Climate-related disasters forced millions of people to move within their own countries in 2025, while conflict remained the larger driver of people living in internal displacement. The latest evidence also points to a possible much larger future: without strong climate, development, and adaptation action, more than 216 million people could migrate internally by 2050.
Contents
- What the latest numbers measure
- Disaster displacement in 2025
- Regional patterns
- Country and event snapshots
- Climate migration projections for 2050
- Climate hazards and displaced people
What the latest numbers measure
The International Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) distinguishes between people living in internal displacement at a point in time and internal movements recorded during a period. These are not interchangeable measures: one person can move more than once, so annual movements can exceed the number of people currently displaced.
At the end of 2025, 82.2 million people were living in internal displacement across 104 countries and territories. Of that total, 13.6 million people were displaced by disasters and 68.6 million by conflict and violence. 2026 Global Report on Internal Displacement (GRID)
During 2025, IDMC recorded more than 62.2 million internal displacements—forced movements within countries—across 146 countries and territories. Disasters caused 29.9 million new or repeated internal movements across 140 countries and territories, 13% above the annual average for the preceding decade. Conflict and violence caused 32.3 million internal movements across 48 countries and territories. Global Report on Internal Displacement 2026
These figures describe internal displacement, not a global count of people who crossed an international border because of climate impacts. “Climate refugees” is widely used in public discussion, but the statistics below primarily measure disaster displacement, internal climate migration, and the exposure of forcibly displaced people to climate hazards.
Disaster displacement in 2025
Storms were the leading recorded disaster hazard in 2025. They triggered 17.9 million internal movements, about 60% of all disaster displacements, making 2025 the second-highest annual total on record for storm-related movements. Floods caused fewer than 7.9 million internal movements, 31% below the preceding decade’s average. Global Report on Internal Displacement 2026
Wildfires triggered more than 694,000 internal movements in 2025, the second-highest figure for that hazard in a decade. Authorities also reported 2.4 million pre-emptive evacuations, although IDMC describes this total as a significant underestimate. One-third of global disaster displacements took place in November, and the Philippines accounted for 36% of the global total. 2026 Global Report on Internal Displacement (GRID)
| Measure | 2025 figure | Context |
|---|---|---|
| All disaster-related internal movements | 29.9 million | Across 140 countries and territories |
| Storm-related movements | 17.9 million | About 60% of disaster movements |
| Flood-related movements | Fewer than 7.9 million | 31% below the decadal average |
| Wildfire-related movements | More than 694,000 | Second-highest total in a decade |
| Reported pre-emptive evacuations | 2.4 million | Significant underestimate, according to IDMC |
The previous year also shows how a single event can dominate national and global totals. Storms triggered more than half of all disaster movements recorded globally in 2024. Hurricane Milton triggered almost 6 million internal movements in the United States in October 2024. 2025 Global Report on Internal Displacement (GRID)
Regional patterns
Sub-Saharan Africa had 31.7 million people living in internal displacement at the end of 2025, including 2.7 million people in disaster-related internal displacement. The region recorded 17.3 million internal movements during 2025, of which disasters accounted for 2.9 million. Sub-Saharan Africa accounted for nearly 40% of the world’s internally displaced people at the end of the year. 2026 Global Report on Internal Displacement (GRID)
South Asia recorded 4.6 million disaster-related internal movements and 548,000 conflict-related internal movements in 2025. Around 14 million people were living in internal displacement in South Asia at the end of 2025. The region’s disaster displacements had nearly tripled in 2024 to 9.2 million after drier conditions associated with El Niño in 2023. 2026 Global Report on Internal Displacement (GRID); 2025 Global Report on Internal Displacement (GRID)
The Americas had 10.5 million people living in internal displacement at the end of 2025. In 2024, the region recorded 14.5 million internal movements, more than in the previous five years combined. The United States alone recorded 11 million disaster-related internal movements in 2024, nearly one-quarter of the global total. 2026 Global Report on Internal Displacement (GRID); 2025 Global Report on Internal Displacement (GRID)
East Asia and the Pacific recorded 19.6 million conflict- and disaster-related internal movements in 2025, about one-third of the global total. Europe and Central Asia recorded 461,000 internal movements during the same year. These regional totals combine conflict and disaster movements where stated, so they should not be read as climate-only counts. 2026 Global Report on Internal Displacement (GRID)
Country and event snapshots
India recorded 5.4 million disaster-related internal movements in 2024, its highest total since 2012. Floods in Assam triggered 2.4 million internal movements that year. More than 3 million people—around 10% of Assam’s population—live on flood-exposed river islands known as chars, and about 40% of Assam’s territory is susceptible to flooding. India | IDMC
The same source records 315,000 internal movements caused by landslides in Tripura in mid-August 2024. Landslides affected more than 2,000 locations in Tripura during the 2024 monsoon season. These figures illustrate how displacement risk can be concentrated in particular landscapes and seasons rather than spread evenly across a country. India | IDMC
The United States’ 11 million disaster-related internal movements in 2024 were the highest figure ever recorded for a single country. The Park fire in California triggered more than 66,000 internal movements in late July 2024. 2025 Global Report on Internal Displacement (GRID); Global Report on Internal Displacement 2026
Climate migration projections for 2050
The World Bank’s Groundswell Part II analysis estimates that, without concrete climate and development action, climate change could lead more than 216 million people to migrate within their own countries by 2050. This high-end projection represents almost 3% of the projected population of the six modeled regions. The model covers 106 countries across those six World Bank regions. Groundswell Part II: Acting on Internal Climate Migration — Overview
These are projections, not observed totals or a forecast of cross-border refugee numbers. Under the pessimistic reference scenario, the regional estimates are:
| Region | Projected internal climate migrants by 2050 | Share of projected regional population |
|---|---|---|
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 85.7 million | 4.2% |
| East Asia and the Pacific | 48.4 million | 2.5% |
| South Asia | 40.5 million | 1.8% |
| North Africa | 19.3 million | 9.0% |
| Latin America | 17.1 million | 2.6% |
| Eastern Europe and Central Asia | 5.1 million | 2.3% |
The projection is highly sensitive to policy choices. If countries act on emissions, development, and adaptation, projected internal climate migration could be reduced by up to 80%, to 44 million people by 2050. Bangladesh could have up to 19.9 million internal climate migrants by 2050, nearly half the projected total for South Asia in the cited country analysis. Groundswell Part II: Acting on Internal Climate Migration — Overview
Climate hazards and displaced people
Climate risk also affects people who have already been forced from their homes by conflict or persecution. UNHCR reported that three in four forcibly displaced people live in countries with high-to-extreme exposure to climate-related hazards. An estimated 90 million displaced people lived in countries with high-to-extreme exposure as of mid-2024. No Escape: On the frontlines of climate change, conflict and forced displacement
Nearly 50% of all forcibly displaced people bear the combined burden of conflict and the adverse effects of climate change. Over the approximately 2014–2024 period covered by UNHCR’s report, weather-related disasters caused 220 million internal displacements—approximately 60,000 displacements per day. No Escape — On the frontlines of climate change, conflict and forced displacement
The exposure is expected to expand. By 2040, the number of countries facing extreme climate-related hazards is expected to rise from 3 to 65. Yet policy planning remains uneven: only 24 of 60 National Adaptation Plans include concrete provisions on displacement in the context of climate change and disasters; only 25 of 166 Nationally Determined Contributions do so; and only 7 of 31 regional disaster-risk-reduction strategies reference displacement. No Escape — On the frontlines of climate change, conflict and forced displacement