It is estimated that Europe had an urbanization rate of approximately 8.5 percent in the year 1800. The Netherlands and Belgium were some of the most heavily urbanized regions, due the growth of port cities such as Rotterdam and Antwerp during Netherlands' empirical expansion, and the legacy of urbanization in the region, which stems from its wool and craft industries in medieval times. Additionally, the decline of their agricultural sectors and smaller territories contributed to a lower rural population. Scotland and England had also become more urban throughout the British Empire's growth, although the agricultural revolution of the previous two centuries, along with the first industrial revolution, then led to more rapid urbanization during the 19th century. In contrast, there was a large imbalance between the east and west of the continent; the two largest empires, Austria and Russia, had the lowest levels of urbanization in Europe in 1800, due to their vast territories, lower maritime presence, and lack of industrial development.

In 2023, Gabon had the highest urbanization rate in Africa, with over 90 percent of the population living in urban areas. Libya and Djibouti followed at around 82 percent and 79 percent, respectively. On the other hand, many countries on the continent had the majority of the population residing in rural areas. As of 2023, urbanization in Malawi, Rwanda, Niger, and Burundi was below 20 percent. A growing urban population On average, the African urbanization rate stood at approximately 45 percent in 2023. The number of people living in urban areas has been growing steadily since 2000 and is forecast to increase further in the coming years. The urbanization process is being particularly rapid in Burundi, Uganda, Niger, and Tanzania. In these countries, the urban population grew by over 4.2 percent in 2020 compared to the previous year. The most populous cities in Africa Africa’s largest city is Lagos in Nigeria, counting around nine million people. It is followed by Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Cairo in Egypt, each with over seven million inhabitants. Moreover, other cities on the continent are growing rapidly. The population of Bujumbura in Burundi will increase by 123 percent between 2020 and 2035, registering the highest growth rate on the continent. Other fast-growing cities are Zinder in Niger, Kampala in Uganda, and Kabinda in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

This statistic shows the share of the population living in urban areas worldwide from 1950 to 2050, by development status determined by income level. High-income countries are projected to have **** percent of their populations living in urban areas by 2050.

In 2025, the degree of urbanization worldwide was at 58 percent. North America, Latin America, and the Caribbean were the regions with the highest level of urbanization, with over four-fifths of the population residing in urban areas. The degree of urbanization defines the share of the population living in areas defined as "cities". On the other hand, less than half of Africa's population lives in urban settlements. Globally, China accounts for over one-quarter of the built-up areas of more than 500,000 inhabitants. The definition of a city differs across various world regions - some countries count settlements with 100 houses or more as urban, while others only include the capital of a country or provincial capitals in their count. Largest agglomerations worldwideThough North America is the most urbanized continent, no U.S. city was among the top ten urban agglomerations worldwide in 2023. Tokyo-Yokohama in Japan was the largest urban area in the world that year, with 37.7 million inhabitants. New York ranked 13th, with 21.4 million inhabitants. Eight of the 10 most populous cities are located in Asia. ConnectivityIt may be hard to imagine how the reality will look in 2050, with 70 percent of the global population living in cities, but some statistics illustrate the ways urban living differs from suburban and rural living. American urbanites may lead more “connected” (i.e., internet-connected) lives than their rural and/or suburban counterparts. As of 2021, around 89 percent of people living in urban areas owned a smartphone. Internet usage was also higher in cities than in rural areas. On the other hand, rural areas always have, and always will, attract those who want to escape the rush of the city.

CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Gansu data was reported at 56.830 % in 2024. This records an increase from the previous number of 55.490 % for 2023. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Gansu data is updated yearly, averaging 19.185 % from Dec 1949 (Median) to 2024, with 76 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 56.830 % in 2024 and a record low of 9.460 % in 1949. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Gansu data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Socio-Demographic – Table CN.GA: Population: Urbanization Rate.

CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Hainan data was reported at 63.080 % in 2024. This records an increase from the previous number of 62.460 % for 2023. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Hainan data is updated yearly, averaging 17.850 % from Dec 1952 (Median) to 2024, with 69 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 63.080 % in 2024 and a record low of 7.480 % in 1982. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Hainan data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Socio-Demographic – Table CN.GA: Population: Urbanization Rate.

In the year 1800, approximately five percent of the world's population lived in urban areas of 10,000 people or more. At this time, the world's population was just under one billion people, and the industrial revolution was in its early stages in Western Europe and North America. As industrialization spread across the world, urbanization rates rose accordingly. In 2021, the global urbanization rate was approximately 56 percent.

In the year 1500, the share of Western Europe's population living in urban areas was just six percent, but this rose to 31 percent by the end of the 19th century. Despite this drastic change, development was quite slow between 1500 and 1800, and it was not until the industrial revolution when there was a spike in urbanization. As Britain was the first region to undergo the industrial revolution, from around the 1760s until the 1840s, these areas were the most urbanized in Europe by 1890. The Low Countries Prior to the 19th century, Belgium and the Netherlands had been the most urbanized regions due to the legacy of their proto-industrial areas in the medieval period, and then the growth of their port cities during the Netherlands' empirical expansion (Belgium was a part of the Netherlands until the 1830s). Belgium was also quick to industrialize in the 1800s, and saw faster development than its larger, more economically powerful neighbors, France and Germany. Least-urban areas Ireland was the only Western European region with virtually no urbanization in the 16th and 17th century, but the industrial growth of Belfast and Dublin (then major port cities of the British Empire) saw this change by the late-1800s. The region of Scandinavia was the least-urbanized area in Western Europe by 1890, but it saw rapid economic growth in Europe during the first half of the following century.

CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Guangxi data was reported at 57.390 % in 2024. This records an increase from the previous number of 56.780 % for 2023. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Guangxi data is updated yearly, averaging 34.640 % from Dec 1950 (Median) to 2024, with 75 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 78.640 % in 2002 and a record low of 8.430 % in 1950. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Guangxi data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Socio-Demographic – Table CN.GA: Population: Urbanization Rate.

CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Guangdong data was reported at 75.910 % in 2024. This records an increase from the previous number of 75.420 % for 2023. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Guangdong data is updated yearly, averaging 41.965 % from Dec 1949 (Median) to 2024, with 40 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 75.910 % in 2024 and a record low of 15.640 % in 1975. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Guangdong data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Socio-Demographic – Table CN.GA: Population: Urbanization Rate.

This statistic shows the degree of urbanization in Germany from 2013 to 2023. Urbanization means the share of urban population in the total population of a country. In 2023, 77.77 percent of Germany's total population lived in urban areas and cities. Urbanization in Germany Currently, about three quarter of the German population live in urban areas and cities, which is more than in most nations around the world. Urbanization, as it can be seen in this graph, refers to the number of people living in an urban area and has nothing to do with the actual geographical size or footprint of an area or country. A country which is significantly bigger than Germany could have a similar degree of urbanization, just because not all areas in the country are inhabitable, for example. One example for this is Russia, where urbanization has reached comparable figures to Germany, even though its geographical size is significantly bigger. However, Germany’s level of urbanization does not make the list of the top 30 most urbanized nations in the world, where urbanization rates are higher than 83 percent. Also, while 25 percent of the population in Germany still lives in rural areas, rural livelihoods are not dependent on agriculture, as only 0.75 percent of GDP came from the agricultural sector in 2014. So while Germany's urbanization rate is growing, a significant percentage of the population is still living in rural areas. Furthermore, Germany has a number of shrinking cities which are located to the east and in older industrial regions around the country. Considering that population growth in Germany is on the decline, because of low fertility rates, and that a number of cities are shrinking, the urban population is likely shifting to bigger cities which have more economic opportunities than smaller ones.

CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Shandong data was reported at 66.480 % in 2024. This records an increase from the previous number of 65.530 % for 2023. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Shandong data is updated yearly, averaging 13.160 % from Dec 1949 (Median) to 2024, with 76 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 66.480 % in 2024 and a record low of 5.630 % in 1950. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Shandong data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Socio-Demographic – Table CN.GA: Population: Urbanization Rate.

CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Ningxia data was reported at 67.310 % in 2023. This records an increase from the previous number of 66.340 % for 2022. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Ningxia data is updated yearly, averaging 21.480 % from Dec 1949 (Median) to 2023, with 75 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 67.310 % in 2023 and a record low of 7.090 % in 1949. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Ningxia data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Socio-Demographic – Table CN.GA: Population: Urbanization Rate.

This statistic shows the degree of urbanization in the Arab world (Arab League) countries in 2022. Urbanization is defined as the share of urban population in the total population. In 2022, 75.27 percent of the total population of Algeria lived in urban areas.

CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Qinghai data was reported at 63.900 % in 2024. This records an increase from the previous number of 62.800 % for 2023. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Qinghai data is updated yearly, averaging 33.840 % from Dec 1952 (Median) to 2024, with 73 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 63.900 % in 2024 and a record low of 5.190 % in 1952. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Qinghai data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Socio-Demographic – Table CN.GA: Population: Urbanization Rate.

The lowest rural population rates are found in some of the smallest countries in the world and city-states and areas, such as Gibraltar, Monaco, and Singapore, where the whole population lives in urban areas. Apart from these, Qatar is the country with the lowest rural population rate in the world. There, less than one percent of the population lives in rural areas. Belgium follows behind Qatar with less than two percent living in rural areas. On the other hand, Papua New Guinea has the largest rural population in the world.

CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Tibet data was reported at 38.880 % in 2023. This records an increase from the previous number of 37.390 % for 2022. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Tibet data is updated yearly, averaging 16.765 % from Dec 1970 (Median) to 2023, with 54 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 38.880 % in 2023 and a record low of 7.080 % in 1970. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Tibet data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Socio-Demographic – Table CN.GA: Population: Urbanization Rate.

This statistic shows the number of people living in urban areas worldwide from 1950 to 2050. By 2050, roughly 1.49 billion people in Africa will be living in urban areas.

CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Shanghai data was reported at 89.460 % in 2023. This records an increase from the previous number of 89.330 % for 2022. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Shanghai data is updated yearly, averaging 65.280 % from Dec 1949 (Median) to 2023, with 75 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 94.480 % in 1957 and a record low of 58.210 % in 1977. CN: Population: Usual Residence: Urbanization Rate: Shanghai data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under China Premium Database’s Socio-Demographic – Table CN.GA: Population: Urbanization Rate.

Macao, Singapore, and Hong Kong all had completely urban populations in 2023, with *********** percent of the respective territory's populations living in urban areas. Contrastingly, just around **** percent of Papua New Guinea’s population were living in urban areas in 2023. APAC’s rural population Despite the increasing development of new industries across the Asia-Pacific region, many countries across the region still had predominantly rural populations. However, with the agriculture sector displaying little growth throughout the Asia Pacific region, the rural populations throughout the region have also experienced little growth or have even declined. This was likely due to citizens migrating from rural to urban areas. Growing urbanization  With the emergence of new economies and an increasing focus on industrialization throughout the Asia Pacific region, citizens have flocked to the cities and urban areas in hopes of better employment and salary opportunities. The migration of citizens has naturally resulted in bigger urban populations and has catalyzed the emergence of megacities throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Urbanization is expected to grow throughout the coming years, with urban populations in the ASEAN region forecasted to grow by 2025.