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Disability and ageing in Europe: data for design.

As the population ages, the people who use products, spaces and services change too. Here are the official figures, taken directly from the sources, each with its year and its limitations.

Disability in three figures

1.3 billion

people worldwide experience significant disability: 16% of the population.

World Health Organization, Global report on health equity for persons with disabilities, 2 December 2022 (opens in a new tab)

About 90 million

people in the European Union have some form of disability: one adult in four.

Council of the European Union, “Disability in the EU: facts and figures”, based on Eurostat 2024 estimates (revised 16 July 2026) (opens in a new tab)

2.9 million

people in Italy have severe limitations in usual activities.

Istat, Giornata internazionale delle persone con disabilità (International Day of Persons with Disabilities), 2023 data (opens in a new tab)

The three sources do not measure the same thing: WHO estimates significant disability; the Council of the European Union reports self-reported limitations; Istat counts severe limitations. That is why the figures should not be added together or compared with one another.

How many people are aged 65 or over, country by country

  1. 2005, observed

    One person in six in the European Union was aged 65 or over: 16.7%. Italy already had the highest share, at 19.5%.

  2. 2025, observed

    The share reached 22.0%, more than one person in five. The highest shares were in Italy (24.7%), Portugal (24.3%) and Bulgaria (24.0%). People aged 80 or over accounted for 6.2%.

  3. 2050, projection

    In Eurostat’s baseline scenario, the share is projected to reach 29.1%, almost one person in three. Eight of the 30 countries are projected to exceed 30%: Greece 34.8%, Italy 34.6%, Portugal 34.6%, Spain 31.4%. People aged 80 or over are projected to rise to 10.9%.

  4. 2100, projection

    By the end of the century, all 30 countries are projected to exceed 30%, with the European Union at 33.6%. The differences between countries narrow: ageing becomes the common condition.

Eurostat, demo_pjanind (observed data, updated 25 September 2026) and proj_25ndbi, EUROPOP2025 projections, baseline scenario (updated 11 June 2026). The 27 EU Member States, plus Iceland, Norway and Switzerland. Countries without projections are shown in grey.

The map data as a table
People aged 65 or over, as a percentage of the population. Observed data up to 2025; projections thereafter, baseline scenario.
Country20052015202520302040205020602100
European Union (27)16.719.122.023.827.129.130.433.6
Austria15.918.520.222.726.227.629.433.2
Belgium17.218.120.222.024.125.226.732.0
Bulgaria17.420.524.025.227.830.331.030.5
Czechia14.117.820.721.924.728.129.831.5
Cyprus12.114.518.320.323.828.233.037.2
Croatia17.319.023.324.726.628.530.034.3
Denmark15.018.620.922.224.425.027.032.6
Estonia16.618.820.922.825.428.331.534.0
Finland15.919.923.624.825.426.729.434.8
France16.318.421.923.626.327.428.732.4
Germany18.621.022.725.027.427.728.631.8
Greece18.320.823.725.630.934.834.734.9
Ireland11.112.915.717.321.326.029.334.9
Iceland11.813.515.917.319.421.725.231.9
Italy19.521.924.727.232.634.634.836.8
Latvia16.619.421.924.327.430.033.234.1
Lithuania15.818.620.923.427.530.535.237.6
Luxembourg14.114.215.216.919.522.125.433.5
Malta13.318.018.418.518.521.828.036.6
Norway14.716.219.020.523.625.127.432.8
Netherlands14.017.820.822.624.724.525.831.7
Poland13.115.421.022.224.929.633.235.1
Portugal17.220.424.326.431.034.635.836.2
Romania14.217.020.320.724.627.429.132.3
Slovakia11.714.018.820.724.329.031.932.8
Slovenia15.317.922.124.227.430.331.033.0
Spain16.618.420.722.727.731.432.235.8
Sweden17.219.620.822.124.024.827.432.3
Switzerland15.817.819.521.524.526.428.632.9
Hungary15.617.820.921.424.227.529.031.4

Where the share of people aged 65 or over grows most, 2025 to 2050

Each row is a country, in order of growth: where the share grows most, the people who use products, spaces and services change fastest.

