, with official data showing that the capital has already passed 1.4 million residents.
According to the Czech Statistical Office (ČSÚ), the population of Prague stood at 1,405,551 at the end of March 2026.
This figure includes 686,987 men and 718,564 women, meaning women accounted for 51.1 percent of the population. During the first three months of 2026, the city recorded a decline of 1,533 residents. At the end of 2025, the total stood slightly higher at 1,407,084.
Different institutions, however, present a more complex picture of how many people actually live in the capital. The Institute for Planning and Development of the City of Prague (IPR) has previously estimated that the real number of residents, based on mobile data and long-term movement patterns, ranges between 1.1 and 1.4 million people.
The difference stems largely from residence registration rules. The 2021 census counted 1,301,432 people with usual residence in Prague and 1,261,304 with permanent residence. IPR estimates that around 12 percent of people living in the city are not officially registered there, while a similar number are registered in Prague but live elsewhere.
According to Matouš Hutník from IPR, this group includes mainly younger, single residents who do not change their official address for practical or administrative reasons. These patterns create a gap between administrative data and real population movement in the city.
The Population and Public Amenities Forecast suggests the capital could reach 1.9 million inhabitants by 2050.
IPR’s own projections are slightly more conservative in the short term, estimating around 1.5 million residents by 2030 and an average of about 1.58 million between 2023 and 2050.
A significant factor behind the city’s size is daily commuting. IPR estimates that between 170,000 and 230,000 people travel regularly to Prague for work or study, with mobile data suggesting similar figures. The 2021 census recorded even higher numbers at around 280,000 commuters, while approximately 57,000 Prague residents commute in the opposite direction for work.
Most commuters come from the Central Bohemian Region, which accounts for roughly 70 percent of all inbound commuting. Around 30 percent originate from districts closest to Prague, including Prague-East and Prague-West, with smaller shares coming from regions such as Kladno, Ústí nad Labem, Liberec, Hradec Králové, Plzeň, South Moravia, and Moravian-Silesia.
