Urban population in New Zealand
New Zealand: Urban population was 84.0% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Urban population in New Zealand, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in % of total population.
Analysis
The most recent figure for urban population in New Zealand is 84.0%, measured in 2025.
That represents a change of up 0.1% on the previous year and down 1.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population in New Zealand peaked at 85.9% in 2006 and was at its lowest, 62.4%, in 1960.
That places New Zealand 48th out of 218 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Urban population in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | % of total population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 62.4% | — |
| 1961 | 63.9% | +2.4% |
| 1962 | 64.9% | +1.5% |
| 1963 | 65.7% | +1.3% |
| 1964 | 66.5% | +1.2% |
| 1965 | 67.4% | +1.5% |
| 1966 | 68.8% | +2.1% |
| 1967 | 71.3% | +3.6% |
| 1968 | 74.6% | +4.6% |
| 1969 | 77.9% | +4.4% |
| 1970 | 80.4% | +3.3% |
| 1971 | 81.5% | +1.3% |
| 1972 | 81.9% | +0.5% |
| 1973 | 82.3% | +0.4% |
| 1974 | 82.5% | +0.3% |
| 1975 | 82.7% | +0.2% |
| 1976 | 82.9% | +0.2% |
| 1977 | 83.1% | +0.2% |
| 1978 | 83.2% | +0.2% |
| 1979 | 83.3% | +0.1% |
| 1980 | 83.4% | +0.1% |
| 1981 | 83.5% | +0.1% |
| 1982 | 83.6% | +0.1% |
| 1983 | 83.6% | +0.1% |
| 1984 | 83.7% | +0.1% |
| 1985 | 83.8% | +0.1% |
| 1986 | 83.9% | +0.1% |
| 1987 | 84.1% | +0.2% |
| 1988 | 84.3% | +0.3% |
| 1989 | 84.6% | +0.3% |
| 1990 | 84.8% | +0.3% |
| 1991 | 85.0% | +0.2% |
| 1992 | 85.1% | +0.2% |
| 1993 | 85.2% | +0.1% |
| 1994 | 85.3% | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 85.4% | +0.1% |
| 1996 | 85.5% | +0.1% |
| 1997 | 85.5% | +0.1% |
| 1998 | 85.6% | +0.1% |
| 1999 | 85.7% | +0.1% |
| 2000 | 85.7% | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 85.8% | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 85.8% | +0.1% |
| 2003 | 85.9% | +0.1% |
| 2004 | 85.9% | +0.1% |
| 2005 | 85.9% | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 85.9% | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 85.9% | -0.0% |
| 2008 | 85.9% | -0.0% |
| 2009 | 85.9% | -0.0% |
| 2010 | 85.9% | -0.0% |
| 2011 | 85.8% | -0.0% |
| 2012 | 85.8% | -0.1% |
| 2013 | 85.7% | -0.1% |
| 2014 | 85.5% | -0.2% |
| 2015 | 85.2% | -0.4% |
| 2016 | 84.7% | -0.5% |
| 2017 | 84.2% | -0.6% |
| 2018 | 83.8% | -0.4% |
| 2019 | 83.8% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 83.8% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 83.8% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 83.9% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 83.9% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 83.9% | +0.1% |
| 2025 | 84.0% | +0.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 68.3% | 62.4% | 77.9% | 10 |
| 1970s | 82.4% | 80.4% | 83.3% | 10 |
| 1980s | 83.8% | 83.4% | 84.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 85.3% | 84.8% | 85.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 85.9% | 85.7% | 85.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 85.0% | 83.8% | 85.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 83.9% | 83.8% | 84.0% | 6 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
- 45 Switzerland 85.7% compare
- 46 Peru 85.6% compare
- 47 Saudi Arabia 84.6% compare
- 49 Norway 83.6% compare
- 50 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 83.3% compare
- 51 Canada 82.9% compare
More climate change data for New Zealand
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 46,323 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 11,983 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 34,340 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 45.22 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 1,226 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 694.4 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 691.2 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 3.2 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 2.61 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 0.1143 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population in New Zealand?
- Urban population in New Zealand was 84.0% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 85.9% in 2006.
- What is the lowest urban population recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 62.4% in 1960.
- How does New Zealand rank for urban population?
- New Zealand ranks 48th out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban population rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this New Zealand 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.