District of Uttarakhand

Nainital District Population 2026

Q: What is the population of Nainital district in 2026?

Our estimate for 1 March 2026 is ≈11,69,000 (11.69 lakh). It is not an official figure: it applies Nainital's 2001–2011 trend, damped, to the official Uttarakhand projection (method M1). Census 2011 counted 9,54,605.

Q: What was the population of Nainital district in Census 2011?

9,54,605: 4,93,666 males and 4,60,939 females, of whom 3,71,734 lived in towns and 5,82,871 in villages. These figures are on the district’s current boundaries, rebuilt from Census 2011 village and town records.

Population · 1 March 2026

≈ 11.69 lakh Estimate Our estimate, method M1, constrained to the official state projection 1 March 2026 How this is made →

11,69,000 1.17 million 1 March 2026

Nainital district's population is estimated at ≈11.69 lakh (11,69,000) on 1 March 2026. This is our estimate, tied to the official Uttarakhand projection; Census 2011, the last count, recorded 9,54,605 on the district’s present boundaries.

Estimate: method M1, constrained to the RGI projection for Uttarakhand. Census: ORGI.

Which number do you mean?

District totals include villages. Here is how the 2011 population splits between towns and villages.

District

Nainital district

Census 2011: 9,54,605
2026 Estimate Our estimate, method M1, constrained to the official state projection How this is made →: ≈ 11.69 lakh

Urban population

Towns (urban)

Census 2011: 3,71,734

Rural

Villages (rural)

Census 2011: 5,82,871

Key figures

Population 2026: ≈ 11.69 lakh 11,69,000 Estimate Our estimate, method M1, constrained to the official state projection How this is made →
Census 2011: 9.55 lakh 9,54,605 Reconstructed Census figures re-added on today’s boundaries How this is made →
Density: ≈ 225per km² 2011
Sex ratio: 934 Uttarakhand: 963
Child sex ratio (0–6): 902 Uttarakhand: 890
Literacy rate: 83.9% Male 90.1% · Female 77.3%
Urban share: 38.9% Uttarakhand: 30.2%
Growth 2001–11: +25.1% Uttarakhand: +18.8%
Area: ≈ 4,251km² approx., from 2011 sub-district areas
Households: 1.91 lakh 5.0 people per household
Villages: 1,142 Census 2011
Towns: 11 Census 2011

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Population over time

Census figures re-added on today’s boundaries (parts of earlier districts apportioned by their 2011 population), then our estimate to 2036.

Reconstructed
Estimate

13 L 2026

› Show the numbers as a table

Year	Population
1991	5,74,832
2001	7,62,909
2011	9,54,605
2016 *	10,29,000
2021 *	11,01,000
2026 *	11,69,000
2031 *	12,31,000
2036 *	12,85,000

* Estimate

How Nainital's 2011 population was spread

Sub-districts (tehsils, talukas, mandals or blocks) as they were in Census 2011. “Part” means only some of it now lies in this district.

How Nainital's 2011 population was spread
#
1	Haldwani	3,64,129	38.1%	920	84.9%	67.3%
2	Ramnagar	1,53,738	16.1%	948	79.0%	35.6%
3	Nainital	1,50,389	15.8%	919	89.2%	37.8%
4	Lalkuan	94,724	9.9%	907	83.2%	8.1%
5	Dhari	78,733	8.2%	962	79.9%	0.0%
6	Kaladhungi	60,070	6.3%	948	83.2%	12.7%
7	Kosya Kutauli	31,557	3.3%	1016	85.4%	0.0%
8	Betalghat	21,265	2.2%	1041	80.7%	0.0%
9	Pratapnagar(part)	0	0.0%	–	–	–

Largest towns in Nainital (Census 2011)

Haldwani-cum-Kathgodam 2,01,461
Ramnagar 54,787
Nainital 41,377
Mukhani CT 22,475
Fatehpur Range CT 12,791
Haldwani Talli CT 8,159
Bhimtal 7,722
Lalkuan 7,644
Kaladhungi 7,611
Bhowali 6,309

How people in Nainital worked (Census 2011)

Cultivators

36.6%

Agricultural labourers

9.2%

Household industry

2.6%

Other work

51.6%

Share of all workers, main and marginal. Work participation: 39.4%.

Age structure of Nainital

Population in five-year age groups, Census 2011. Men on the left, women on the right. Census 2011, approx. Census 2011 on today’s boundaries; approximate, because some 2011 units were split between districts and are apportioned by population. How this is made →

MenWomen

80+
75-79
70-74
65-69
60-64
55-59
50-54
45-49
40-44
35-39
30-34
25-29
20-24
15-19
10-14
5-9
0-4

› Show the numbers as a table

Age	Men	Women
0-4	44,920	40,418
5-9	50,232	45,103
10-14	53,986	48,117
15-19	54,781	48,624
20-24	48,516	46,176
25-29	40,627	41,048
30-34	35,823	34,512
35-39	33,618	33,079
40-44	28,929	27,273
45-49	25,713	24,148
50-54	20,963	18,745
55-59	15,215	15,077
60-64	15,004	13,799
65-69	9,646	9,191
70-74	6,844	6,524
75-79	3,517	3,493
80+	4,274	4,761

Children (0–14): 29.7%; Uttarakhand 31.1%
Working age (15–59): 62.2%; Uttarakhand 60.0%
Older people (60+): 8.1%; Uttarakhand 8.9%
Median age: 24.8years; Uttarakhand 24.0
Dependency ratio: 53.2; children and 65+ per 100 aged 15–64; Uttarakhand 58.1

