Global Migration Trends: Top Destinations and Source Countries in 2025
Global Migration Trends 2025: Top Destination and Origin Countries Based on UN DESA 2024 Data
The world had an estimated 304 million international migrants at mid-year 2024, equal to 3.7% of the global population. This 2025 snapshot uses UN DESA's International Migrant Stock 2024 estimates and the accompanying Key Facts and Figures publication released on January 28, 2025. The page does not treat the 2024 estimates as projected 2025 values.
Two related but distinct measures are ranked. The destination ranking counts international migrants residing in each host country, while the origin ranking counts migrants from each country of origin who were living abroad. Both are stock measures expressed in persons at mid-year 2024, and larger values rank higher.
Coverage includes 12 leading destination countries and the Top 10 countries of origin. All 22 ranked values are official UN DESA estimates. No official forecasts or modeled projections are included.
The United States hosted the largest international migrant stock in 2024.
Italy ranks 12th among the destination countries included in the UN DESA ranking used here.
India had the largest international migrant stock abroad among countries of origin in 2024.
Global international migrant stock at mid-year 2024, based on official UN DESA estimates.
Every ranked row uses an official UN DESA estimate for the 2024 reference year.
Overview: what the global migration ranking measures
International migrant stock measures people living in a country different from their country of birth or, when birth-country information is unavailable, their country of citizenship. UN DESA gives precedence to country-of-birth data because it more directly captures residence outside a person's country of origin.
The global international migrant stock reached 304 million in 2024, compared with 154 million in 1990. The number of international migrants therefore nearly doubled over that period, while their share of the world population increased more gradually from 2.9% to 3.7%.
Europe hosted about 94 million international migrants in 2024, the largest total among the major regions reported by UN DESA. Northern America hosted about 61 million, while Northern Africa and Western Asia together hosted about 54 million.
Migrant stock is not migration flow. A stock estimate counts people living outside their country of origin at a particular point in time. It does not measure the number of arrivals, departures, visas, asylum applications or border crossings during 2024.
Destination and origin rankings answer different questions. A destination ranking identifies countries with the largest resident international migrant populations. An origin ranking identifies countries with the largest populations living abroad. A country can therefore appear prominently in one ranking, in both rankings or in neither.
Top 10 destination countries by international migrant stock
The United States ranked first by a wide margin, with 52.4 million international migrants at mid-year 2024. Germany ranked second with 16.8 million, followed by Saudi Arabia with 13.7 million and the United Kingdom with 11.8 million.
Top 10 destination countries, mid-year 2024
| Rank | Destination | Migrants | Source / method note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States | 52.4M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Northern America. |
| 2 | Germany | 16.8M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Europe. |
| 3 | Saudi Arabia | 13.7M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Northern Africa & Western Asia. |
| 4 | United Kingdom | 11.8M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Europe. |
| 5 | France | 9.2M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Europe. |
| 6 | Spain | 8.9M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Europe. |
| 7 | Canada | 8.8M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Northern America. |
| 8 | United Arab Emirates | 8.2M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Northern Africa & Western Asia. |
| 9 | Australia | 8.1M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Oceania. |
| 10 | Russian Federation | 7.6M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Europe. |
Values are shown in millions of persons and follow the UN DESA 2024 destination ranking. Higher international migrant stock ranks higher.
Top 10 countries of origin by international migrant stock abroad
India ranked first among countries of origin, with 18.5 million international migrants living abroad in 2024. China ranked second with 11.7 million, narrowly ahead of Mexico at 11.6 million. Ukraine ranked fourth with 9.8 million, followed by the Russian Federation with 9.1 million.
