Ranking of countries
by urban population
Research by Alidad Vassigh and Tann vom Hove

7 August 2012: The urban population of China accounts for close to 45 per cent of the country’s total number of people, while in India the corresponding figure is just over 30 per cent. With only eleven per cent of its citizens living in towns, Burundi is the least urbanised country in the world.

2017: LARGEST CITIES IN THE
WORLD AND THEIR MAYORS

• Table 1: Urbanisation in selected countries between 1950 and 2030
• Table 2: Urban population in 122 countries together with their largest cities
• Table 3: Countries with the largest number of people living in urban areas
• Table 4: Countries with the highest proportion of people living in urban areas

Between now and 2030, the percentage of people living in urban areas will increase strongly in countries like Morocco, from 57 to 73 per cent; Indonesia, from 54 to 69 per cent; Nigeria, from 50 to 66 per cent; Bosnia, from 49 to 62 per cent; China, from 45 to 60 per cent; Sierra Leone, from 38 to 60 per cent; Pakistan from 37 to 50 per cent; Vietnam, from 29 to 42 per cent; Bangladesh, from 28 to 40 per cent and India, from 30 to 41 per cent.

Urban population in 122 countries