Leeds population, 2001–2024
Leeds has an estimated population of 845,189 (mid-2024), up 18.1% since 2001. Official ONS mid-year estimates for the Leeds local authority area.
845,189
population, mid-2024
+18.1%
since 2001
+9.7%
last 10 years
2024
peak year (845,189)
Year by year
| Year | Population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 845,189 | +1.4% |
| 2023 | 833,516 | +1.6% |
| 2022 | 820,294 | +1.3% |
| 2021 | 809,479 | +0.1% |
| 2020 | 808,443 | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 804,640 | +0.9% |
| 2018 | 797,696 | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 793,134 | +0.8% |
| 2016 | 786,739 | +1.1% |
| 2015 | 777,987 | +1.0% |
| 2014 | 770,434 | +0.8% |
| 2013 | 764,369 | +0.8% |
| 2012 | 758,029 | +1.0% |
| 2011 | 750,683 | +0.4% |
| 2010 | 747,571 | +0.5% |
| 2009 | 743,885 | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 741,665 | +0.4% |
| 2007 | 738,560 | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 736,204 | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 735,054 | +1.7% |
| 2004 | 723,042 | +0.8% |
| 2003 | 717,592 | +0.2% |
| 2002 | 716,380 | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 715,609 | — |
Food businesses
Leeds has 805 takeaways, 1,908 restaurants and cafés and 606 pubs and bars on the FSA's statutory register (as of July 2026) — 0.42 takeaways per restaurant against an English average of 0.49, and 9.5 takeaways per 10,000 residents. How that compares across England.
High street businesses
Leeds has 615 hairdressers and beauty salons, 335 pubs and bars, 345 licensed restaurants, 645 takeaways on the ONS business register (2025). Compare across the UK.
Rounded to the nearest 5, which is how ONS protects individual businesses from being identified.
Figures are ONS mid-year population estimates for the Leeds local authority area (code E08000035), which can differ from the population of a town of the same name. Sources & method.
Common questions
What is the population of Leeds?
845,189, on the ONS mid-2024 estimate for the Leeds local authority area. This page charts the full annual series back to 2001, so the figure sits in its twenty-year context rather than alone.
Is Leeds growing or shrinking?
Growing: up 18.1% since 2001, from 715,609 to 845,189. The peak year in the series so far is 2024. Year-by-year figures and the chart are on this page.