Serbia — Country Profile
Population, GDP, natural resources, leaders and history of Serbia: the Magna Factbook country file, with its Magna Power score (--/100, ranked #-- of 195).
Last updated: October 2026
Serbia is in Southeastern Europe, between Macedonia and Hungary. It covers 77,474 sq km. Notable earlier dates: 1217 (Serbian Kingdom established); 16 April 1346 (Serbian Empire established); 13 July 1878 (Congress of Berlin recognizes Serbian independence); 1 December 1918 (Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes established, later known as Yugoslavia). Terrain: extremely varied; to the north, rich fertile plains; to the east, limestone ranges and basins; to the southeast, ancient mountains and hills. Climate: in the north, continental climate (cold…
| Capital | Belgrade (Beograd) |
|---|---|
| Population | 6,652,212 (2024 est.) |
| GDP (PPP) | $177.093 billion (2024 est.) |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $26,900 (2024 est.) |
| Real GDP growth | 3.9% (2024 est.) |
| Inflation | 4.7% (2024 est.) |
| Unemployment | 7.4% (2024 est.) |
| Public debt | 73.1% of GDP (2016 est.) |
| Exports | $44.352 billion (2023 est.) |
| Imports | $48.158 billion (2023 est.) |
| Life expectancy | 75.3 years (2024 est.) |
| Median age | 44.1 years (2025 est.) |
| Urbanization | 57.1% of total population (2023) |
| Government | parliamentary republic |
| Independence | 5 June 2006 (from the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro); notable earlier dates: 1217 (Serbian Kingdom established); 16 April 1346 (Serbian Empire established); 13 July 1878 (Congress of Berlin recognizes Serbian independence); 1 December 1918 (Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes established, later known as Yugoslavia) |
| Languages | Serbian (official) 88.1%, Hungarian 3.4%, Bosnian 1.9%, Romani 1.4%, other 3.4%, undeclared or unknown 1.8% (2011 est.) |
Serbia’s GDP is $177.093 billion (2024 est.) in purchasing-power-parity terms. At official exchange rates it stands at $89.084 billion (2024 est.). Real GDP grew 3.9% (2024 est.). See where Serbia ranks among all 195 countries by GDP.
POWER --/100 — The Magna Power score is our 0–100 composite of structural national power — nine components, 135 indicators. It is the Bureau's own assessment, not a mirror of World Bank or CIA figures.
Momentum 0 — Quarterly momentum: the Bureau's read on the country's trajectory over the last quarter, from −10 (deteriorating fast) to +10 (accelerating).
Little moved in Jul–Sep 2026: no crisis, no windfall. The quarter simply confirmed the country's standing course.
Deeper forces — trade patterns, regional stability, institutional strength — will decide the trajectory; three months rarely do.
- What our model rewards: GDP per capita of $26,900 (PPP) — prosperity far above the world average
- What drags it down: fertility of 1.5 children per woman — below replacement, the cradle is emptying; graded on patchy data (93% complete) — read the score as an order of magnitude
Oil, Natural gas, Coal, Iron ore, Copper, Zinc, Antimony, Gold, Silver, Magnesium, Marble, Salt.
Energy is the physical base of economic power — what a country can generate, move and burn decides what it can build, sell and defend.
| Electricity access | 100% (2022 est.) |
|---|---|
| Installed capacity mix (CIA) | fossil fuels: 65.1% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); solar: 1% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); wind: 2.6% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); hydroelectricity: 30.7% of total installed capacity (2023 est.) |
| Energy consumption per capita (CIA) | 91.884 million Btu/person (2023 est.) |
| Electricity generation (OWID) | 37.1 TWh (2024) |
| Electricity generation mix (OWID) | Coal 62.7%, Hydro 27.5%, Gas 5.8%, Wind 2.9%, Oil 0.2%, Solar 0.1% (2024) |
| Low-carbon share of electricity (OWID) | 31.2% (2024) |
| Carbon intensity of electricity (OWID) | 670.8 gCO2/kWh (2024) |
Sources: CIA World Factbook, Energy section; Our World in Data (IEA/Ember), 2024.
Trade shows what the world buys from a country and what the country must buy from the world — the balance between the two is a direct measure of economic leverage.
| Exports | $44.352 billion (2023 est.) |
|---|---|
| Imports | $48.158 billion (2023 est.) |
| Trade balance (calculated) | Deficit of $3.8 billion (2023), calculated from the CIA export and import figures above. |
| Key industries | automobiles, base metals, furniture, food processing, machinery, chemicals, sugar, tires, clothes, pharmaceuticals |
Source: CIA World Factbook, Economy section.
Aleksandar Vučić — President. President Aleksandar VUCIC (since 31 May 2017)
Serbia maintains 71 embassies and 22 consulates abroad, hosts 71 foreign diplomatic missions, holds permanent missions to UN New York, UN Geneva, UNESCO Paris, OSCE Vienna, CoE Strasbourg. The breadth of a diplomatic network is a direct measure of diplomatic power — it shows how far a country’s influence, alliances and interests reach.
| Embassies abroad | 71 |
|---|---|
| Consulates abroad | 22 |
| Foreign missions hosted | 71 |
| Multilateral missions | UN New York, UN Geneva, UNESCO Paris, OSCE Vienna, CoE Strasbourg |
Source: Abroad: Consular Affairs Center, of-country ranking, Mar 2026 (71/22), Zenodo https://zenodo.org/records/18917562/ . Hosted: Consular Affairs Center, in-country ranking, Jan 2026 (Belgrade 71). Multilateral rosters as for AUT.
Transport networks are economic power made physical — ports, runways, railways and pipelines decide what a country can move, sell and defend.
| Sea access | Landlocked — no seacoast; exports move through transit corridors across neighbouring countries. |
|---|---|
| Airports (total) | 46 + 11 heliports (registration prefix YU) |
| Railways | 3333 km |
| Pipelines | 1,936 km gas, 413 km oil |
Major airports
Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport (BEG) — Belgrade; Niš Constantine the Great Airport (INI) — Niš; Morava Airport (KVO) — Kraljevo.
Terminals
| River ports | Belgrade (Danube) |
|---|
Sources: OurAirports public-domain extract (2026-10-02); per-entry Wikipedia links included; CIA World Factbook via cia_factbook snapshot (2026-09-28); theodora.com CIA mirror (CIA World Factbook Transportation section), scraped 2026-10-02
| Political system | parliamentary republic |
|---|---|
| Next election | No election currently scheduled. |
POWER --/100 Ranked #-- of 195 countries in the Magna Country Rankings. Full ranking breakdown for Serbia.
This profile covers the population, economy, natural resources, leaders, and history of Serbia — with the Bureau’s live national-power score of --/100, ranking #-- of 195 countries.
What is Serbia's power score?
Serbia has a Magna Power score of --/100. The score measures structural power — the proven capacity to shape events — across nine components.