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Urban population

What this indicator measures

Share of the population living in cities, as a percentage. The definition of an urban area is set by each country, so it varies from one country to another.

How to read this?

A value of 80% means 80 out of 100 inhabitants live in an urban area.

Ranking : ranked from highest to lowest

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213countries with data
100 %maximum · Bahrain
64.2 %median
14.6 %minimum · Liechtenstein
2025data year(s)

In brief

The "Urban population" ranking covers 213 countries and territories. Lowest value: Liechtenstein (14.6 %). Highest value: Bahrain (100 %). Median: 64.2 % (data: 2025). The top 10% of countries exceed 94 %, while the bottom 10% stay below 31 %. By continent, the median is highest in South America (82.2 %) and lowest in Africa (45.9 %).

Median by continent

Lower Higher
  • South America 82.2 % (12)
  • North America 73.3 % (34)
  • Europe 70.7 % (46)
  • Asia 66.1 % (48)
  • Oceania 65.4 % (19)
  • Africa 45.9 % (51)

Why this indicator matters

The share of urban population shows where and how inhabitants live. It influences needs for housing, transport, services and jobs.

What makes this indicator vary

It depends on rural exodus, industrialization, services, geography, planning policies and how localities are classified as "urban".

Reading precautions

Each country defines for itself what an urban area is, so comparisons are approximate. Values come from UN estimates.

