Where Bulgarians move
1.3M Bulgarians live abroad — #58 largest source of emigrants worldwide
Considering a move from Bulgaria? — See top destinations, regional flows, and how it's changed since 1990.
Where emigrants go
The top 3 countries receive 63% of all emigrants
↑↓ — change vs 2020
| Country | Emigrants |
|---|---|
| Türkiye | 348052 |
| Germany | 338439 |
| Spain | 103587 |
| Greece | 78992 |
| Netherlands | 58481 |
| Belgium | 51857 |
| Italy | 50769 |
| Austria | 38651 |
| France | 35728 |
| Canada | 20575 |
| Israel | 18875 |
| Czechia | 12878 |
| Denmark | 12544 |
| Switzerland | 12532 |
| Sweden | 11009 |
| Norway | 8109 |
| Portugal | 6682 |
| Cyprus | 6498 |
| Malta | 4743 |
| Romania | 4443 |
| Australia | 3874 |
| Finland | 3021 |
| Slovakia | 2822 |
| Russia | 2615 |
| Poland | 2585 |
| Luxembourg | 1975 |
| Ukraine | 1784 |
| Hungary | 1676 |
| Slovenia | 1585 |
| North Macedonia | 1079 |
| Serbia | 896 |
| Iceland | 778 |
| South Africa | 766 |
| Moldova | 446 |
| Argentina | 366 |
| Estonia | 342 |
| Mexico | 289 |
| Croatia | 271 |
| Brazil | 270 |
| Georgia | 237 |
| Lithuania | 147 |
| Panama | 133 |
| Venezuela | 127 |
| Latvia | 103 |
| Costa Rica | 103 |
| Dominican Republic | 82 |
| Montenegro | 76 |
| Faroe Islands | 73 |
| Nicaragua | 64 |
| Belarus | 58 |
| Namibia | 32 |
| Bolivia | 29 |
| Bahamas | 22 |
| Liechtenstein | 21 |
| Greenland | 17 |
| Mongolia | 16 |
| Cuba | 9 |
| Guinea | 1 |
By destination region
Europe is the leading destination region at 68%
851.8K
373.7K
20.6K
3.9K
1.5K
799
16
Interesting facts
Notable statistics about emigration from Bulgaria.
Netherlands is the fastest-growing major destination
Emigration to the Netherlands has increased by 178% since 2015, rising from 21K to 58.5K in 9 years.
Emigration destinations have diversified since 1990
The top destination's share fell from 77% to 28%, indicating a broader spread of emigration patterns.
The share of emigrants going to Middle East has declined since 1990
The share of emigrants going to Middle East has shifted from 81.3% to 29.8% since 1990.
Top emigration destinations have shifted significantly since 1990
7 new countries have entered the top 20 destinations: Spain, Netherlands, Czechia — Spain rose from outside the top 20 to rank #3.
How emigration changed over time
Total emigrant population by year
| Year | Emigrants |
|---|---|
| 1990 | 597707 |
| 1995 | 661065 |
| 2000 | 707846 |
| 2005 | 808373 |
| 2010 | 926056 |
| 2015 | 1030383 |
| 2020 | 1178732 |
| 2024 | 1252234 |
Top destinations over time
Emigration to the 5 largest destination countries
| Year | Türkiye | Germany | Spain | Greece | Netherlands |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 462221 | 34540 | 0 | 7509 | 663 |
| 1995 | 471243 | 57398 | 7279 | 22834 | 1072 |
| 2000 | 480265 | 51558 | 21096 | 38534 | 1762 |
| 2005 | 448154 | 55861 | 94273 | 56513 | 3230 |
| 2010 | 413362 | 76221 | 143717 | 77194 | 14187 |
| 2015 | 380354 | 174357 | 124625 | 72744 | 21026 |
| 2020 | 363507 | 295226 | 113958 | 74359 | 36749 |
| 2024 | 348052 | 338439 | 103587 | 78992 | 58481 |
Fastest-changing destinations
How emigration to each country has changed since the selected year
Bulgaria as an emigration source
Share of immigrants in each country who originate from Bulgaria