Urban population (% of total population) in Kiribati
Kiribati: Urban population (% of total population) was 63.4% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Urban population in Kiribati, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in % of total population.
Analysis
Kiribati recorded 63.4% for urban population in 2025. That is the highest value across all 66 years on record.
The figure is up 1.5% on the previous year and up 6.3% over five years.
Over the whole period, urban population in Kiribati peaked at 63.4% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 59.6%, in 2021.
Kiribati ranks 114th of 218 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Urban population (% of total population) in Kiribati, year by year
| Year | % of total population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 15.2% | — |
| 1961 | 16.0% | +5.2% |
| 1962 | 17.0% | +6.4% |
| 1963 | 18.2% | +6.9% |
| 1964 | 19.5% | +6.9% |
| 1965 | 20.7% | +6.4% |
| 1966 | 21.9% | +5.7% |
| 1967 | 22.9% | +4.7% |
| 1968 | 23.7% | +3.4% |
| 1969 | 24.2% | +2.2% |
| 1970 | 24.5% | +1.4% |
| 1971 | 24.8% | +1.1% |
| 1972 | 25.1% | +1.2% |
| 1973 | 25.5% | +1.5% |
| 1974 | 26.1% | +2.6% |
| 1975 | 27.4% | +4.8% |
| 1976 | 29.0% | +5.7% |
| 1977 | 30.5% | +5.3% |
| 1978 | 31.6% | +3.6% |
| 1979 | 32.1% | +1.7% |
| 1980 | 32.4% | +1.0% |
| 1981 | 32.7% | +0.8% |
| 1982 | 32.9% | +0.6% |
| 1983 | 33.1% | +0.6% |
| 1984 | 33.3% | +0.6% |
| 1985 | 33.5% | +0.7% |
| 1986 | 33.8% | +0.8% |
| 1987 | 34.1% | +0.9% |
| 1988 | 34.4% | +0.9% |
| 1989 | 34.7% | +0.9% |
| 1990 | 35.0% | +0.9% |
| 1991 | 35.3% | +0.8% |
| 1992 | 35.5% | +0.7% |
| 1993 | 35.7% | +0.6% |
| 1994 | 36.0% | +0.8% |
| 1995 | 36.3% | +1.0% |
| 1996 | 37.1% | +2.0% |
| 1997 | 38.6% | +4.2% |
| 1998 | 40.5% | +5.0% |
| 1999 | 42.3% | +4.4% |
| 2000 | 43.3% | +2.4% |
| 2001 | 43.5% | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 43.5% | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 43.5% | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 43.5% | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 43.5% | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 43.7% | +0.4% |
| 2007 | 44.6% | +2.0% |
| 2008 | 45.9% | +3.0% |
| 2009 | 47.4% | +3.1% |
| 2010 | 48.5% | +2.3% |
| 2011 | 49.1% | +1.4% |
| 2012 | 49.6% | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 50.0% | +0.8% |
| 2014 | 50.4% | +0.8% |
| 2015 | 51.0% | +1.1% |
| 2016 | 51.8% | +1.6% |
| 2017 | 53.0% | +2.3% |
| 2018 | 54.5% | +2.9% |
| 2019 | 56.3% | +3.3% |
| 2020 | 58.4% | +3.8% |
| 2021 | 59.6% | +2.1% |
| 2022 | 60.6% | +1.6% |
| 2023 | 61.5% | +1.6% |
| 2024 | 62.5% | +1.5% |
| 2025 | 63.4% | +1.5% |
Kiribati compared with similar countries
- Kiribati's 63.4% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 50.9%, 1.2× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Kiribati's 63.4% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 65.4%, 97% of the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 19.9% | 15.2% | 24.2% | 10 |
| 1970s | 27.7% | 24.5% | 32.1% | 10 |
| 1980s | 33.5% | 32.4% | 34.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 37.2% | 35.0% | 42.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 44.3% | 43.3% | 47.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 51.4% | 48.5% | 56.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 61.0% | 58.4% | 63.4% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Kiribati
More climate change data for Kiribati
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 0 kg (2023)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 20.05 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 7.63 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 12.42 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 0.0288 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 0.4434 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 0 kt (2023)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 0 kt (2023)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 0 kt (2023)
- Synthetic Fertilizers — Emissions (CO2eq) 0 kt (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population in Kiribati?
- Urban population in Kiribati was 63.4% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population recorded in Kiribati?
- The highest recorded value was 63.4% in 2025.
- What is the lowest urban population recorded in Kiribati?
- The lowest recorded value was 59.6% in 2021.
- How does Kiribati rank for urban population?
- Kiribati ranks 114th out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Where does this Kiribati 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.