Languages spoken in Nainital

Share of people by mother tongue, grouped into languages as the Census does. 45 languages recorded. Census 2011, approx. Census 2011 on today’s boundaries; approximate, because some 2011 units were split between districts and are apportioned by population. How this is made →

Hindi 89.7%
Urdu 6.6%
Punjabi 2.1%
Nepali 0.6%
Bengali 0.4%
Khandeshi 0.1%
Maithili 0.1%
Marathi 0.0%
All other languages 0.3%

Largest mother tongues

Kumauni48.4%
Hindi38.7%
Urdu6.6%
Punjabi2.1%
Garhwali1.6%
Bhojpuri0.7%
Nepali0.6%
Bengali0.4%

Housing and amenities in Nainital

Share of households, Houselisting Census 2011. Reconstructed Census 2011, added up on today’s boundaries from village, town or sub-district records. How this is made →

Basic services

Electricity for lighting 90.4%

Uttarakhand 87.1%
Tap water 80.1%

Uttarakhand 68.2%
Water source within premises 63.1%

Uttarakhand 58.6%
Toilet within premises 79.7%

Uttarakhand 66.0%
Open defecation (no latrine) (Lower is better for this one.) 19.2%

Uttarakhand 32.8%
Bathing area within premises 77.7%

Uttarakhand 69.6%
Closed drainage 30.6%

Uttarakhand 19.2%
Cooking with LPG/PNG 53.2%

Uttarakhand 44.5%
Cooking with wood, crop waste or dung (Lower is better for this one.) 41.2%

Uttarakhand 52.8%

What households own

Mobile phone 74.5%

Uttarakhand 71.5%
Television 67.6%

Uttarakhand 62.2%
Scooter or motorcycle 26.6%

Uttarakhand 23.2%
Computer or laptop 14.1%

Uttarakhand 11.0%
Car, jeep or van 7.4%

Uttarakhand 6.3%
Use banking services 78.4%

Uttarakhand 80.7%
None of the listed assets (Lower is better for this one.) 11.7%

Uttarakhand 13.7%

The home itself

Own their home 70.8%

Uttarakhand 82.8%
Rent their home 16.3%

Uttarakhand 12.4%
Permanent (pucca) house 89.0%

Uttarakhand 90.7%
House in good condition 69.0%

Uttarakhand 66.8%
Concrete roof 60.4%

Uttarakhand 43.8%
Cement or tiled floor 66.5%

Uttarakhand 51.7%
One room or less (Lower is better for this one.) 27.6%

Uttarakhand 27.3%

Uttarakhand

What the numbers say

Nainital district held 9.5% of Uttarakhand's population in 2011, 4th of 13 districts.
Literacy is 83.9%, 5.1 points above the Uttarakhand average of 78.8%.
The sex ratio of 934 females per 1,000 males is lower than the state's 963.
38.9% of residents lived in towns in 2011, more urban than Uttarakhand as a whole (30.2%).
The population grew 25.1% in 2001–11, faster than Uttarakhand's 18.8% (on today’s boundaries).
Our 2026 estimate, ≈11.69 lakh, implies growth of about 22% since 2011; it is tied to the official Uttarakhand projection.
Its largest town, Haldwani-cum-Kathgodam, had 2.01 lakh people in 2011, 21.1% of the district.

How this district was formed

Nainital covers land that was part of these districts in Census 2011:

Nainital (2011) 100.0% of this district
100.0% of the 2011 district

Compare with

All districts of Uttarakhand →

Census 2027 status

Results pending

Phase I: houselisting

Done (25 April 2026 – 24 May 2026)
Phase II: counting people

Snow-bound areas: September 2026. Rest: February 2027
Results

Not yet released. In 2011, first figures came about a month after counting ended.

When the Registrar General publishes Census 2027 figures for Nainital, they will appear on this page, at this address. Census 2027 explained →

Population by religion in Nainital (Census 2011)

Official figures as published by the Office of the Registrar General. Shown without commentary. Reconstructed Census 2011 on today’s boundaries; approximate, because some 2011 units were split between districts and are apportioned by population. How this is made →

Population by religion in Nainital (Census 2011)
Religion	Persons	Share	Uttarakhand
Hindu	≈ 8,09,700	84.8%	83.0%
Muslim	≈ 1,20,700	12.6%	13.9%
Christian	≈ 5,100	0.5%	0.4%
Sikh	≈ 17,400	1.8%	2.3%
Buddhist	≈ 600	0.1%	0.1%
Jain	≈ 400	0.0%	0.1%
Other religions and persuasions	≈ 200	0.0%	0.0%
Religion not stated	≈ 500	0.1%	0.1%
Total	9,54,605	100%

Frequently asked questions

What is the population of Nainital district in 2026?

Our estimate for 1 March 2026 is ≈11,69,000 (11.69 lakh). It is not an official figure: it applies Nainital's 2001–2011 trend, damped, to the official Uttarakhand projection (method M1). Census 2011 counted 9,54,605.

What was the population of Nainital district in Census 2011?

9,54,605: 4,93,666 males and 4,60,939 females, of whom 3,71,734 lived in towns and 5,82,871 in villages. These figures are on the district’s current boundaries, rebuilt from Census 2011 village and town records.

What is the literacy rate and sex ratio of Nainital?

Literacy was 83.9% in 2011 (men 90.1%, women 77.3%). The sex ratio was 934 females per 1,000 males, and 902 among children aged 0–6.

Which is the largest town in Nainital district?

Haldwani-cum-Kathgodam, with 2,01,461 people in Census 2011.

How many villages and towns are in Nainital district?

On today's boundaries the district contains 1,142 Census 2011 villages and 11 towns.

⤓ Download Uttarakhand district data (CSV)

Sources and method

Data updated: 4 October 2026 · Report a correction