Global Jewish population remains below pre-Holocaust levels; 85% live in Israel and US

The Jewish population is estimated at about 15.8 million, still below pre-Holocaust levels, when between 16.5 and 16.7 million Jews lived worldwide, including roughly 9.5 million in Europe, according to data released on Sunday by Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) ahead of Holocaust Remembrance Day.

The report shows that 85% of the world’s Jewish population now lives in Israel and the United States. Approximately 7.2 million Jews reside in Israel, accounting for about 45% of the total, compared to just 5% at the time of the country’s founding in 1948. In the United States, about 6.3 million Jews live, representing roughly 40% of the global Jewish population.

The remaining 15% of the Jewish population primarily live in Europe, Canada, Russia, Australia, Argentina, Brazil and South Africa. France is home to the world’s third-largest Jewish population (436,000), followed by Canada (407,000), the United Kingdom (315,000), Argentina (168,000), Germany (126,000), Russia (120,000) and Australia (117,000).

The CBS report found that about 111,000 Holocaust survivors currently live in Israel, with women making up 63% and men 37%. It also noted that roughly one-third immigrated between 1948 and 1951, another third between 1952 and 1989, and the remainder since the 1990s, primarily from former Soviet Union states.

Approximately 37% of the Holocaust survivors are now between 80 and 85 years old. Another 35% are aged 86 to 89 and 28% are aged 90 or older. The statistics showed an overwhelming majority of the survivors living in Israel (95%) 95 reside in urban centers such as Haifa, Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Netanya, Petach Tikva, Rishon LeZion, Ashdod and Beersheva.

The number of Holocaust survivors is in decline due to their overall advanced age. In 2022, Israel was home to 165,000 Holocaust survivors compared to 111,000 in 2026.

Last year, the "Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany" report projected that 70% of Holocaust survivors would be gone within a decade due to their advanced age and fragile health.

At the time, the president of the Claims Conference, Gideon Taylor, said the report underscored the urgent need to strengthen Holocaust education efforts. He emphasized the importance of hearing directly from survivors by bringing them into classrooms, places of worship, and other institutions, noting that people of all ages should learn from their firsthand accounts.

In 2025, Former Israeli Supreme Court head and Holocaust survivor, Aharon Barak, said the Jewish state was still the safest place for Jews despite the ongoing wars with enemies that openly call for Israel’s destruction.

"Antisemitism is ever-present and always felt. Anyone who values the past must know about the Holocaust to prevent similar future experiences," Barak warned.