Top 10 countries of origin, mid-year 2024
| Rank | Origin | Abroad | Source / method note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | India | 18.5M | Official value · UN DESA Total, origin · mid-2024 · Central & Southern Asia. |
| 2 | China | 11.7M | Official value · UN DESA Total, origin · mid-2024 · Eastern & South-Eastern Asia. |
| 3 | Mexico | 11.6M | Official value · UN DESA Total, origin · mid-2024 · Latin America & Caribbean. |
| 4 | Ukraine | 9.8M | Official value · UN DESA Total, origin · mid-2024 · Europe. |
| 5 | Russian Federation | 9.1M | Official value · UN DESA Total, origin · mid-2024 · Europe. |
| 6 | Syrian Arab Republic | 8.9M | Official value · UN DESA Total, origin · mid-2024 · Northern Africa & Western Asia. |
| 7 | Bangladesh | 8.7M | Official value · UN DESA Total, origin · mid-2024 · Central & Southern Asia. |
| 8 | Venezuela | 8.3M | Official value · UN DESA Total, origin · mid-2024 · Latin America & Caribbean. |
| 9 | Afghanistan | 7.5M | Official value · UN DESA Total, origin · mid-2024 · Central & Southern Asia. |
| 10 | Philippines | 7.0M | Official value · UN DESA Total, origin · mid-2024 · Eastern & South-Eastern Asia. |
Display values are rounded to one decimal million. Rank is based on the underlying UN DESA origin values before display rounding.
Chart: 12 Leading International Migrant Destinations
The destination distribution is dominated by the United States. Its migrant stock of 52.4 million was more than three times Germany's 16.8 million, while Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom were the only other countries in this group above 10 million.
Methodology
The ranking uses the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs Population Division International Migrant Stock 2024 dataset. The dataset covers 233 countries and areas and reports international migrant stock by destination, origin and sex for the period from 1990 to 2024.
Metric
International migrant stock: the number of people classified as international migrants at a specified point in time.
Unit and direction
Unit: persons, displayed in millions. Direction: descending, so a larger migrant stock receives a higher rank.
Reference year
All ranked values refer to mid-year 2024. The page is a 2025 snapshot because the International Migrant Stock 2024 edition and its accompanying Key Facts and Figures publication became available in 2025.
Destination versus origin
Destination stock counts international migrants residing in a host country. Origin stock counts international migrants from a country of origin who reside abroad.
Statistical identification
UN DESA gives precedence to country-of-birth information. Country-of-citizenship data can be used when country-of-birth information is unavailable.
Data status
All ranked values are official UN DESA estimates. No official forecasts or modeled projections are included.
Population and housing censuses are the principal empirical sources for migrant-stock estimation, supplemented by population registers, nationally representative surveys and administrative data. For the 2024 edition, UN DESA carried out a full reassessment for 60 countries and areas, including countries with new census or register information, large migrant populations or significant refugee movements.
For countries and areas that were not fully reassessed, the 2024 estimates may incorporate extrapolations from the previous edition. This means that the reference year is consistently 2024, but the underlying empirical evidence is not equally recent or equally detailed for every country.
The destination table follows the UN DESA 2024 destination ranking. The origin table uses the corresponding UN DESA Total, origin values. Destination values are displayed as published in millions, while origin values are rounded to one decimal million for readability. Ranking is based on the numerical value before display rounding.
No missing country value is replaced with an estimate created for this page. No 2025 projection, CAGR or synthetic growth assumption is applied, and conflicting values are not averaged.
The metric does not measure annual immigration, annual emigration, net migration, border crossings, asylum applications, visas issued, migrant income, labour-market outcomes, legal status, migration-policy quality or the share of migrants in a country's population.
Main ranking: 12 leading destination countries
The ranking compares absolute international migrant stock at mid-year 2024. Use the controls to find a destination, compare regions or change the ordering while keeping the underlying UN DESA values unchanged.
Leading destination countries by international migrant stock, mid-year 2024
| Rank | Destination | Migrants | Source / method note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States | 52.4M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Northern America. |
| 2 | Germany | 16.8M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Europe. |
| 3 | Saudi Arabia | 13.7M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Northern Africa & Western Asia. |
| 4 | United Kingdom | 11.8M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Europe. |
| 5 | France | 9.2M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Europe. |
| 6 | Spain | 8.9M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Europe. |
| 7 | Canada | 8.8M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Northern America. |
| 8 | United Arab Emirates | 8.2M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Northern Africa & Western Asia. |
| 9 | Australia | 8.1M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Oceania. |
| 10 | Russian Federation | 7.6M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Europe. |
| 11 | Türkiye | 7.1M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Northern Africa & Western Asia. |
| 12 | Italy | 6.6M | Official value · UN DESA · mid-2024 · Europe. |
Source snapshot: UN DESA Population Division, International Migrant Stock 2024. Values refer to mid-year 2024 and are shown in millions of persons.
