Urban population (% of total population) in Norway
Norway: Urban population (% of total population) was 83.6% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Urban population in Norway, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in % of total population.
Analysis
In 2025, urban population in Norway stood at 83.6%. That is the highest value across all 66 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 2.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population in Norway peaked at 83.6% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 48.7%, in 1960.
Norway ranks 49th of 218 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Urban population (% of total population) in Norway, year by year
| Year | % of total population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 48.7% | — |
| 1961 | 49.0% | +0.7% |
| 1962 | 50.1% | +2.1% |
| 1963 | 51.6% | +3.1% |
| 1964 | 53.6% | +3.8% |
| 1965 | 55.9% | +4.2% |
| 1966 | 58.2% | +4.2% |
| 1967 | 60.5% | +4.0% |
| 1968 | 62.6% | +3.5% |
| 1969 | 64.4% | +2.8% |
| 1970 | 65.6% | +1.9% |
| 1971 | 66.4% | +1.2% |
| 1972 | 67.1% | +1.0% |
| 1973 | 67.7% | +0.9% |
| 1974 | 68.3% | +0.9% |
| 1975 | 68.9% | +0.8% |
| 1976 | 69.3% | +0.7% |
| 1977 | 69.7% | +0.6% |
| 1978 | 70.1% | +0.5% |
| 1979 | 70.4% | +0.4% |
| 1980 | 70.6% | +0.3% |
| 1981 | 70.8% | +0.3% |
| 1982 | 71.0% | +0.2% |
| 1983 | 71.1% | +0.2% |
| 1984 | 71.2% | +0.1% |
| 1985 | 71.3% | +0.1% |
| 1986 | 71.4% | +0.1% |
| 1987 | 71.5% | +0.1% |
| 1988 | 71.6% | +0.2% |
| 1989 | 71.7% | +0.2% |
| 1990 | 71.9% | +0.2% |
| 1991 | 72.2% | +0.4% |
| 1992 | 72.6% | +0.7% |
| 1993 | 73.2% | +0.8% |
| 1994 | 73.7% | +0.6% |
| 1995 | 73.9% | +0.4% |
| 1996 | 74.2% | +0.4% |
| 1997 | 74.7% | +0.7% |
| 1998 | 75.3% | +0.8% |
| 1999 | 75.8% | +0.7% |
| 2000 | 76.1% | +0.4% |
| 2001 | 76.4% | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 76.8% | +0.5% |
| 2003 | 77.3% | +0.6% |
| 2004 | 77.6% | +0.4% |
| 2005 | 77.8% | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 78.1% | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 78.4% | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 78.8% | +0.4% |
| 2009 | 79.1% | +0.4% |
| 2010 | 79.2% | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 79.3% | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 79.5% | +0.2% |
| 2013 | 80.0% | +0.6% |
| 2014 | 80.6% | +0.8% |
| 2015 | 81.2% | +0.8% |
| 2016 | 81.7% | +0.5% |
| 2017 | 82.0% | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 82.2% | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 82.5% | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 82.7% | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 82.9% | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 83.0% | +0.1% |
| 2023 | 83.1% | +0.1% |
| 2024 | 83.3% | +0.3% |
| 2025 | 83.6% | +0.3% |
Norway compared with similar countries
- Norway's 83.6% is above the median for high income countries, which is 81.3%, 1.0× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Norway's 83.6% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 69.6%, 1.2× the median. (57 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 55.5% | 48.7% | 64.4% | 10 |
| 1970s | 68.4% | 65.6% | 70.4% | 10 |
| 1980s | 71.2% | 70.6% | 71.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 73.8% | 71.9% | 75.8% | 10 |
| 2000s | 77.6% | 76.1% | 79.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 80.8% | 79.2% | 82.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 83.1% | 82.7% | 83.6% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Norway
- 46 Peru 85.6% compare
- 47 Saudi Arabia 84.6% compare
- 48 New Zealand 84.0% compare
- 50 United Kingdom 83.3% compare
- 51 Canada 82.9% compare
- 52 Germany 82.1% compare
More climate change data for Norway
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 147.21 million kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 4,074 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 927.05 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 3,147 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 3.5 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 112.4 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 904.43 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 902.03 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 2.4 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 3.4 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population in Norway?
- Urban population in Norway was 83.6% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population recorded in Norway?
- The highest recorded value was 83.6% in 2025.
- What is the lowest urban population recorded in Norway?
- The lowest recorded value was 48.7% in 1960.
- How does Norway rank for urban population?
- Norway ranks 49th out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban population rising or falling in Norway?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Norway 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.