As of 2001 India census, Surat had a population of 2,433,787. Males constitute 56% of the population and females 44%. Surat has an average literacy rate of 72%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 77%, and female literacy is 66%. In Surat, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Because of presence of unauthorized residential buildings and shanty towns which bring difficulties in counting the residents of these areas, combined with the explosive growth in population (mostly through migration) it is estimated that as of 2006 about 4.5 million people [6] live within the Surat Urban Development Authority(SUDA) area. However, the SUDA also covers a 5k.m. surrounding area in addition to the official city limits and thus covers a lot of villages and towns that lie outside the Municipal area.