Insights from the destination and origin rankings
Key Insight
The United States is a clear destination outlier. Its 52.4 million international migrants were about 3.1 times Germany's 16.8 million, a gap of 35.6 million people.
Notable Pattern
The 12 leading destinations together host about 159.2 million international migrants, approximately 52.4% of the global stock reported by UN DESA.
Origin Concentration
The Top 10 countries of origin account for about 101.2 million people, equivalent to roughly one-third of the total global international migrant stock.
Destination-Origin Contrast
The Russian Federation is the only country appearing in both the 12-country destination ranking and the Top 10 origin ranking, showing that large immigration and emigration stocks can coexist.
What the migration rankings mean
A high destination rank means that a country hosts a large absolute number of international migrants. It does not mean that migrants make up the largest share of that country's population. Rankings based on migrant share can look very different from rankings based on absolute migrant stock.
A high origin rank means that a large number of people from that country are living abroad. Population size, established migration networks, labour demand in destination countries, geographic proximity, family links, economic conditions and forced displacement can all influence the size of an origin country's migrant stock.
Stock data should also be separated from annual migration flows. A country can have a very large established migrant population even if recent immigration slows. Conversely, a country can experience a sharp rise in arrivals without immediately becoming one of the world's largest migrant destinations by total stock.
The rankings therefore work best as measures of the scale and geography of established international migration. They should not be interpreted as direct rankings of migration pressure, immigration policy, border activity or economic performance.
FAQ
Which country hosts the most international migrants?
The United States ranks first, with an estimated 52.4 million international migrants at mid-year 2024 according to UN DESA.
Which country has the largest migrant population living abroad?
India ranks first among countries of origin, with approximately 18.5 million international migrants living abroad in 2024.
Are these 2025 migration figures?
No. The rankings use mid-year 2024 values from UN DESA's International Migrant Stock 2024 estimates. The page is a 2025 snapshot because the accompanying Key Facts and Figures publication was released on January 28, 2025.
What is international migrant stock?
International migrant stock is the number of people classified as international migrants and living in a country at a specified point in time. UN DESA primarily uses country of birth and can use citizenship when birth-country information is unavailable.
Is migrant stock the same as annual immigration?
No. Migrant stock measures the resident migrant population at a point in time. Annual immigration measures arrivals during a defined period.
Does a high destination rank mean a country has the highest migrant share?
No. This ranking uses absolute numbers. A smaller country can have a much higher migrant share of its population while hosting fewer migrants in total.
Why can a country appear as both a destination and an origin?
Immigration and emigration can occur simultaneously. A country can host millions of international migrants while also having millions of people from that country living abroad.
Does international migrant stock include refugees?
Refugees can be included when they meet the statistical criteria used for international migrant stock. The concept is based primarily on residence outside the country of origin rather than on the reason for migration.
Why can UN DESA estimates differ from national immigration statistics?
Countries use different census schedules, registers, administrative systems and statistical definitions. UN DESA harmonizes available evidence to produce internationally comparable estimates.
Sources
UN DESA Population Division — International Migrant Stock 2024
Primary official source for international migrant-stock estimates by country or area of destination, country or area of origin and sex.
https://www.un.org/development/desa/pd/content/international-migrant-stock
UN DESA — International Migrant Stock 2024: Key Facts and Figures
Official publication used for the global total, destination-country ranking, regional context, definitions and methodological notes.
UN DESA — International Migrant Stock 2024: Total, origin
Official UN DESA origin workbook used to rank countries by the number of international migrants from each country or area of origin living abroad in 2024.
