Urban population growth in Low & middle income
Low & middle income: Urban population growth was 1.6% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Urban population growth in Low & middle income, 1961–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in annual %.
Analysis
Low & middle income recorded 1.6% for urban population growth in 2025.
That represents a change of up 1.9% on the previous year and down 38.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population growth in Low & middle income peaked at 5.6% in 1964 and was at its lowest, 0.6%, in 1962.
That places Low & middle income 22nd out of 45 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 65 years of available data.
Urban population growth in Low & middle income, year by year
| Year | annual % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 2.1% | — |
| 1962 | 0.6% | -72.9% |
| 1963 | 3.0% | +429.7% |
| 1964 | 5.6% | +85.3% |
| 1965 | 3.2% | -42.3% |
| 1966 | 3.6% | +10.7% |
| 1967 | 3.6% | +0.5% |
| 1968 | 3.6% | +0.4% |
| 1969 | 3.6% | +0.3% |
| 1970 | 3.6% | -1.2% |
| 1971 | 3.6% | -0.1% |
| 1972 | 3.6% | +0.3% |
| 1973 | 3.8% | +6.8% |
| 1974 | 3.5% | -7.8% |
| 1975 | 3.8% | +7.0% |
| 1976 | 3.7% | -0.9% |
| 1977 | 3.7% | -1.8% |
| 1978 | 3.9% | +6.4% |
| 1979 | 4.6% | +16.5% |
| 1980 | 3.8% | -16.8% |
| 1981 | 4.0% | +5.8% |
| 1982 | 3.6% | -9.7% |
| 1983 | 4.2% | +15.2% |
| 1984 | 4.4% | +5.1% |
| 1985 | 3.7% | -16.2% |
| 1986 | 3.7% | +2.0% |
| 1987 | 3.7% | -0.9% |
| 1988 | 3.4% | -8.9% |
| 1989 | 3.2% | -4.9% |
| 1990 | 2.9% | -9.9% |
| 1991 | 3.3% | +15.4% |
| 1992 | 3.1% | -8.0% |
| 1993 | 3.0% | -2.5% |
| 1994 | 2.9% | -2.1% |
| 1995 | 2.9% | -1.2% |
| 1996 | 3.5% | +21.2% |
| 1997 | 3.5% | -1.0% |
| 1998 | 3.4% | -1.5% |
| 1999 | 3.3% | -2.4% |
| 2000 | 3.4% | +1.8% |
| 2001 | 3.1% | -10.4% |
| 2002 | 3.1% | +1.9% |
| 2003 | 3.1% | -1.2% |
| 2004 | 2.9% | -4.8% |
| 2005 | 2.9% | -1.6% |
| 2006 | 2.9% | +0.7% |
| 2007 | 2.9% | +0.7% |
| 2008 | 2.7% | -8.0% |
| 2009 | 2.8% | +3.7% |
| 2010 | 2.5% | -10.2% |
| 2011 | 3.3% | +33.5% |
| 2012 | 2.7% | -19.7% |
| 2013 | 2.8% | +3.3% |
| 2014 | 2.6% | -5.2% |
| 2015 | 2.6% | +0.7% |
| 2016 | 2.5% | -6.1% |
| 2017 | 2.4% | -3.7% |
| 2018 | 2.4% | -1.3% |
| 2019 | 2.2% | -7.2% |
| 2020 | 1.9% | -12.4% |
| 2021 | 2.0% | +3.1% |
| 2022 | 1.6% | -20.3% |
| 2023 | 1.5% | -4.8% |
| 2024 | 1.6% | +5.7% |
| 2025 | 1.6% | +1.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 3.2% | 0.6% | 5.6% | 9 |
| 1970s | 3.8% | 3.5% | 4.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 3.8% | 3.2% | 4.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.2% | 2.9% | 3.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.0% | 2.7% | 3.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.6% | 2.2% | 3.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.7% | 1.5% | 2.0% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Low & middle income
More climate change data for Low & middle income
- Population growth 1.0% (2025)
- Population, total 6.79 billion (2025)
- Urban population 3.61 billion (2025)
- Urban population 53.1% (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million 22.8% (2025)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 2,902 billion cubic meters (2022)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 10.4% (2022)
- Terrestrial protected areas 16.4% (2025)
- Terrestrial and marine protected areas 12.3% (2025)
- Marine protected areas 6.7% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population growth in Low & middle income?
- Urban population growth in Low & middle income was 1.6% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population growth recorded in Low & middle income?
- The highest recorded value was 5.6% in 1964.
- What is the lowest urban population growth recorded in Low & middle income?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.6% in 1962.
- How does Low & middle income rank for urban population growth?
- Low & middle income ranks 22nd out of 45 groups with data for 2025.
- Is urban population growth rising or falling in Low & middle income?
- Over the last ten years it is down 38.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Low & middle income 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
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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.