Urban population growth (annual %) in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: Urban population growth (annual %) was 3.3% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Urban population growth in Sierra Leone, 1961–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in annual %.
Analysis
In 2025, urban population growth in Sierra Leone stood at 3.3%.
That represents a change of down 2.3% on the previous year and down 3.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population growth in Sierra Leone peaked at 6.6% in 2001 and was at its lowest, -1.3%, in 1992.
Sierra Leone ranks 39th of 218 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 65 years of available data.
Urban population growth (annual %) in Sierra Leone, year by year
| Year | annual % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 4.6% | — |
| 1962 | 4.6% | -0.0% |
| 1963 | 4.6% | +0.6% |
| 1964 | 4.9% | +5.9% |
| 1965 | 5.2% | +7.6% |
| 1966 | 5.5% | +4.0% |
| 1967 | 5.6% | +2.1% |
| 1968 | 5.6% | +0.1% |
| 1969 | 5.5% | -1.7% |
| 1970 | 5.3% | -2.7% |
| 1971 | 5.1% | -4.6% |
| 1972 | 4.8% | -5.6% |
| 1973 | 4.5% | -6.0% |
| 1974 | 4.2% | -8.1% |
| 1975 | 3.9% | -7.3% |
| 1976 | 3.7% | -4.9% |
| 1977 | 3.6% | -1.5% |
| 1978 | 3.6% | -0.4% |
| 1979 | 3.5% | -2.1% |
| 1980 | 3.5% | -1.4% |
| 1981 | 3.4% | -1.8% |
| 1982 | 3.4% | -1.7% |
| 1983 | 3.3% | -0.2% |
| 1984 | 3.3% | -0.8% |
| 1985 | 3.3% | -1.9% |
| 1986 | 3.4% | +4.7% |
| 1987 | 3.6% | +4.7% |
| 1988 | 3.5% | -1.4% |
| 1989 | 3.3% | -7.4% |
| 1990 | 4.7% | +43.2% |
| 1991 | 1.8% | -60.6% |
| 1992 | -1.3% | -168.8% |
| 1993 | 0.4% | -130.4% |
| 1994 | 1.0% | +152.2% |
| 1995 | 0.7% | -25.7% |
| 1996 | 1.0% | +45.4% |
| 1997 | 1.9% | +77.5% |
| 1998 | 1.6% | -15.9% |
| 1999 | 1.1% | -28.8% |
| 2000 | 3.0% | +172.3% |
| 2001 | 6.6% | +115.9% |
| 2002 | 6.5% | -1.6% |
| 2003 | 4.8% | -25.8% |
| 2004 | 4.1% | -13.3% |
| 2005 | 3.5% | -15.5% |
| 2006 | 3.1% | -12.2% |
| 2007 | 3.1% | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 3.5% | +11.0% |
| 2009 | 3.7% | +6.7% |
| 2010 | 3.7% | +1.6% |
| 2011 | 3.7% | -2.3% |
| 2012 | 3.6% | -1.6% |
| 2013 | 3.5% | -1.7% |
| 2014 | 3.5% | -1.7% |
| 2015 | 3.4% | -2.1% |
| 2016 | 3.5% | +2.3% |
| 2017 | 3.5% | +1.8% |
| 2018 | 3.5% | -0.8% |
| 2019 | 3.5% | -0.4% |
| 2020 | 3.5% | -0.1% |
| 2021 | 3.5% | -0.7% |
| 2022 | 3.4% | -1.1% |
| 2023 | 3.4% | -0.6% |
| 2024 | 3.4% | -1.9% |
| 2025 | 3.3% | -2.3% |
Sierra Leone compared with similar countries
- Sierra Leone's 3.3% is below the median for low income countries, which is 4.0%, 81% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Sierra Leone's 3.3% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3.4%, 97% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Urban population growth (annual %) in Sierra Leone 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 | +172.3% | 1.1% | 3.0% |
| 1992 | -168.8% | 1.8% | -1.3% |
| 1994 | +152.2% | 0.4% | 1.0% |
| 1993 | +130.4% | -1.3% | 0.4% |
| 2001 | +115.9% | 3.0% | 6.6% |
| 1997 | +77.5% | 1.0% | 1.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 5.1% | 4.6% | 5.6% | 9 |
| 1970s | 4.2% | 3.5% | 5.3% | 10 |
| 1980s | 3.4% | 3.3% | 3.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.3% | -1.3% | 4.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.2% | 3.0% | 6.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.5% | 3.4% | 3.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.4% | 3.3% | 3.5% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sierra Leone
More climate change data for Sierra Leone
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 3.65 million kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 1,547 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 538.77 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 1,008 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 2.03 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 36.02 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 1,431 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 201.66 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 1,229 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 0.761 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population growth in Sierra Leone?
- Urban population growth in Sierra Leone was 3.3% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population growth recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The highest recorded value was 6.6% in 2001.
- What is the lowest urban population growth recorded in Sierra Leone?
- The lowest recorded value was -1.3% in 1992.
- How does Sierra Leone rank for urban population growth?
- Sierra Leone ranks 39th out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban population growth rising or falling in Sierra Leone?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sierra Leone 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.