Urban population in India
India: Urban population was 35.7% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Urban population in India, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in % of total population.
Analysis
India recorded 35.7% for urban population in 2025. That is the highest value across all 66 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.9% on the previous year and up 9.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population in India peaked at 35.7% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 17.9%, in 1960.
India ranks 183rd of 217 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Urban population in India, year by year
| Year | % of total population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 17.9% | — |
| 1961 | 18.0% | +0.6% |
| 1962 | 18.1% | +0.7% |
| 1963 | 18.3% | +0.8% |
| 1964 | 18.4% | +0.9% |
| 1965 | 18.6% | +1.0% |
| 1966 | 18.8% | +1.0% |
| 1967 | 19.0% | +1.1% |
| 1968 | 19.2% | +1.2% |
| 1969 | 19.5% | +1.2% |
| 1970 | 19.7% | +1.2% |
| 1971 | 20.0% | +1.3% |
| 1972 | 20.3% | +1.5% |
| 1973 | 20.6% | +1.8% |
| 1974 | 21.0% | +2.0% |
| 1975 | 21.5% | +2.1% |
| 1976 | 21.9% | +2.1% |
| 1977 | 22.4% | +2.0% |
| 1978 | 22.8% | +1.9% |
| 1979 | 23.2% | +1.7% |
| 1980 | 23.5% | +1.5% |
| 1981 | 23.8% | +1.2% |
| 1982 | 24.0% | +1.0% |
| 1983 | 24.3% | +0.9% |
| 1984 | 24.5% | +0.9% |
| 1985 | 24.7% | +0.8% |
| 1986 | 24.8% | +0.8% |
| 1987 | 25.0% | +0.7% |
| 1988 | 25.2% | +0.7% |
| 1989 | 25.4% | +0.7% |
| 1990 | 25.6% | +0.8% |
| 1991 | 25.8% | +0.8% |
| 1992 | 26.0% | +0.8% |
| 1993 | 26.2% | +0.8% |
| 1994 | 26.4% | +0.7% |
| 1995 | 26.6% | +0.7% |
| 1996 | 26.8% | +0.7% |
| 1997 | 27.0% | +0.8% |
| 1998 | 27.2% | +0.8% |
| 1999 | 27.4% | +0.8% |
| 2000 | 27.6% | +0.9% |
| 2001 | 27.9% | +0.9% |
| 2002 | 28.2% | +1.0% |
| 2003 | 28.5% | +1.0% |
| 2004 | 28.8% | +1.1% |
| 2005 | 29.1% | +1.1% |
| 2006 | 29.4% | +1.2% |
| 2007 | 29.8% | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 30.1% | +1.2% |
| 2009 | 30.5% | +1.2% |
| 2010 | 30.9% | +1.3% |
| 2011 | 31.3% | +1.2% |
| 2012 | 31.6% | +1.0% |
| 2013 | 31.9% | +1.0% |
| 2014 | 32.2% | +1.0% |
| 2015 | 32.5% | +1.0% |
| 2016 | 32.9% | +1.0% |
| 2017 | 33.2% | +1.0% |
| 2018 | 33.5% | +1.0% |
| 2019 | 33.8% | +0.9% |
| 2020 | 34.1% | +0.9% |
| 2021 | 34.4% | +0.9% |
| 2022 | 34.8% | +0.9% |
| 2023 | 35.1% | +0.9% |
| 2024 | 35.4% | +0.9% |
| 2025 | 35.7% | +0.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 18.6% | 17.9% | 19.5% | 10 |
| 1970s | 21.3% | 19.7% | 23.2% | 10 |
| 1980s | 24.5% | 23.5% | 25.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 26.5% | 25.6% | 27.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 29.0% | 27.6% | 30.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 32.4% | 30.9% | 33.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 34.9% | 34.1% | 35.7% | 6 |
Countries ranked near India
More climate change data for India
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 602,760 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 105,678 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 497,082 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 398.78 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 17,753 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 279,594 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 176,015 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 103,578 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 664.21 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 3,699 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population in India?
- Urban population in India was 35.7% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 35.7% in 2025.
- What is the lowest urban population recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 17.9% in 1960.
- How does India rank for urban population?
- India ranks 183rd out of 217 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban population rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this India data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Urban population (% of total population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Urban population refers to people living in urban areas as defined by national statistical offices. The data are collected and smoothed by United Nations Population Division.