Urban population growth in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: Urban population growth was 4.6% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Urban population growth in Ethiopia, 1961–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in annual %.
Analysis
In 2025, urban population growth in Ethiopia stood at 4.6%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 8.1% on the previous year and down 6.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population growth in Ethiopia peaked at 7.1% in 2008 and was at its lowest, 2.2%, in 2007.
Ethiopia ranks 11th of 217 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 65 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 4.5% | 4.3% | 4.6% | 9 |
| 1970s | 4.3% | 3.4% | 4.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 5.0% | 2.5% | 6.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 5.2% | 4.5% | 6.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.5% | 2.2% | 7.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.9% | 4.7% | 5.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.7% | 4.0% | 5.4% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Ethiopia
- 8 Tanzania, United Republic of 4.8% compare
- 9 Uganda 4.8% compare
- 10 Mali 4.8% compare
- 12 Solomon Islands 4.4% compare
- 13 Malawi 4.4% compare
- 14 Central African Republic 4.3% compare
More climate change data for Ethiopia
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 87,053 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 27,625 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 59,429 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 104.24 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 2,122 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 5,042 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 4,650 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 392.5 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 17.55 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 14.02 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population growth in Ethiopia?
- Urban population growth in Ethiopia was 4.6% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population growth recorded in Ethiopia?
- The highest recorded value was 7.1% in 2008.
- What is the lowest urban population growth recorded in Ethiopia?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.2% in 2007.
- How does Ethiopia rank for urban population growth?
- Ethiopia ranks 11th out of 217 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban population growth rising or falling in Ethiopia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ethiopia 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.