"Immigration explains demographic growth"
It explains a large part of growth. Not all of it.
Between 2002 and 2024, total population grew by 7.584.425 people.
Of that growth, 4.764.310 comes from growth in the foreign population. That's 62.8% of the total.
Total growth
7.584.425
2002-2024
Foreign growth
4.764.310
Same period
Contribution to growth
62.8%
Not 100%
Foreign resident population (millions)
What the data says
1 Immigration helps explain much of Spain's recent demographic growth.
2 But claiming it explains everything erases the rest of the growth.
The correct answer isn't "nothing to do with it" or "everything depends on it". It's an important, but partial, contribution.
Two snapshots of the period
| Year | Total population | Foreign population |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 41.035.270 | 1.737.972 |
| 2024 | 48.619.695 | 6.502.282 |
Related links
The series hasn't kept accelerating since 2010.
"The European country with most immigration"Eurostat places it outside the top 5.
"Spain is full of immigrants"The latest INE figure is still around 11%.
Cross-cutting: "There are no homes, that's why prices rise"More population doesn't automatically mean a physical housing shortage.