Full ranking

ranked from highest to lowest

RankCountryValueYear
1er🇧🇭 Bahrain100 %2025
1er🇧🇲 Bermuda100 %2025
1er🇰🇾 Cayman Islands100 %2025
1er🇭🇰 Hong Kong SAR China100 %2025
1er🇰🇼 Kuwait100 %2025
1er🇲🇴 Macao SAR China100 %2025
1er🇲🇫 St. Martin100 %2025
1er🇲🇨 Monaco100 %2025
1er🇳🇷 Nauru100 %2025
1er🇸🇬 Singapore100 %2025
1er🇸🇽 Sint Maarten100 %2025
12e🇶🇦 Qatar99.4 %2025
13e🇸🇲 San Marino97.2 %2025
14e🇳🇱 Netherlands95.9 %2025
15e🇲🇹 Malta95.7 %2025
16e🇺🇾 Uruguay95.7 %2025
17e🇻🇮 U.S. Virgin Islands95.4 %2025
18e🇱🇺 Luxembourg94.9 %2025
19e🇹🇨 Turks & Caicos Islands94.4 %2025
20e🇵🇷 Puerto Rico94.3 %2025
21e🇬🇺 Guam94.2 %2025
22e🇮🇸 Iceland94.2 %2025
23e🇯🇴 Jordan93.2 %2025
24e🇦🇷 Argentina92.4 %2025
25e🇯🇵 Japan92.3 %2025
26e🇲🇵 Northern Mariana Islands92.2 %2025
27e🇬🇦 Gabon92.1 %2025
28e🇮🇱 Israel91.6 %2025
29e🇨🇼 Curaçao91.5 %2025
30e🇱🇧 Lebanon91 %2025
31e🇹🇷 Türkiye89.5 %2025
32e🇻🇪 Venezuela89.3 %2025
33e🇨🇱 Chile89.2 %2025
34e🇸🇪 Sweden89.1 %2025
35e🇦🇩 Andorra88.9 %2025
36e🇩🇰 Denmark88.8 %2025
37e🇬🇱 Greenland88.6 %2025
38e🇧🇷 Brazil88.2 %2025
39e🇱🇾 Libya87.9 %2025
40e🇦🇺 Australia87.7 %2025
41e🇧🇪 Belgium87.7 %2025
42e🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates86 %2025
43e🇨🇭 Switzerland85.7 %2025
44e🇵🇪 Peru85.6 %2025
45e🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia84.6 %2025
46e🇳🇿 New Zealand84 %2025
47e🇳🇴 Norway83.6 %2025
48e🇬🇧 United Kingdom83.3 %2025
49e🇨🇦 Canada82.9 %2025
50e🇩🇪 Germany82.1 %2025
51e🇧🇸 Bahamas81.3 %2025
52e🇰🇷 South Korea81.2 %2025
53e🇪🇸 Spain80.5 %2025
54e🇦🇸 American Samoa80.5 %2025
55e🇺🇸 United States80.2 %2025
56e🇲🇽 Mexico80 %2025
57e🇨🇷 Costa Rica79.7 %2025
58e🇧🇾 Belarus79.5 %2025
59e🇴🇲 Oman79.5 %2025
60e🇵🇼 Palau79.3 %2025
61e🇬🇷 Greece79.2 %2025
62e🇲🇭 Marshall Islands79.1 %2025
63e🇫🇷 France78.8 %2025
64e🇨🇴 Colombia78.8 %2025
65e🇨🇻 Cape Verde77.6 %2025
66e🇲🇾 Malaysia77.4 %2025
67e🇮🇷 Iran77.4 %2025
68e🇨🇺 Cuba77.2 %2025
69e🇩🇿 Algeria75.8 %2025
70e🇸🇻 El Salvador75.5 %2025
71e🇷🇺 Russia75.3 %2025
72e🇧🇳 Brunei75 %2025
73e🇫🇮 Finland74.5 %2025
74e🇧🇬 Bulgaria74.2 %2025
75e🇩🇲 Dominica74 %2025
76e🇩🇯 Djibouti73 %2025
77e🇨🇿 Czechia72.9 %2025
78e🇩🇴 Dominican Republic72.5 %2025
79e🇸🇾 Syria72.1 %2025
80e🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea71.6 %2025
81e🇧🇴 Bolivia71.6 %2025
82e🇦🇴 Angola71.5 %2025
83e🇲🇳 Mongolia71.1 %2025
84e🇪🇪 Estonia70.7 %2025
85e🇹🇳 Tunisia70.7 %2025
86e🇭🇺 Hungary70.7 %2025
87e🇵🇾 Paraguay70.4 %2025
88e🇮🇶 Iraq69.9 %2025
89e🇦🇹 Austria69.7 %2025
90e🇮🇹 Italy69.7 %2025
91e🇺🇦 Ukraine69.6 %2025
92e🇸🇹 São Tomé & Príncipe69.2 %2025
93e🇱🇹 Lithuania69.1 %2025
94e🇱🇻 Latvia68.6 %2025
95e🇳🇨 New Caledonia68.2 %2025
96e🇧🇼 Botswana68 %2025
97e🇳🇵 Nepal67 %2025
98e🇨🇾 Cyprus66.7 %2025
99e🇨🇳 China66.3 %2025
100e🇵🇦 Panama66.2 %2025
101e🇦🇲 Armenia65.9 %2025
102e🇸🇷 Suriname65.8 %2025
103e🇲🇪 Montenegro65.6 %2025
104e🇹🇻 Tuvalu65.4 %2025
105e🇬🇲 Gambia65 %2025
106e🇮🇪 Ireland64.6 %2025
107e🇰🇵 North Korea64.2 %2025
108e🇨🇬 Congo - Brazzaville64.1 %2025
109e🇿🇦 South Africa63.8 %2025
110e🇳🇬 Nigeria63.8 %2025
111e🇪🇨 Ecuador63.4 %2025
112e🇰🇮 Kiribati63.4 %2025
113e🇲🇦 Morocco63.1 %2025
114e🇲🇰 North Macedonia62.9 %2025
115e🇹🇭 Thailand62.8 %2025
116e🇷🇸 Serbia62.6 %2025
117e🇰🇿 Kazakhstan62.4 %2025
118e🇵🇫 French Polynesia61.8 %2025
119e🇦🇼 Aruba61.7 %2025
120e🇵🇹 Portugal61.5 %2025
121e🇲🇷 Mauritania61.5 %2025
122e🇬🇪 Georgia61.2 %2025
123e🇵🇱 Poland60.1 %2025
124e🇧🇧 Barbados59.7 %2025
125e🇫🇯 Fiji59.5 %2025
126e🇳🇮 Nicaragua59.4 %2025
127e🇯🇲 Jamaica59.4 %2025
128e🇮🇩 Indonesia59.4 %2025
129e🇭🇳 Honduras59.3 %2025
130e🇬🇭 Ghana58.9 %2025
131e🇦🇱 Albania58.9 %2025
132e🇦🇿 Azerbaijan58.6 %2025
133e🇭🇷 Croatia57.8 %2025
134e🇻🇬 British Virgin Islands57.4 %2025
