Indigenous groups inhabited central and southern Chile for several thousands of years, living in mixed pastoralist and settled communities, ending with the Inca ruling the north of the country for nearly a century prior to the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century. The Captaincy General of Chile was founded by the Spanish in 1541, lasting until Chile declared its independence in 1810. The subsequent struggle became tied to other South American independence conflicts, with a decisive victory over the Spanish not being achieved until 1818. In the War of the Pacific (1879-83), Chile defeated Peru and Bolivia to win its current northernmost regions. By the 1880s, the Chilean central government cemented its control over the central and southern regions inhabited by Mapuche Indigenous peoples. Between 1891 and 1973, a series of elected governments succeeded each other until the three-year-old Marxist government of Salvador ALLENDE was overthrown in 1973 by a military coup led by General Augusto PINOCHET, who ruled until a democratically elected president was inaugurated in 1990. Economic reforms, maintained consistently since the 1980s, contributed to steady growth, reduced poverty rates by over half, and helped secure the country’s commitment to democratic and representative government. Chile has increasingly assumed regional and international leadership roles befitting its status as a stable, democratic nation.
land: 743,812 sq km
water: 12,290 sq km
note: includes Easter Island (Isla de Pascua) and Isla Sala y Gomez
border countries (3): Argentina 6,691 km; Bolivia 942 km; Peru 168 km
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200/350 nm
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
mean elevation: 1,871 m
arable land: 1.7% (2018 est.)
permanent crops: 0.6% (2018 est.)
permanent pasture: 18.8% (2018 est.)
forest: 21.9% (2018 est.)
other: 57% (2018 est.)
note 2: Chile is one of the countries along the Ring of Fire, a belt of active volcanoes and earthquake epicenters bordering the Pacific Ocean; up to 90% of the world’s earthquakes and some 75% of the world’s volcanoes occur within the Ring of Fire
note 3: the Atacama Desert - the driest desert in the world - spreads across the northern part of the country; Ojos del Salado (6,893 m) in the Atacama Desert is the highest active volcano in the world, Chile’s tallest mountain, and the second highest in the Western Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere - its small crater lake (at 6,390 m) is the world’s highest lake
18,549,457 (2023 est.)
noun: Chilean(s)
adjective: Chilean
White and non-Indigenous 88.9%, Mapuche 9.1%, Aymara 0.7%, other Indigenous groups 1% (includes Rapa Nui, Likan Antai, Quechua, Colla, Diaguita, Kawesqar, Yagan or Yamana), unspecified 0.3% (2012 est.)
Spanish 99.5% (official), English 10.2%, Indigenous 1% (includes Mapudungun, Aymara, Quechua, Rapa Nui), other 2.3%, unspecified 0.2%; note - shares sum to more than 100% because some respondents gave more than one answer on the census (2012 est.)
major-language sample(s):
La Libreta Informativa del Mundo, la fuente indispensable de información básica. (Spanish)
The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Roman Catholic 60%, Evangelical 18%, atheist or agnostic 4%, none 17% (2018 est.)
Chile is in the advanced stages of demographic transition and is becoming an aging society - with fertility below replacement level, low mortality rates, and life expectancy on par with developed countries. Nevertheless, with its dependency ratio nearing its low point, Chile could benefit from its favorable age structure. It will need to keep its large working-age population productively employed, while preparing to provide for the needs of its growing proportion of elderly people, especially as women - the traditional caregivers - increasingly enter the workforce. Over the last two decades, Chile has made great strides in reducing its poverty rate, which is now lower than most Latin American countries. However, its severe income inequality ranks as the worst among members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Unequal access to quality education perpetuates this uneven income distribution.Chile has historically been a country of emigration but has slowly become more attractive to immigrants since transitioning to democracy in 1990 and improving its economic stability (other regional destinations have concurrently experienced deteriorating economic and political conditions). Most of Chile’s small but growing foreign-born population consists of transplants from other Latin American countries, especially Peru.
0-14 years: 19.34% (male 1,829,801/female 1,758,137)
15-64 years: 67.56% (male 6,259,566/female 6,273,074)
65 years and over: 13.09% (2023 est.) (male 1,024,692/female 1,404,187)
total dependency ratio: 45.2
youth dependency ratio: 26.8
elderly dependency ratio: 18.4
potential support ratio: 5.4 (2021 est.)
total: 36.6 years (2023 est.)
male: 35.4 years
female: 37.8 years
0.63% (2023 est.)
12.6 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)
6.6 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)
0.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)
90% of the population is located in the middle third of the country around the capital of Santiago; the far north (anchored by the Atacama Desert) and the extreme south are relatively underpopulated
urban population: 88% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 0.78% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
6.903 million SANTIAGO (capital), 1.009 million Valparaiso, 912,000 Concepcion (2023)
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female
total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2023 est.)