    The open dot shows the share of people aged 65 or over in 2025; the filled dot shows the projection for 2050. Eurostat, proj_25ndbi, EUROPOP2025 projections, baseline scenario: the 2025 and 2050 values come from the same scenario, so the comparison is consistent.
    The data as a table
    Share of people aged 65 or over: 2025 and 2050 projections, baseline scenario, and difference in percentage points.
    Country20252050Difference
    Greece23.734.8+11.1
    Spain20.731.4+10.7
    Slovakia18.529.0+10.5
    Ireland15.726.0+10.3
    Portugal24.334.6+10.3
    Italy24.734.6+9.9
    Cyprus18.328.2+9.9
    Lithuania20.930.5+9.6
    Poland20.529.6+9.1
    Slovenia22.130.3+8.2
    Latvia21.930.0+8.1
    Austria20.227.6+7.4
    Czechia20.728.1+7.4
    Estonia20.928.3+7.4
    Romania20.327.4+7.1
    Luxembourg15.222.1+6.9
    Switzerland19.526.4+6.9
    Hungary20.927.5+6.6
    Bulgaria24.030.3+6.3
    Norway19.025.1+6.1
    Iceland15.921.7+5.8
    France21.927.4+5.5
    Croatia23.328.5+5.2
    Belgium20.225.2+5.0
    Germany22.727.7+5.0
    Denmark20.925.0+4.1
    Sweden20.824.8+4.0
    Netherlands20.824.5+3.7
    Malta18.421.8+3.4
    Finland23.626.7+3.1

    With age, limitations in everyday activities increase

    Out of every 100 people, how many report long-standing limitations in their usual activities because of health problems. This is the European disability indicator: it is based on what people report, not on certification.

    16.3% of people aged 16 to 64 report activity limitations, including 4.2% with severe limitations.

    Individual country values do not lend themselves to a ranking: they also depend on how the question is understood and asked. In Italy, for example, the figure went from 29.0% in 2015 to 16.5% in 2025, with a break in series flagged by Eurostat in 2024. That is why we use the European figure here.

    Eurostat, hlth_silc_12, “Level of disability (activity limitation)”, EU-SILC 2025 survey (updated 20 October 2026), doi:10.2908/HLTH_SILC_12.

    The data as a table
    People reporting long-standing limitations in usual activities due to health problems, European Union, 2025, percentages.
    AgeLimitations, totalof which severe
    aged 16 to 6416.34.2
    Aged 65 and over47.514.8
    Aged 75 and over58.120.8

    Seeing, hearing, walking: what changes with age

    This is the figure closest to design: it tells us how many people struggle to read a label, to follow a conversation in a noisy setting or to walk a certain distance.

    Seeing

    even with glasses or contact lenses

    • Aged 15–6414.5%; with severe difficulty 1.2%
    • Aged 65 and over29.5%; with severe difficulty 4.9%
    • Aged 75 and over36.1%; with severe difficulty 7.6%

    Hearing

    a conversation in a quiet room, even with a hearing aid

    • Aged 15–6417.4%; with severe difficulty 2.1%
    • Aged 65 and over45.3%; with severe difficulty 10.9%
    • Aged 75 and over55.5%; with severe difficulty 16.0%

    Walking

    half a kilometre on level ground, without walking aids

    • Aged 15–648.0%; with severe difficulty 2.4%
    • Aged 65 and over42.6%; with severe difficulty 20.3%
    • Aged 75 and over57.5%; with severe difficulty 31.1%
    People reporting difficulty, European Union. Eurostat, hlth_ehis_pl1e, European Health Interview Survey (EHIS) 2019 (updated 4 January 2024). This is the most recent edition published: the next one is being processed.

    Understanding, remembering, finding your way: the part you cannot see

    Cognitive difficulties are not obvious at first sight, but they change how people use everything: an instruction, an interface, a route, a service. They are also the hardest to capture in data.