135e🇬🇹 Guatemala56.3 %2025
136e🇱🇷 Liberia56.1 %2025
137e🇸🇮 Slovenia56 %2025
138e🇵🇭 Philippines55.8 %2025
139e🇸🇳 Senegal55.8 %2025
140e🇨🇲 Cameroon55.7 %2025
141e🇭🇹 Haiti55.6 %2025
142e🇸🇴 Somalia55.1 %2025
143e🇨🇮 Côte d’Ivoire54.5 %2025
144e🇹🇹 Trinidad & Tobago54 %2025
145e🇧🇯 Benin53.4 %2025
146e🇸🇰 Slovakia53.2 %2025
147e🇧🇦 Bosnia & Herzegovina52.7 %2025
148e🇷🇴 Romania52.2 %2025
149e🇮🇲 Isle of Man52.1 %2025
150e🇺🇿 Uzbekistan51 %2025
151e🇽🇰 Kosovo50.9 %2025
152e🇳🇦 Namibia50.9 %2025
153e🇻🇨 St. Vincent & Grenadines48 %2025
154e🇹🇲 Turkmenistan47.1 %2025
155e🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau46.7 %2025
156e🇸🇱 Sierra Leone45.9 %2025
157e🇿🇲 Zambia45.9 %2025
158e🇸🇨 Seychelles45.5 %2025
159e🇨🇩 Congo - Kinshasa45.1 %2025
160e🇱🇸 Lesotho44.7 %2025
161e🇨🇫 Central African Republic44.6 %2025
162e🇹🇬 Togo44.4 %2025
163e🇲🇩 Moldova43.7 %2025
164e🇧🇹 Bhutan43.4 %2025
165e🇪🇬 Egypt42.9 %2025
166e🇲🇻 Maldives42.5 %2025
167e🇧🇿 Belize41.6 %2025
168e🇰🇭 Cambodia41.1 %2025
169e🇿🇼 Zimbabwe40.5 %2025
170e🇱🇦 Laos40.3 %2025
171e🇫🇴 Faroe Islands39.6 %2025
172e🇵🇰 Pakistan39.5 %2025
173e🇲🇺 Mauritius39 %2025
174e🇻🇳 Vietnam38.8 %2025
175e🇬🇳 Guinea38.5 %2025
176e🇲🇿 Mozambique37.2 %2025
177e🇾🇪 Yemen37 %2025
178e🇹🇿 Tanzania36.9 %2025
179e🇬🇩 Grenada36.7 %2025
180e🇮🇳 India35.7 %2025
181e🇸🇩 Sudan34.9 %2025
182e🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan34.7 %2025
183e🇪🇷 Eritrea34.5 %2025
184e🇰🇲 Comoros33.9 %2025
185e🇧🇩 Bangladesh33.2 %2025
186e🇲🇬 Madagascar32.9 %2025
187e🇲🇱 Mali32.2 %2025
188e🇰🇪 Kenya32.2 %2025
189e🇺🇬 Uganda31.9 %2025
190e🇰🇳 St. Kitts & Nevis31.9 %2025
191e🇸🇧 Solomon Islands31.3 %2025
192e🇷🇼 Rwanda30.9 %2025
193e🇲🇲 Myanmar (Burma)30.6 %2025
194e🇱🇨 St. Lucia29.1 %2025
195e🇧🇫 Burkina Faso28.9 %2025
196e🇹🇱 Timor-Leste28.8 %2025
197e🇹🇩 Chad27.6 %2025
198e🇸🇿 Eswatini26.7 %2025
199e🇬🇾 Guyana26.5 %2025
200e🇹🇯 Tajikistan26.2 %2025
201e🇦🇫 Afghanistan25.9 %2025
202e🇧🇮 Burundi25.7 %2025
203e🇦🇬 Antigua & Barbuda24.3 %2025
204e🇪🇹 Ethiopia24.1 %2025
205e🇫🇲 Micronesia22.5 %2025
206e🇻🇺 Vanuatu22.3 %2025
207e🇹🇴 Tonga21.2 %2025
208e🇱🇰 Sri Lanka20.5 %2025
209e🇳🇪 Niger18.4 %2025
210e🇲🇼 Malawi17.6 %2025
211e🇼🇸 Samoa17.5 %2025
212e🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea15.8 %2025
213e🇱🇮 Liechtenstein14.6 %2025

Frequently asked questions

Which country has the highest value for "Urban population"?

The highest value is in Bahrain, at 100 % (2025).

Which country has the lowest value for "Urban population"?

The lowest value is in Liechtenstein, at 14.6 % (2025).

What is the world median value of "Urban population"?

The world median is 64.2 %, calculated across 213 countries: half of the countries are above it, the other half below.

What is the value of "Urban population" for France?

France scores 78.8 % (2025), ranking 63 out of 213 countries (ranked from highest to lowest).

Where does the "Urban population" data come from?

It comes from Banque mondiale (WDI), d'après Nations unies – World Urbanization Prospects. Site last updated: November 8, 2026. Each country is shown with the year of its most recent value.

How is a city defined?

Each country sets its own definition, for example a minimum number of inhabitants or a density. This is why comparisons remain approximate.

Is urbanization synonymous with development?

It often goes hand in hand with industry and services, but not systematically. It depends on each country.

Source and update

Source : Banque mondiale (WDI), d'après Nations unies – World Urbanization Prospects. Site last updated: November 8, 2026.

Indicators in the same category : Population & Vital Statistics