At the time of the 2006 National Census, Chanef's population was 1,692 in 389 households, when it was a village in Chanef Rural District of the former Lashar District.[5][a] The following census in 2011 counted 2,425 people in 535 households.[7] The 2016 census measured the population of the village as 2,297 people in 606 households, by which time the rural district had been separated from the district in the formation of Ahuran District.[3] It was the most populous village in its rural district.[2]
After the census, the village of Chanef was elevated to the status of a city.[8]
^ abRahimi, Mohammadreza (c. 2023) [Approved 1 August 1390]. Creation and implementation of national divisions in Sistan and Baluchestan province. qavanin.ir (Report) (in Persian). Ministry of the Interior, Political and Defense Commission. Proposal 42/1/6301; Letter 158802/T38854H. Archived from the original on 16 April 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023 – via Laws and Regulations Portal of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
^Mousavi, Mirhossein (c. 2022) [Approved 18 August 1365]. Approval regarding the definitions and regulations of Iranshahr divisions. qavanin.ir (Report) (in Persian). Ministry of the Interior, Board of Ministers. Proposal 7299/1/5/53. Archived from the original on 11 July 2022. Retrieved 10 November 2023 – via Laws and Regulations Portal of the Islamic Republic of Iran.