Colon: population, poverty, jobs, income, education and health
Colon is a department of Honduras, number 12 of 18 by population. INE estimates Colon had 360,498 residents in 2023, 3.7% of Honduras's 9,745,149, making it 7th smallest of 18 departments by population.
In depth
- Economy, jobs and prices in Colon: Colon had an unemployment rate of 5.1% in 2023 (7,026 unemployed among a labour force of 137,848), below the national figure of 6.8%; this is 9th highest of 18 departments.
- Health in Colon: Life expectancy at birth in Colon was 76.8 years in INE's 2022 estimate (73.2 for men, 80.6 for women), against 77.1 nationally, ranking joint 8th highest of 18 departments.
- Education in Colon: People aged 15 and over in Colon had an average of 6.9 years of schooling in 2023, ranking joint 6th highest of 18 departments.
- Poverty and living standards in Colon: 62.3% of households in Colon were poor in 2023 (56,405 of 90,564 households with declared income), below the figure for all 18 departments combined of 63.4% and is 6th lowest of 18 departments.
How urban is Colon?
50.3% of the people of Colon lived in urban areas in 2023 (the national figure is 55.7%), ranking 6th most urbanised of 18 departments; 181,331 people were urban and 179,167 rural.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Honduras · saved copyWhat is the population density of Colon?
Colon had 44 people per square kilometre in 2023 against 87 nationally, ranking 3rd least densely populated of 18 departments.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Honduras · saved copyHow many men and women live in Colon?
There were 93.9 men for every 100 women in Colon in 2023 (174,531 men and 185,967 women), compared with 89.0 nationally.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Honduras · saved copyHow many people of working age live in Colon?
249,250 people in Colon were of working age (15 and over) in 2023, 69.1% of its population; the national share is 71.9%.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Honduras · saved copyHow many people live in a household in Colon?
Households in Colon had an average of 3.8 members in 2023 against 3.8 nationally, ranking joint 9th largest of 18 departments; there were 94,435 households in total.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Honduras · saved copyHow departments are governed in Honduras
Departments (18). Governor appointed by the president. Represents central government; no functions or funds of its own.
Every tier of government in Honduras
Other departments of Honduras
- Cortes 1,886,695
- Francisco Morazan 1,748,900
- Yoro 655,445
- Olancho 602,876
- Comayagua 593,521
- Paraiso 517,966
- Atlantida 508,228
- Choluteca 491,525
- Santa Barbara 490,072
- Copan 430,958
- Lempira 382,378
- Intibuca 279,111
- La Paz 235,599
- Valle 196,412
- Ocotepeque 174,179
- Gracias A Dios 110,288
- Islas De Bahia 80,498
Up a level: Honduras · government and power in Honduras · cities
Sources
- Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Honduras: Principales indicadores demograficos 2022: tables by department (INE population projections 2014-2030), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 4d62fb0ba85b…)
- Instituto Nacional de Estadistica (INE), Honduras: Encuesta Permanente de Hogares de Propositos Multiples (EPHPM) 2023, consolidated four-quarter base: results by department, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 84490a09493a…)
Each saved copy is the file exactly as downloaded, kept so the figures can be checked even if the source changes. Report an error.