Census 2022

The Scottish Census takes place every ten years, alongside similar information gathering exercises in all UK countries. The data gathered gives a snapshot of the characteristics of the people who live in Scotland on that particular day. The information is used to inform decisions and facilitate discussion about present and future service delivery.

There has been a census every 10 years since 1801, with the exception of 1941. The 2021 census in Scotland was moved to 2022 due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Census provides us with a valuable historical record and the ability to identify changes in social trends. It also lets us compare different countries, regions and towns, both with each other and with the wider area they are situated in, because information is available at many different geographical levels.

The first results from Scotland’s Census 2022 were released in September 2023 and more detailed topic data is being released over the course of 2024.

Find out more about the census from Scotland's Census website.

Aberdeenshire’s population

The estimated population in Aberdeenshire in 2022 was 263,900. This is an increase of 4.3% since the previous Census in 2011, and a higher rate of increase than in Scotland as a whole (2.7%). The 2022 census figure is just slightly higher than the most recent mid-year population estimate which means the population figures we have been relying on in recent years have been good estimates.

21% of Aberdeenshire’s population is aged over 65, just slightly higher than the Scottish average of 20%. This proportion has increased since 2011 when 16% of Aberdeenshire’s population was in the over 65 age group. Aberdeenshire has a slightly higher proportion of children under 15 (17%) than the Scottish average (15%).

The number of households in Aberdeenshire in 2022 was estimated to be 115,800 which is an increase of 10.6% since the 2011 Census. This is a higher rate of increase than for Scotland (5.8%) and is the third highest rate of increase of all Scottish local authorities with only Midlothian (17.2%) and East Lothian (13.7%) seeing greater proportional increases. 

Census results by topic

View census results for ethnic group, national identity, language and religion (PDF 232KB).

View the census outputs release schedule, to find out about future topic releases. 

Contact

If you can’t find what you are looking for or would like further information on any of the topics covered, please get in touch by emailing statistics@aberdeenshire.gov.uk.