    57 million

    people worldwide were living with dementia in 2021.

    World Health Organization, document EB156/36, 11 December 2024 (opens in a new tab)

    7.9 million

    in the European Union according to estimates for 2018; 14.3 million in 2050, almost double.

    Alzheimer Europe, “Dementia in Europe Yearbook 2019: Estimating the prevalence of dementia in Europe” (2018 estimates, projections to 2050) (opens in a new tab)

    1.3 million

    in Italy: 2.12% of the population, rising to 4.13% in 2050.

    Same source, 2018 estimates.

    People with dementia, by age, in Europe

    1. 0.6%60–64 years
    2. 1.3%65–69 years
    3. 3.3%70–74 years
    4. 8.0%75–79 years
    5. 12.1%80–84 years
    6. 21.9%85–89 years
    7. 40.8%90 years and over
    Prevalence estimates, Europe, 2018. Alzheimer Europe, “Dementia in Europe Yearbook 2019: Estimating the prevalence of dementia in Europe” (2018 estimates, projections to 2050).

    Everyday activities that require organising, remembering and communicating

    Taking medication

    on your own, at the right dose and at the right time

    • Aged 55–642.2%; with severe difficulty 0.8%
    • Aged 65–743.5%; with severe difficulty 1.3%
    • Aged 75 and over15.8%; with severe difficulty 8.4%

    Using the telephone

    dialling a number, answering, understanding

    • Aged 55–641.8%; with severe difficulty 0.5%
    • Aged 65–743.5%; with severe difficulty 1.1%
    • Aged 75 and over15.7%; with severe difficulty 7.2%

    Finances and paperwork

    managing money and everyday paperwork

    • Aged 55–645.8%; with severe difficulty 1.8%
    • Aged 65–748.1%; with severe difficulty 2.8%
    • Aged 75 and over27.0%; with severe difficulty 14.8%

    Shopping

    choosing, paying, getting home

    • Aged 55–647.4%; with severe difficulty 2.7%
    • Aged 65–7412.0%; with severe difficulty 4.9%
    • Aged 75 and over34.8%; with severe difficulty 21.1%
    People aged 55 or over reporting difficulty, European Union. Eurostat, hlth_ehis_ha1e, European Health Interview Survey (EHIS) 2019 (updated 4 January 2024).

    No official European statistic counts people with dementia: the Alzheimer Europe figures are estimates based on prevalence studies applied to the population, not a count of diagnoses. The European Health Interview Survey does not ask about memory or comprehension: the activities above, which involve organising, remembering and communicating, are the closest measure, but difficulties with them may also have physical causes.

    Living longer, not always without limitations

    At 65, people in the European Union can expect on average another 20.2 years of life: 10.3 without activity limitations, 9.9 with some limitation.

    Life expectancy and healthy life years at 65, 2024. Eurostat, hlth_hlye (updated 17 July 2026).

    People aged 65 or over who live alone

    • Women40.5%
    • Men21.4%
    • Total32.2%
    European Union, 2025. Eurostat, ilc_lvps30 (updated 20 October 2026).

    Work and poverty: where exclusion can be measured

    At risk of poverty or social exclusion

    • Without limitations17.7%
    • With limitations28.8%
    • With severe limitations36.5%
    People aged 16 or over, European Union, 2025. Eurostat, hlth_dpe010.

    24.2

    percentage-point gap in the employment rate between people with and without activity limitations; 46.1 points for people with severe limitations.

    European Union, 2025. Eurostat, hlth_dlm200, “Disability employment gap”.

    Sources and method

    Eurostat figures are retrieved from its public data service and reproduced without adjustment; we update them once a year, when new data are released. The EUROPOP2025 projections are not forecasts: they describe what would happen if fertility, mortality and migration followed the assumptions of the baseline scenario.

    Activity limitations (the GALI indicator, Global Activity Limitation Indicator) are self-reported in the EU-SILC survey. They cover people aged 16 or over living in private households, not people in residential care, so the real figure is in all likelihood higher.

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