Key results
- At the end of 2024, there were approximately 339,500 foreign-language speakers living in Uusimaa, and this figure is anticipated to rise to around 674,000 by 2045.
- The foreign-language-speaking population of Uusimaa will continue to be heavily concentrated in the Helsinki metropolitan area, where around 86 per cent of Uusimaa’s foreign-language speakers were already living in 2024.
- In 2045, the number of people speaking a foreign language is forecast to be around 238,000 in Helsinki, around 181,000 in Espoo and around 158,000 in Vantaa.
- In the outer municipalities of the Helsinki region, it is estimated that the number of foreign-language speakers will rise to around 71,000 by 2045, and to around 23,000 in the rest of Uusimaa.
- The number of people speaking a foreign language is expected to increase across all age groups. The fastest growth, in relative terms, will be among the working-age population and, in particular, the ageing population.
- By the end of the projection period, the largest language groups are predicted to consist of residents who speak languages from Asia (excluding the Middle East), the Middle East and North Africa, as well as Russian and other languages of the former Soviet Union.
Number of foreign-language speakers in Uusimaa growing rapidly
The number of foreign-language speakers in Uusimaa has grown rapidly since the 2000s, and this growth is forecast to continue in the future. Between 2025 and 2029, the foreign-language-speaking population is anticipated to grow by an average of around 15,000 people each year, and thereafter by approximately 16,000 people a year. Most of this growth is concentrated in the Helsinki metropolitan area, in whose major cities around 86 per cent of the entire foreign-language-speaking population of Uusimaa were living in 2024.
It is estimated that in 2035, the number of foreign-language speakers will be around 191,000 in Helsinki, 131,000 in Espoo and 116,000 in Vantaa. By 2045, these figures will continue to rise to around 238,000 in Helsinki, 181,000 in Espoo and 158,000 in Vantaa.
The growth in the foreign-language-speaking population is fastest in Espoo and Vantaa. As recently as 2020, Helsinki had more residents who spoke a foreign language than Espoo and Vantaa combined. According to the projection, the combined foreign-language-speaking population of Espoo and Vantaa would already surpass that of Helsinki by almost a third by 2035.
The proportion of the population speaking a foreign language is also forecast to increase in all regions. In 2024, the proportion in Uusimaa was around 19 per cent, and it is forecast to rise to around 25 per cent by 2035.
Largest language groups vary from area to area within the Uusimaa region
At the end of the projection period in 2045, the largest language groups across the whole of Uusimaa are predicted to consist of residents who speak languages from Asia (excluding the Middle East), the Middle East and North Africa, as well as Russian and other languages of the former Soviet Union (excluding the Baltic states). These same three language groups were also the largest in the region at the end of 2024.
According to the projection, the largest language groups in Vantaa and Espoo in 2045 will be the same as those in the Uusimaa region as a whole. In Helsinki, on the other hand, it is estimated that the number of residents speaking languages from the Middle East and North Africa, the rest of Asia and Western Europe will grow more rapidly than any other language group.
In the outer Helsinki region and the rest of Uusimaa, the largest language group in 2024 was the speakers of Russian and other languages of the former Soviet Union. This language group is also expected to be the largest at the end of the forecast period.
Data and methods
The projection for the foreign-language-speaking population of the Uusimaa region was drawn up in collaboration with the statistics and research units of the cities in the Helsinki metropolitan area. The data used in this study are population data produced by Statistics Finland based on population register data. The projection is based on a demographic method in which future population trends are estimated on the basis of assumptions regarding birth rates, mortality rates and migration.
The projection has been drawn up for the whole of the Uusimaa region and separately for six areas: Helsinki, Espoo, Vantaa, Kauniainen, the outer municipalities of the Helsinki Region (KUUMA region) and the rest of Uusimaa.
The language group breakdown in the forecast is as follows: The languages of the Baltic region, Russian and other languages spoken in the former Soviet Union (excl. Baltic countries), Western European languages, Eastern European languages, languages spoken in the Middle East and North Africa, languages spoken in the rest of Africa, languages spoken in the rest of Asia, and other languages or languages where the mother tongue is unknown.
The data contained in the tables appended to this publication can also be downloaded in Excel format from the Open Statistical Databases of the Helsinki Region: aluesarjat.fi.
Citation
The Cities of Espoo, Helsinki and Vantaa, and the Helsinki-Uusimaa Regional Council (2026). Uudenmaan maakunnan vieraskielisen väestön ennuste 2025–2045. Katsauksia 2026: 9. Helsinki: Helsinki City Executive Office. Available at: https://www.hel.fi/static/kanslia/Kaupunkitieto/26_09_21_Katsauksia_Uudenmaan_vieraskielisen_vaeston_ennuste_2020_2045.pdf(Link leads to external service) Accessed: ##.##.20##.