Urban population growth in Poland
Poland: Urban population growth was -0.1% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Urban population growth in Poland, 1961–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in annual %.
Analysis
Poland recorded -0.1% for urban population growth in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 29.6% on the previous year and up 35.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population growth in Poland peaked at 2.3% in 1975 and was at its lowest, -1.5%, in 2021.
That places Poland 195th out of 218 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Urban population growth in Poland, year by year
| Year | annual % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 2.2% | — |
| 1962 | 2.1% | -5.7% |
| 1963 | 2.2% | +2.4% |
| 1964 | 2.1% | -1.6% |
| 1965 | 1.7% | -21.9% |
| 1966 | 1.4% | -15.5% |
| 1967 | 1.6% | +15.3% |
| 1968 | 1.6% | +1.6% |
| 1969 | 1.5% | -6.9% |
| 1970 | 1.2% | -21.8% |
| 1971 | 1.3% | +10.9% |
| 1972 | 2.0% | +47.9% |
| 1973 | 2.2% | +10.3% |
| 1974 | 2.3% | +5.1% |
| 1975 | 2.3% | +1.6% |
| 1976 | 2.3% | -2.1% |
| 1977 | 2.1% | -6.1% |
| 1978 | 1.8% | -15.9% |
| 1979 | 1.7% | -6.9% |
| 1980 | 1.8% | +5.5% |
| 1981 | 1.7% | -1.4% |
| 1982 | 1.7% | -0.9% |
| 1983 | 1.7% | -1.7% |
| 1984 | 1.6% | -5.7% |
| 1985 | 1.4% | -11.4% |
| 1986 | 1.2% | -15.6% |
| 1987 | 1.0% | -19.4% |
| 1988 | 0.7% | -30.1% |
| 1989 | 0.5% | -23.5% |
| 1990 | 0.5% | -0.1% |
| 1991 | 0.5% | -8.9% |
| 1992 | 0.4% | -12.1% |
| 1993 | 0.4% | -14.8% |
| 1994 | 0.3% | -15.0% |
| 1995 | 0.2% | -28.3% |
| 1996 | 0.1% | -32.4% |
| 1997 | 0.1% | -14.2% |
| 1998 | 0.1% | -32.2% |
| 1999 | 0.0% | -64.8% |
| 2000 | -1.0% | -3533.7% |
| 2001 | -0.0% | -98.9% |
| 2002 | -0.0% | +265.1% |
| 2003 | -0.1% | +173.5% |
| 2004 | -0.2% | +51.8% |
| 2005 | -0.2% | +22.4% |
| 2006 | -0.3% | +27.2% |
| 2007 | -0.3% | +5.6% |
| 2008 | -0.2% | -20.2% |
| 2009 | -0.2% | -26.0% |
| 2010 | -0.5% | +194.2% |
| 2011 | -0.1% | -74.2% |
| 2012 | -0.2% | +28.8% |
| 2013 | -0.2% | +35.4% |
| 2014 | -0.2% | +5.4% |
| 2015 | -0.2% | -4.4% |
| 2016 | -0.2% | -11.4% |
| 2017 | -0.1% | -28.7% |
| 2018 | -0.2% | +6.9% |
| 2019 | -0.2% | +13.9% |
| 2020 | -1.3% | +663.0% |
| 2021 | -1.5% | +15.0% |
| 2022 | -0.4% | -74.3% |
| 2023 | -0.3% | -30.7% |
| 2024 | -0.2% | -24.1% |
| 2025 | -0.1% | -29.6% |
Poland compared with similar countries
- Poland's -0.1% is below the median for high income countries, which is 0.6%. (85 countries reporting)
- Poland's -0.1% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.5%. (57 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Urban population growth in Poland 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | -3533.7% | 0.0% | -1.0% |
| 2020 | -663.0% | -0.2% | -1.3% |
| 2002 | -265.1% | -0.0% | -0.0% |
| 2010 | -194.2% | -0.2% | -0.5% |
| 2003 | -173.5% | -0.0% | -0.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.8% | 1.4% | 2.2% | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.9% | 1.2% | 2.3% | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.3% | 0.5% | 1.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.3% | 0.0% | 0.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | -0.3% | -1.0% | -0.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | -0.2% | -0.5% | -0.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | -0.7% | -1.5% | -0.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Poland
More climate change data for Poland
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 1.05 billion kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 19,935 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 4,534 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 15,401 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 17.11 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 550.03 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 7,175 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 7,089 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 86.67 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 26.75 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population growth in Poland?
- Urban population growth in Poland was -0.1% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population growth recorded in Poland?
- The highest recorded value was 2.3% in 1975.
- What is the lowest urban population growth recorded in Poland?
- The lowest recorded value was -1.5% in 2021.
- How does Poland rank for urban population growth?
- Poland ranks 195th out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban population growth rising or falling in Poland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 35.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Poland 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.