Nagaland is a rural state. More than four-fifths of the population lives in small isolated villages. The villages are usually divided into khels, or quarters, each with its own headmen and administration. Dimapur, Kohima and Mokokchung are the only urban centres with more than 50,000 people.

As per the details from census 2011, Nagaland has a population of 19.79 lakhs, a decrease from the figure of 19.90 lakhs in the 2001 census. Total population of Nagaland as per the 2011 census is 19,78,502, of which male and female are 10,24,649 and 9,53,853 respectively. The total population growth in this decade was -0.58 percent, while in the previous decade it was 64.41 percent. The population of Nagaland forms 0.16 percent of India in 2011. As per projection, the population of Nagaland in 2019 is 20.63 lakhs.