India vs World: Urban population
India
522.44 million
in 2025
World
4.75 billion
in 2025
India rank
2nd
World rank
1st
Urban population over time
- India
- World
How they compare
World currently reports 4.75 billion against 522.44 million in India, a difference of 4.23 billion.
That makes World's figure about 9.1 times India's.
Across all 66 years both countries report, World has been ahead every year.
India ranks 2nd and World ranks 1st of 218 countries.
World has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | India | World | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 90.29 million | 1.16 billion | 1.07 billion | World |
| 1970s | 129.75 million | 1.52 billion | 1.39 billion | World |
| 1980s | 187.82 million | 1.98 billion | 1.80 billion | World |
| 1990s | 252.15 million | 2.53 billion | 2.28 billion | World |
| 2000s | 332.11 million | 3.21 billion | 2.88 billion | World |
| 2010s | 427.44 million | 4.00 billion | 3.58 billion | World |
| 2020s | 500.21 million | 4.59 billion | 4.09 billion | World |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher urban population, India or World?
- World, at 4.75 billion against 522.44 million in India as of 2025.
- What is the difference in urban population between India and World?
- 4.23 billion, with World ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for India and World?
- 66 years are reported by both, from 1960 to 2025.
- How do India and World rank globally for urban population?
- India ranks 2nd and World ranks 1st of 218 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as Urban population. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Urban population refers to people living in urban areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated using World Bank population estimates and urban ratios from the United Nations World Urbanization Prospects. Aggregation of urban and rural population may not add up to total population because of different country coverages.