Maranhao: population, economy, jobs and income

Maranhao is a state of Brazil, number 12 of 27 by population. IBGE estimates the population of Maranhao at 7,024,557 on 1 July 2026, 3.3% of Brazil's 214,211,951 and 12th largest of 27 federation units. That is up 0.09% on the 2025 estimate of 7,018,211 (4th slowest growth of 27; Brazil up 0.37%).

In depth

• Economy, jobs and prices in Maranhao: The gross domestic product of Maranhao was R$149.2 billion in 2023 at current prices, 1.4% of Brazil's R$10.94 trillion and 11th smallest of 27. In current reais it was up 6.8% on 2022.
• Health in Maranhao: Life expectancy at birth in Maranhao was 75.6 years in 2024, 7th shortest of the 26 states and the Federal District (Brazil: 76.6), according to IBGE estimates in its 2024 population projections.
• Education in Maranhao: Schools in Maranhao scored 5.7 out of 10 on the Ideb basic education index for the early primary years (grades 1 to 5) in 2025, joint 3rd lowest of the 26 states and the Federal District (Brazil: 6.3); the score was 5.4 in 2023 and 2.9 in 2005.
• Poverty and living standards in Maranhao: 45.8% of people in Maranhao lived on household income below the World Bank poverty line of US$6.85 a day (PPP 2017) in 2024, about 3.19 million people; 2nd highest of the 26 states and the Federal District (Brazil: 23.1%).
• Government budget and revenue in Maranhao: The Maranhao state government took in R$34.4 billion in 2025, R$4,900 per resident, the lowest of 27 federation units per person (all 27 combined: R$6,759). Revenue was up 10.5% on 2024 (R$31.1 billion), before adjusting for inflation (all 27 combined: up 7.5%).

How states are governed in Brazil

States (26) + Federal District. Governor and state legislative assembly directly elected for four years. Police, state schools and hospitals, state roads, courts; states create metropolitan regions.

Every tier of government in Brazil

Other states of Brazil

• Sao Paulo 46,179,008
• Minas Gerais 21,460,311
• Rio de Janeiro 17,225,410
• Bahia 14,889,472
• Parana 11,952,456
• Rio Grande do Sul 11,233,317
• Pernambuco 9,583,176
• Ceara 9,302,211
• Para 8,756,324
• Santa Catarina 8,312,759
• Goias 7,495,033
• Amazonas 4,360,926
• Paraiba 4,182,828
• Espirito Santo 4,150,692
• Mato Grosso 3,950,330
• Rio Grande do Norte 3,463,737
• Piaui 3,392,617
• Alagoas 3,221,128
• Distrito Federal 3,009,996
• Mato Grosso do Sul 2,946,317
• Sergipe 2,307,255
• Rondonia 1,757,338
• Tocantins 1,595,994
• Acre 887,794
• Amapa 809,953
• Roraima 761,012

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Sources

• Secretaria do Tesouro Nacional (National Treasury), SICONFI: RGF 2025, 3rd quadrimester, executive branch, Annex 01: personnel spending against the Fiscal Responsibility Law limits. Bundle of the API responses for the 27 federation units (one JSON file per IBGE state code, with the request URLs in requests.txt), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 7d8f1d8fd7ea…)
• Secretaria do Tesouro Nacional (National Treasury), SICONFI: RGF 2025, 3rd quadrimester, Annex 02: consolidated debt (DC), net consolidated debt (DCL) and DCL as a share of net current revenue. Bundle of the API responses for the 27 federation units (one JSON file per IBGE state code, with the request URLs in requests.txt), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 892eae460b6e…)
• Secretaria do Tesouro Nacional (National Treasury), SICONFI: RREO 2025, 6th bimester (January-December), Annex 01: budget balance, revenue realised and expenditure committed, liquidated and paid by economic category. Bundle of the API responses for the 27 federation units (one JSON file per IBGE state code, with the request URLs in requests.txt), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 55a430977b02…)
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