Urban population growth (annual %) in Marshall Islands
Marshall Islands: Urban population growth was -3.0% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Urban population growth in Marshall Islands, 1961–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in annual %.
Analysis
In 2025, urban population growth in Marshall Islands stood at -3.0%. That is the lowest value across all 65 years on record.
The figure is down 3.0% on the previous year and down 97.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population growth in Marshall Islands peaked at 13.2% in 1969 and was at its lowest, -3.0%, in 2025.
Marshall Islands ranks 217th of 218 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Urban population growth in Marshall Islands, year by year
| Year | annual % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 6.8% | — |
| 1962 | 7.1% | +4.3% |
| 1963 | 7.2% | +1.6% |
| 1964 | 7.3% | +0.6% |
| 1965 | 7.2% | -0.6% |
| 1966 | 7.0% | -3.1% |
| 1967 | 8.0% | +14.2% |
| 1968 | 11.3% | +40.4% |
| 1969 | 13.2% | +17.2% |
| 1970 | 11.9% | -9.9% |
| 1971 | 9.3% | -22.2% |
| 1972 | 6.9% | -25.5% |
| 1973 | 4.7% | -32.0% |
| 1974 | 3.1% | -33.1% |
| 1975 | 3.0% | -5.2% |
| 1976 | 2.7% | -10.2% |
| 1977 | 2.5% | -5.0% |
| 1978 | 2.5% | -0.2% |
| 1979 | 2.7% | +6.0% |
| 1980 | 3.2% | +20.6% |
| 1981 | 4.4% | +35.8% |
| 1982 | 5.4% | +22.3% |
| 1983 | 5.8% | +7.6% |
| 1984 | 6.0% | +3.5% |
| 1985 | 6.0% | -0.2% |
| 1986 | 5.7% | -4.0% |
| 1987 | 5.3% | -7.9% |
| 1988 | 4.5% | -15.3% |
| 1989 | 3.3% | -25.6% |
| 1990 | 2.6% | -21.6% |
| 1991 | 2.3% | -12.9% |
| 1992 | 1.9% | -14.8% |
| 1993 | 1.6% | -15.6% |
| 1994 | 1.4% | -13.2% |
| 1995 | 1.3% | -10.5% |
| 1996 | 1.2% | -7.5% |
| 1997 | 1.1% | -2.7% |
| 1998 | 1.1% | -1.9% |
| 1999 | 1.2% | +8.6% |
| 2000 | 1.4% | +11.9% |
| 2001 | 1.3% | -3.2% |
| 2002 | 1.2% | -8.8% |
| 2003 | 1.1% | -7.2% |
| 2004 | 1.1% | -5.1% |
| 2005 | 1.0% | -2.9% |
| 2006 | 1.0% | -3.9% |
| 2007 | 0.9% | -8.6% |
| 2008 | 0.8% | -12.9% |
| 2009 | 0.7% | -7.5% |
| 2010 | 0.7% | +0.4% |
| 2011 | 0.3% | -53.5% |
| 2012 | -0.4% | -213.1% |
| 2013 | -0.9% | +133.5% |
| 2014 | -1.2% | +36.9% |
| 2015 | -1.5% | +22.2% |
| 2016 | -1.8% | +17.0% |
| 2017 | -2.0% | +14.6% |
| 2018 | -2.2% | +11.1% |
| 2019 | -2.4% | +7.4% |
| 2020 | -2.6% | +6.4% |
| 2021 | -2.8% | +8.0% |
| 2022 | -2.7% | -2.3% |
| 2023 | -2.7% | -0.3% |
| 2024 | -2.9% | +6.9% |
| 2025 | -3.0% | +3.0% |
Marshall Islands compared with similar countries
- Marshall Islands's -3.0% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1.0%. (59 countries reporting)
- Marshall Islands's -3.0% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.9%. (37 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Urban population growth in Marshall Islands 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | -213.1% | 0.3% | -0.4% |
| 2013 | -133.5% | -0.4% | -0.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 8.4% | 6.8% | 13.2% | 9 |
| 1970s | 4.9% | 2.5% | 11.9% | 10 |
| 1980s | 5.0% | 3.2% | 6.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.6% | 1.1% | 2.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.0% | 0.7% | 1.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | -1.1% | -2.4% | 0.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | -2.8% | -3.0% | -2.6% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Marshall Islands
- 214 Moldova -1.3% compare
- 215 Northern Mariana Islands -1.6% compare
- 216 American Samoa -2.1% compare
- 218 Saint Martin (French Part) -4.7% compare
More climate change data for Marshall Islands
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 0 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 0 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 0 kt (2050)
- Synthetic Fertilizers — Emissions (CO2eq) 0 kt (2050)
- Synthetic Fertilizers — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 0 kt (2050)
- Synthetic Fertilizers — Emissions 0 kt (2050)
- Synthetic Fertilizers — Direct emissions 0 kt (2050)
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Indirect emissions (N2O that) 0 kt (2050)
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Indirect emissions (N2O that leaches) 0 kt (2050)
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers 0 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population growth in Marshall Islands?
- Urban population growth in Marshall Islands was -3.0% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population growth recorded in Marshall Islands?
- The highest recorded value was 13.2% in 1969.
- What is the lowest urban population growth recorded in Marshall Islands?
- The lowest recorded value was -3.0% in 2025.
- How does Marshall Islands rank for urban population growth?
- Marshall Islands ranks 217th out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban population growth rising or falling in Marshall Islands?
- Over the last ten years it is down 97.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Marshall Islands 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.