Fertility in Europe: Which countries have the highest and lowest numbers of live births per woman?

More than 4 million babies have been born in the European Union every year in the last three decades, but these numbers are showing a downward trend. 

In 2021, 4.09 million babies were born. This is the second lowest figure since 1960. The lowest figure was recorded in 2020, when 4.07 million babies were born.

The fertility rate, which reflects the number of live births per woman, has changed remarkably across European countries in the last 20 years. It decreased in 11 of the 27 EU members states between 2001 and 2021. 

Which countries have the highest and lowest fertility rates in Europe? How has fertility changed across Europe in the last two decades? How do the shares of children of foreign-born and native-born mothers vary in the EU?

In 2021, France had the highest fertility rate among the EU member states with 1.84 live births per woman according to Eurostat, the statistical office of the EU. Malta had the lowest rate with 1.13 live births. This average for the EU as a whole was 1.53.

France is followed by Czechia (1.83), Iceland (1.82) and Romania (1.81). 

While the highest fertility rate is seen in a (partially) Mediterranean country, live births per woman are remarkably lower in some other Mediterranean countries such as Malta (1.13), Spain (1.19), Italy (1.25), Cyprus (1.39) and Greece (1.43).

Fertility rates were as follows in other countries: 1.72 in Denmark, 1.7 in Turkey, 1.61 in the UK, 1.58 in Germany, and 1.35 in Portugal.

Looking at the number of children born in the EU, the lowest number was recorded in 2020 at 4.07 million. There has recently been a downward trend in the number of births in the EU, which began in 2008, a year that saw 4.68 million births.

The fertility rate increased by 8 per cent in the EU