Riga has 6.8% fewer residents than in 2015, while Mārupe and Ādaži grew by over 40%
On 1 January 2015 Riga had 631,754 residents. On 1 January 2026 it had 588,911, a fall of 6.8%. Over the same years the municipalities on its edge grew fast: Mārupe by 42.9% and Ādaži by 45.4%.
Official statistics on people, new homes and deal prices all point the same way: more of Riga's housing story is now happening just outside the city.
Population, 1 January
| 2015 | 2026 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riga | 631,754 | 588,911 | −6.8% |
| Mārupe municipality | 26,681 | 38,132 | +42.9% |
| Ādaži municipality | 16,599 | 24,141 | +45.4% |
New homes: Riga halved, the suburbs built more
| New dwellings completed | Count |
|---|---|
| Riga, 2024 | 1,681 |
| Riga, 2025 | 832 (−50.5%) |
| Former Pierīga region, 2025 | 2,009 |
| Mārupe municipality, 2025 | 482 |
Riga completed 832 new dwellings in 2025, half its 2024 total. The former Pierīga region around it completed 2,009, its highest figure in 2021 to 2025. Mārupe alone completed 482, equal to 58% of Riga's total.
Riga prices are still rising
Fewer residents has not meant cheaper flats. The median Riga flat deal was €1,168/m² in 2025 (n=11,414). In the first half of 2026 it was €1,243/m² (n=5,351), 7.6% above the first half of 2025 (€1,155, n=5,550).
Riga is still the centre of the market: of 18,384 qualifying flat deals in Latvia in 2025, 11,414 were in Riga, or 62.1%.
Older flats in regional cities have roughly tripled
The State Land Service (VZD) publishes its own half-year medians for flats in buildings put up before 2000, which in these cities are mostly Soviet-era blocks. From the second half of 2015 to the second half of 2025:
| City, pre-2000 buildings | H2 2015, €/m² | H2 2025, €/m² | Change | Deals H2 2015 / H2 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liepāja | 209 | 732 | ×3.5 | 225 / 197 |
| Daugavpils | 159 | 479 | ×3.0 | 179 / 239 |
| Jelgava | 321 | 885 | ×2.8 | 253 / 214 |
| Riga centre | 1,026 | 1,803 | +76% | 189 / 246 |
| Riga microdistricts | 638 | 996 | +56% | 2,038 / 3,069 |
Regional cities started from very low prices, so the multiples are large while the euro amounts stay modest. In Riga's microdistricts it is the newer stock that moved most: flats in post-2000 buildings went from €1,230/m² (n=525) to €2,449/m² (n=1,173), +99%, with more than twice as many sales.
Related
- Riga asking vs deal prices
- Years of pay for a 50 m² flat: Tallinn and Riga
- Flats for sale in Riga, Riga rentals, Jūrmala and Liepāja
About this data
- Population: Central Statistical Bureau of Latvia (CSP), table IRS031, population at the beginning of the year, 2015 and 2026. CC BY 4.0.
- New dwellings: CSP, table BUE021, new dwellings completed by municipality, 2021 to 2025 (count of dwellings). "Former Pierīga region" is the statistical region as defined before 1 January 2024. CC BY 4.0.
- Riga deal prices: Valsts zemes dienests (State Land Service), real estate market database open data (data.gov.lv). Deals for one flat each, 10 to 250 m², at least €5,000 and €300 to €15,000 per m², grouped by deal date. CC BY 4.0.
- Half-year medians by building age: VZD's own published median flat prices ("Vidējās darījumu cenas dzīvokļiem", data.gov.lv). CC BY 4.0.
- Sample rule: every deal-based figure rests on at least 100 deals in each period compared. Population and completions are full official counts.
- Reuse of this article: free with credit to Live Baltic (livebaltic.com).