Approximately 196,600 Jewish Holocaust survivors are alive today across more than 90 countries—a decline from the 220,000 survivors estimated to be living in January 2025.
The updated data on the global population of Jewish Holocaust survivors have been released by the Claims Conference ahead of International Holocaust Remembrance Day on January 27, and marking 81 years since the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau.
Half of all survivors, or 97,600, live in Israel. Eighteen percent live in North America, including 31,000 in the United States, while 17% are in Western Europe and 11% in countries of the former Soviet Union. Other countries with significant survivor populations include France (17,300), Russia (14,300), Germany (10,700), Ukraine (5,200), Canada (4,800), Hungary (2,800), Australia (2,000) and Belarus (1,600).
The median age of survivors today is 87. Over 30% are aged 90 or older, and just over 1% are centenarians. Nearly all survivors alive today—97%—were children during the Holocaust, meaning they were born in 1928 or later. Women make up 62% of the survivor population, while men account for 38%.
Approximately 34%, or 68,000 survivors, receive monthly pensions secured through negotiations by the Claims Conference, while others are eligible for one-time or annual payments. Around 139,000 survivors received social welfare services over the past year, provided by more than 300 organizations supported by the Claims Conference. Additionally, about 66,700 survivors qualified for targeted food security assistance through the organization’s Basic Needs Fund, aimed at supporting the most economically vulnerable individuals.