The population and housing census is the most important statistical operation of the National Statistics Institute (INE), in which all the residents of Chile participate. The census is the main source of information for population estimates and projections at the national, regional, and communal levels and for the update of sampling frames used in the design of household surveys. Similarly, the census provides essential information for the design and evaluation of public policies and for strategic decision-making in the public and private sectors.
The most recent population and housing census in Chile was conducted in 2024. This census enumerated 18,480,432 people, whose distribution was 51.5% female and 48.5% male. The total number of dwellings enumerated was 7,642,716 units, of which 99.9% were private dwellings and 0.1% were collective dwellings. In addition, 6,596,527 households were enumerated at the national level.
The analysis of census results underscores a long-term demographic trend: the sustained aging of the population. The bracket of people aged 65 years and over is currently 14% of the total population, which is a substantial increase from the 2017 Census, when the figure stood at 11.4%.