15 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)
total: 6.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)
male: 7 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 5.8 deaths/1,000 live births
total population: 80 years (2023 est.)
male: 77 years
female: 83.1 years
1.75 children born/woman (2023 est.)
0.86 (2023 est.)
76.3% (2015/16)
improved: urban: 100% of population
rural: 100% of population
total: 100% of population
unimproved: urban: 0% of population
rural: 0% of population
total: 0% of population (2020 est.)
9.8% of GDP (2020)
2.84 physicians/1,000 population (2020)
2.1 beds/1,000 population (2018)
improved: urban: 100% of population
rural: 100% of population
total: 100% of population
unimproved: urban: 0% of population
rural: 0% of population
total: 0% of population (2020 est.)
28% (2016)
total: 7.8 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
beer: 2.76 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine: 2.61 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits: 2.43 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols: 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
total: 29.2% (2020 est.)
male: 31.6% (2020 est.)
female: 26.8% (2020 est.)
0.5% (2014)
46.3% (2023 est.)
5.6% of GDP (2019 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97%
male: 97.1%
female: 97% (2021)
total: 17 years
male: 16 years
female: 17 years (2020)
air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions; water pollution from raw sewage; noise pollution; improper garbage disposal; soil degradation; widespread deforestation and mining threaten the environment; wildlife conservation
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protection, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Marine Dumping-London Protocol, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
temperate; desert in north; Mediterranean in central region; cool and damp in south
agricultural land: 21.1% (2018 est.)
arable land: 1.7% (2018 est.)
permanent crops: 0.6% (2018 est.)
permanent pasture: 18.8% (2018 est.)
forest: 21.9% (2018 est.)
other: 57% (2018 est.)
urban population: 88% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 0.78% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
0.49% of GDP (2018 est.)
0.01% of GDP (2018 est.)
particulate matter emissions: 20.49 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)
carbon dioxide emissions: 85.82 megatons (2016 est.)
methane emissions: 15.97 megatons (2020 est.)
municipal solid waste generated annually: 6.517 million tons (2009 est.)
municipal solid waste recycled annually: 24,113 tons (2009 est.)
percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 0.4% (2009 est.)
fresh water lake(s): Lago General Carrera (shared with Argentina) - 2,240 sq km; Lago O’Higgins (shared with Argentina) - 1,010 sq km; Lago Llanquihue - 800 sq km; Lago Fagnano (shared with Argentina) - 590 sq km
municipal: 1.29 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)
industrial: 1.66 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)
agricultural: 29.42 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)
923.1 billion cubic meters (2020 est.)
export-driven economy; leading copper producer; though hit by COVID-19, fairly quick rebound from increased liquidity and rapid vaccine rollouts; decreasing poverty but still lingering inequality; public debt rising but still manageable; recent political violence has had negative economic consequences
$496.085 billion (2021 est.)
$444.249 billion (2020 est.)
$472.495 billion (2019 est.)
note: data are in 2017 dollars
11.67% (2021 est.)
-5.98% (2020 est.)
0.77% (2019 est.)
$25,400 (2021 est.)
$23,000 (2020 est.)
$24,800 (2019 est.)
note: data are in 2017 dollars
$282.655 billion (2019 est.)
4.52% (2021 est.)
3.05% (2020 est.)
2.56% (2019 est.)
Fitch rating: A- (2020)
Moody’s rating: A1 (2018)
Standard & Poors rating: A+ (2017)
note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.
agriculture: 4.2% (2017 est.)
industry: 32.8% (2017 est.)
services: 63% (2017 est.)comparison rankings:
household consumption: 62.3% (2017 est.)
government consumption: 14% (2017 est.)
investment in fixed capital: 21.5% (2017 est.)
investment in inventories: 0.5% (2017 est.)
exports of goods and services: 28.7% (2017 est.)
imports of goods and services: -27% (2017 est.)
grapes, apples, wheat, sugar beet, milk, potatoes, tomatoes, maize, poultry, pork
copper, lithium, other minerals, foodstuffs, fish processing, iron and steel, wood and wood products, transport equipment, cement, textiles
5.06% (2021 est.)
8.684 million (2021 est.)
9.13% (2021 est.)
11.18% (2020 est.)
7.29% (2019 est.)
total: 21.4% (2021 est.)
male: 20.4%
female: 22.8%
8.6% (2017 est.)
44.9 (2020 est.)
on food: 16% of household expenditures (2018 est.)
on alcohol and tobacco: 2.9% of household expenditures (2018 est.)
lowest 10%: 1.7%
highest 10%: 41.5% (2013 est.)
revenues: $55.16 billion (2020 est.)
expenditures: $73.176 billion (2020 est.)
-2.8% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
23.6% of GDP (2017 est.)
21% of GDP (2016 est.)
16.24% (of GDP) (2020 est.)
calendar year
-$20.307 billion (2021 est.)
