Venezuela is a country in South America. Its capital is Caracas.
South America and its surrounding regions. The dot marks Caracas; the mapped territory is highlighted in gold.
Natural Earth · locator mapVenezuela includes Caribbean coastal mountains, Andean uplands, broad Llanos plains and the Guiana Highlands. These regions differ strongly in elevation and rainfall. The Orinoco River system connects much of the interior with the Atlantic.
Angel Falls descends from a high sandstone plateau in the Guiana Highlands. The Orinoco Delta is a contrasting lowland network of channels and wetlands. Coastal islands, savanna and forest add further geographic variety.
Lowlands are generally tropical, while higher elevations are cooler. Rainfall varies between the coast, central plains and the southeastern highlands.
Seasonal flooding shapes life in parts of the Llanos and delta. Highland plateaus support distinctive habitats separated from lower forest. Mountain, savanna, wetland and coastal environments cannot be described by a single national climate.
Three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), blue, and red, with the coat of arms on the left side of the yellow band and an arc of eight five-pointed white stars centered on the blue band
Sources: CIA World Factbook · archived profile · United Nations · January 2026 military action · International Court of Justice · Guyana v. Venezuela
Water descends from a steep tabletop mountain in Canaima National Park.
Photo: Stratokumulus · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Waterways and wetland vegetation shape the river’s broad delta.
Spanish is the official language. Indigenous languages also have official use for Indigenous peoples under the constitution.
Wayuunaiki, Warao, Pemón, Yanomami languages and many others are spoken. Their use differs by region and community, while Portuguese, Italian and other languages reflect migration and cross-border connections.
Indigenous societies preceded Spanish colonisation. Venezuela declared independence in 1811, but years of war followed; the 1821 Battle of Carabobo was a decisive victory. It became a separate republic after the breakup of Gran Colombia in 1830. Oil transformed the twentieth-century economy. A new constitution was adopted in 1999. Political conflict, economic crisis and large-scale migration marked later decades, followed by US military action in January 2026.
Sources: CIA World Factbook · archived profile · United Nations · January 2026 military action · International Court of Justice · Guyana v. Venezuela
Petroleum has long dominated export earnings and government revenue. Refining, petrochemicals, agriculture, manufacturing and services also contribute. Declining investment, infrastructure problems, policy changes and sanctions have affected production and trade. Recent economic figures have uneven coverage; gaps in the selected World Bank series are left visible rather than filled with estimates from another source.
Petroleum extraction and refining, petrochemicals, metals, food processing and agriculture.
Sources: CIA World Factbook · archived profile · United Nations · January 2026 military action · International Court of Justice · Guyana v. Venezuela
Dated World Bank observations. Population uses selected years; real GDP uses all available annual observations.
Population and economic observations may end in different years. The latest available year is shown separately on each chart; missing years are not filled in.
Population estimates may be revised. Selected years are shown.
Sources: World Bank · Population
| Year | People | Millions of people |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 11,387,790 | 11.388 |
| 1980 | 15,258,218 | 15.258 |
| 1990 | 19,827,010 | 19.827 |
| 2000 | 24,526,708 | 24.527 |
| 2010 | 28,813,101 | 28.813 |
| 2020 | 28,444,077 | 28.444 |
| 2025 | 28,516,896 | 28.517 |
Constant prices adjust for inflation. This is total economic output, not current-dollar GDP or income per person. Missing years are left as gaps.
Sources: World Bank · Real GDP
| Year | Constant 2015 US$ | Billions of constant 2015 US dollars |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 74,569,484,098 | 74.569 |
| 1991 | 81,713,865,808 | 81.714 |
| 1992 | 86,625,628,234 | 86.626 |
| 1993 | 86,848,890,162 | 86.849 |
| 1994 | 84,839,532,806 | 84.840 |
| 1995 | 88,188,461,733 | 88.188 |
| 1996 | 87,965,199,804 | 87.965 |
| 1997 | 93,546,748,015 | 93.547 |
| 1998 | 93,993,271,872 | 93.993 |
| 1999 | 88,411,723,661 | 88.412 |
| 2000 | 91,537,390,659 | 91.537 |
| 2001 | 94,663,057,658 | 94.663 |
| 2002 | 86,402,366,305 | 86.402 |
| 2003 | 79,704,508,452 | 79.705 |
| 2004 | 94,216,533,801 | 94.217 |
| 2005 | 103,816,796,724 | 103.817 |
| 2006 | 114,086,845,432 | 114.087 |
| 2007 | 124,133,632,211 | 124.134 |
| 2008 | 130,608,228,136 | 130.608 |
| 2009 | 126,589,513,424 | 126.590 |
| 2010 | 124,580,156,068 | 124.580 |
| 2011 | 129,715,180,422 | 129.715 |
| 2012 | 137,082,824,061 | 137.083 |
| 2013 | 138,868,919,488 | 138.869 |
| 2014 | 133,510,633,206 | 133.511 |
| 2015 | 125,249,941,854 | 125.250 |
| 2016 | 103,816,796,724 | 103.817 |
| 2017 | 87,518,675,948 | 87.519 |
| 2018 | 70,327,507,458 | 70.328 |
| 2019 | 50,903,719,684 | 50.904 |
| 2020 | 35,721,908,550 | 35.722 |
| 2021 | 35,945,170,478 | 35.945 |
| 2022 | 38,847,575,548 | 38.848 |
| 2023 | 40,410,409,047 | 40.410 |
| 2024 | 42,643,028,332 | 42.643 |
| 2025 | 43,312,814,117 | 43.313 |
The Human Development Index combines health, education and income. Scores range from 0 to 1.
The latest values refer to 2023. All historical scores use the same report edition. HDI does not describe every aspect of inequality or quality of life.
Sources: UNDP · Human Development Report 2025
The constitution provides for a federal presidential republic with a President and a single-chamber National Assembly. Constitutional design does not fully describe the current political situation: disputed elections, institutional conflict and the January 2026 US military operation have shaped a continuing political crisis. This profile describes the formal institutions without presenting them as a measure of democratic practice.
Sources: CIA World Factbook · archived profile · United Nations · January 2026 military action · International Court of Justice · Guyana v. Venezuela
Three questions about Venezuela.
Sources: CIA World Factbook · archived profile · United Nations · January 2026 military action · International Court of Justice · Guyana v. Venezuela
Prepared 24 September 2026. World Bank series: SP.POP.TOTL (persons) and NY.GDP.MKTP.KD (constant 2015 US dollars); downloaded 24 September 2026, provider update 13 July 2026. UNDP values use the 2025 report and 2023 observation year. These are dated statistical snapshots, not live population or economic counters.
Maps use Natural Earth geographic data. Background geography, flag descriptions and selected historical facts use archived public-domain CIA World Factbook profiles, supplemented by the sources linked above. The Factbook is no longer updated; dated statistics here come from the separately named providers.
