Urban population growth (annual %) in Bangladesh
Bangladesh: Urban population growth (annual %) was 2.9% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Urban population growth in Bangladesh, 1961–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in annual %.
Analysis
Bangladesh recorded 2.9% for urban population growth in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.5% on the previous year and up 41.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population growth in Bangladesh peaked at 12.0% in 1977 and was at its lowest, 1.7%, in 2021.
That places Bangladesh 49th out of 218 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Urban population growth (annual %) in Bangladesh, year by year
| Year | annual % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 6.0% | — |
| 1962 | 6.4% | +7.0% |
| 1963 | 6.3% | -1.1% |
| 1964 | 6.4% | +0.6% |
| 1965 | 6.4% | +1.1% |
| 1966 | 6.5% | +1.4% |
| 1967 | 6.7% | +2.5% |
| 1968 | 6.9% | +2.3% |
| 1969 | 6.9% | +1.0% |
| 1970 | 6.9% | -1.0% |
| 1971 | 6.2% | -9.5% |
| 1972 | 6.6% | +5.9% |
| 1973 | 7.7% | +17.2% |
| 1974 | 8.2% | +6.5% |
| 1975 | 9.9% | +20.9% |
| 1976 | 11.6% | +17.2% |
| 1977 | 12.0% | +3.1% |
| 1978 | 11.5% | -4.3% |
| 1979 | 10.4% | -9.5% |
| 1980 | 8.9% | -14.5% |
| 1981 | 7.3% | -17.3% |
| 1982 | 6.6% | -9.5% |
| 1983 | 6.2% | -6.3% |
| 1984 | 5.8% | -7.1% |
| 1985 | 5.4% | -6.7% |
| 1986 | 5.1% | -6.5% |
| 1987 | 4.7% | -6.1% |
| 1988 | 4.5% | -5.8% |
| 1989 | 4.3% | -4.8% |
| 1990 | 4.1% | -3.8% |
| 1991 | 3.9% | -4.3% |
| 1992 | 3.8% | -4.3% |
| 1993 | 3.6% | -4.9% |
| 1994 | 3.4% | -3.5% |
| 1995 | 3.4% | -2.3% |
| 1996 | 3.3% | -2.4% |
| 1997 | 3.3% | +0.2% |
| 1998 | 3.3% | +1.4% |
| 1999 | 3.4% | +1.5% |
| 2000 | 3.4% | -0.3% |
| 2001 | 3.3% | -2.0% |
| 2002 | 3.3% | -1.0% |
| 2003 | 3.3% | -0.4% |
| 2004 | 3.2% | -1.7% |
| 2005 | 3.1% | -2.9% |
| 2006 | 3.0% | -3.8% |
| 2007 | 2.9% | -4.4% |
| 2008 | 2.7% | -5.2% |
| 2009 | 2.6% | -5.9% |
| 2010 | 2.4% | -6.7% |
| 2011 | 2.3% | -4.0% |
| 2012 | 2.3% | -1.1% |
| 2013 | 2.2% | -2.7% |
| 2014 | 2.1% | -3.2% |
| 2015 | 2.1% | -2.9% |
| 2016 | 2.0% | -2.2% |
| 2017 | 1.9% | -4.3% |
| 2018 | 1.9% | -3.9% |
| 2019 | 1.8% | -1.1% |
| 2020 | 1.8% | -3.0% |
| 2021 | 1.7% | -3.8% |
| 2022 | 1.9% | +10.3% |
| 2023 | 2.7% | +44.5% |
| 2024 | 2.8% | +3.0% |
| 2025 | 2.9% | +3.5% |
Bangladesh compared with similar countries
- Bangladesh's 2.9% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 2.7%, 1.1× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Bangladesh's 2.9% is above the median for South Asia, which is 1.7%, 1.8× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Urban population growth (annual %) in Bangladesh changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | +44.5% | 1.9% | 2.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 6.5% | 6.0% | 6.9% | 9 |
| 1970s | 9.1% | 6.2% | 12.0% | 10 |
| 1980s | 5.9% | 4.3% | 8.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.5% | 3.3% | 4.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.1% | 2.6% | 3.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.1% | 1.8% | 2.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.3% | 1.7% | 2.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Bangladesh
More climate change data for Bangladesh
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 2.05 billion kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 53,978 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 11,421 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 42,556 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 43.1 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 1,520 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 45,925 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 15,205 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 30,719 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 57.38 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population growth in Bangladesh?
- Urban population growth in Bangladesh was 2.9% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population growth recorded in Bangladesh?
- The highest recorded value was 12.0% in 1977.
- What is the lowest urban population growth recorded in Bangladesh?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.7% in 2021.
- How does Bangladesh rank for urban population growth?
- Bangladesh ranks 49th out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban population growth rising or falling in Bangladesh?
- Over the last ten years it is up 41.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Bangladesh 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 · JSON — 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.