According to the 2017 census of the National Statistics Institute, Colchane had 1,728 inhabitants (995 men and 733 women), and it is entirely rural.

[1] It has the country's highest rate of people living under the poverty line at 34.56% (Encuesta Casen, 2006).

[citation needed] As a commune, Colchane is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a municipal council, headed by an alcalde who is directly elected every four years.

Within the electoral divisions of Chile, Colchane is represented in the Chamber of Deputies by Marta Isasi (Ind.)

and Hugo Gutiérrez (PC) as part of the 2nd electoral district, which includes the entire Tarapacá Region.