-$4.283 billion (2020 est.)
-$14.505 billion (2019 est.)
$100.634 billion (2021 est.)
$79.733 billion (2020 est.)
$77.255 billion (2019 est.)
note: Data are in current year dollars and do not include illicit exports or re-exports.
China 32%, United States 14%, Japan 9%, South Korea 7% (2019)
copper, fish fillets, wood pulp, pitted fruits, wine (2021)
$102.086 billion (2021 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$68.118 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
$82.324 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
China 24%, United States 20%, Brazil 8%, Germany 5%, Argentina 5% (2019)
refined petroleum, crude petroleum, cars, broadcasting equipment, delivery trucks (2019)
$51.252 billion (31 December 2021 est.)
$39.166 billion (31 December 2020 est.)
$40.656 billion (31 December 2019 est.)
$193.298 billion (2019 est.)
$181.089 billion (2018 est.)
Chilean pesos (CLP) per US dollar -
Exchange rates:
758.955 (2021 est.)
792.727 (2020 est.)
702.897 (2019 est.)
641.277 (2018 est.)
648.834 (2017 est.)
electrification - total population: 100% (2021)
installed generating capacity: 29.808 million kW (2020 est.)
consumption: 75.302 billion kWh (2020 est.)
exports: 0 kWh (2020 est.)
imports: 0 kWh (2020 est.)
transmission/distribution losses: 4.62 billion kWh (2020 est.)comparison rankings:
fossil fuels: 51.9% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
solar: 9.5% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
wind: 6.9% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
hydroelectricity: 26% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
tide and wave: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
geothermal: 0.3% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
biomass and waste: 5.4% of total installed capacity (2020 est.)
production: 542,000 metric tons (2020 est.)
consumption: 10.573 million metric tons (2020 est.)
exports: 134,000 metric tons (2020 est.)
imports: 10.607 million metric tons (2020 est.)
proven reserves: 1.181 billion metric tons (2019 est.)
total petroleum production: 11,900 bbl/day (2021 est.)
refined petroleum consumption: 361,700 bbl/day (2019 est.)
crude oil and lease condensate exports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
crude oil and lease condensate imports: 172,700 bbl/day (2018 est.)
crude oil estimated reserves: 150 million barrels (2021 est.)
216,200 bbl/day (2017 est.)
7,359 bbl/day (2017 est.)
166,400 bbl/day (2017 est.)
production: 1,109,962,000 cubic meters (2020 est.)
consumption: 6,558,312,000 cubic meters (2020 est.)
exports: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
imports: 4,602,471,000 cubic meters (2020 est.)
proven reserves: 97.976 billion cubic meters (2021 est.)
88.333 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
from coal and metallurgical coke: 24.217 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
from petroleum and other liquids: 51.228 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
from consumed natural gas: 12.888 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
81.953 million Btu/person (2019 est.)
number of registered air carriers: 9 (2020)
inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 173
annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 19,517,185 (2018)
annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 1,226,440,000 (2018) mt-km
CC
481 (2021)
90
note: paved runways have a concrete or asphalt surface but not all have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control; the length of a runway required for aircraft to safely operate depends on a number of factors including the type of aircraft, the takeoff weight (including passengers, cargo, and fuel), engine types, flap settings, landing speed, elevation of the airport, and average maximum daily air temperature; paved runways can reach a length of 5,000 m (16,000 ft.), but the “typical” length of a commercial airline runway is between 2,500-4,000 m (8,000-13,000 ft.)
391
note: unpaved runways have a surface composition such as grass or packed earth and are most suited to the operation of light aircraft; unpaved runways are usually short, often less than 1,000 m (3,280 ft.) in length; airports with unpaved runways often lack facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control
1 (2021)
3,160 km gas, 781 km liquid petroleum gas, 985 km oil, 722 km refined products (2013)
total: 7,281.5 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 3,853.5 km (2014) 1.000-m gauge
broad gauge: 3,428 km (2014) 1.676-m gauge (1,691 km electrified)
total: 77,801 km (2016)
paved: (2010)
unpaved: (2010)
total: 239 (2022)
by type: bulk carrier 4, container ship 5, general cargo 64, oil tanker 14, other 152
major seaport(s): Coronel, Huasco, Lirquen, Puerto Ventanas, San Antonio, San Vicente, Valparaiso
container port(s) (TEUs): San Antonio (1,840,458), Valparaiso (793,118) (2021)
LNG terminal(s) (import): Mejillones, Quintero
Chile operates one PC 5 or 6 class light icebreaker for operations in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean
note - PC indicates a Polar Class vessel: PC 5 - year-round operation in medium first-year ice which may include old ice inclusions (ice thickness up to 70-120 cm); PC 6 - summer/autumn operation in medium first-year ice which may include old ice inclusions (ice thickness up to 30-70 cm)
manyapis