Urban population growth in Arab World
Arab World: Urban population growth was 2.5% in 2025. βΌ Falling
Urban population growth in Arab World, 1961β2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in annual %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for urban population growth in Arab World is 2.5%, measured in 2025.
The figure is down 2.2% on the previous year and down 16.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population growth in Arab World peaked at 5.1% in 1962 and was at its lowest, 1.6%, in 2021.
That places Arab World 12th out of 46 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 65 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 4.9% | 4.6% | 5.1% | 9 |
| 1970s | 4.5% | 4.4% | 4.7% | 10 |
| 1980s | 4.3% | 3.8% | 4.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.2% | 2.9% | 4.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.0% | 2.9% | 3.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.8% | 2.0% | 4.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.4% | 1.6% | 2.7% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Arab World
- 9 Uganda 4.8% compare
- 10 Mali 4.8% compare
- 11 Ethiopia, The Federal Democratic Republic of 4.6% compare
- 12 Solomon Islands 4.4% compare
- 13 Malawi 4.4% compare
- 14 Central African Republic 4.3% compare
- 15 Somalia 4.3% compare
More climate change data for Arab World
- Population growth 2.2% (2025)
- Population, total 503.36 million (2025)
- Urban population 302.20 million (2025)
- Urban population 60.0% (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million 22.8% (2025)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 230.73 billion cubic meters (2022)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 205.4% (2022)
- Terrestrial protected areas 6.4% (2025)
- Terrestrial and marine protected areas 5.8% (2025)
- Marine protected areas 3.8% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population growth in Arab World?
- Urban population growth in Arab World was 2.5% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population growth recorded in Arab World?
- The highest recorded value was 5.1% in 1962.
- What is the lowest urban population growth recorded in Arab World?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.6% in 2021.
- How does Arab World rank for urban population growth?
- Arab World ranks 12th out of 46 groups with data for 2025.
- Is urban population growth rising or falling in Arab World?
- Over the last ten years it is down 16.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Arab World data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Urban population growth (annual %). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV Β· JSON β 65 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Annual urban population growth rate for year t is the exponential rate of growth of midyear urban population from year t-1 to t, expressed as a percentage. Urban population refers to people living in urban areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated using World Bank total population estimates and urban ratios from the United Nations World Urbanization Prospects.