Urban population in Netherlands
Netherlands: Urban population was 17.35 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Urban population in Netherlands, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
Analysis
In 2025, urban population in Netherlands stood at 17.35 million. That is the highest value across all 66 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.8% on the previous year and up 13.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population in Netherlands peaked at 17.35 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 6.89 million, in 1960.
That places Netherlands 50th 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 Netherlands, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 6.89 million | — |
| 1961 | 7.00 million | +1.7% |
| 1962 | 7.12 million | +1.7% |
| 1963 | 7.22 million | +1.4% |
| 1964 | 7.38 million | +2.2% |
| 1965 | 7.52 million | +1.9% |
| 1966 | 7.64 million | +1.5% |
| 1967 | 7.76 million | +1.7% |
| 1968 | 7.87 million | +1.3% |
| 1969 | 7.96 million | +1.2% |
| 1970 | 8.10 million | +1.7% |
| 1971 | 8.29 million | +2.4% |
| 1972 | 8.41 million | +1.4% |
| 1973 | 8.54 million | +1.5% |
| 1974 | 8.70 million | +1.9% |
| 1975 | 8.80 million | +1.2% |
| 1976 | 8.89 million | +1.0% |
| 1977 | 8.95 million | +0.7% |
| 1978 | 9.01 million | +0.7% |
| 1979 | 9.10 million | +1.0% |
| 1980 | 9.20 million | +1.1% |
| 1981 | 9.37 million | +1.9% |
| 1982 | 9.51 million | +1.6% |
| 1983 | 9.61 million | +1.1% |
| 1984 | 9.72 million | +1.1% |
| 1985 | 9.80 million | +0.9% |
| 1986 | 9.90 million | +1.1% |
| 1987 | 10.00 million | +0.9% |
| 1988 | 10.10 million | +1.0% |
| 1989 | 10.21 million | +1.1% |
| 1990 | 10.31 million | +1.0% |
| 1991 | 10.43 million | +1.1% |
| 1992 | 10.52 million | +0.9% |
| 1993 | 10.67 million | +1.4% |
| 1994 | 10.83 million | +1.5% |
| 1995 | 10.93 million | +0.9% |
| 1996 | 11.25 million | +2.9% |
| 1997 | 11.79 million | +4.9% |
| 1998 | 12.06 million | +2.2% |
| 1999 | 12.18 million | +1.1% |
| 2000 | 12.50 million | +2.6% |
| 2001 | 12.87 million | +2.9% |
| 2002 | 13.05 million | +1.4% |
| 2003 | 13.19 million | +1.1% |
| 2004 | 13.39 million | +1.5% |
| 2005 | 13.63 million | +1.8% |
| 2006 | 13.84 million | +1.5% |
| 2007 | 13.99 million | +1.1% |
| 2008 | 14.08 million | +0.6% |
| 2009 | 14.25 million | +1.2% |
| 2010 | 14.51 million | +1.8% |
| 2011 | 14.69 million | +1.2% |
| 2012 | 14.83 million | +1.0% |
| 2013 | 14.99 million | +1.0% |
| 2014 | 15.15 million | +1.1% |
| 2015 | 15.29 million | +0.9% |
| 2016 | 15.43 million | +0.9% |
| 2017 | 15.61 million | +1.2% |
| 2018 | 15.96 million | +2.2% |
| 2019 | 16.29 million | +2.1% |
| 2020 | 16.44 million | +0.9% |
| 2021 | 16.59 million | +0.9% |
| 2022 | 16.81 million | +1.3% |
| 2023 | 17.04 million | +1.4% |
| 2024 | 17.21 million | +1.0% |
| 2025 | 17.35 million | +0.8% |
Netherlands compared with similar countries
- Netherlands's 17.35 million is above the median for high income countries, which is 2.24 million, 7.7× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Netherlands's 17.35 million is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 3.59 million, 4.8× the median. (57 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 7.43 million | 6.89 million | 7.96 million | 10 |
| 1970s | 8.68 million | 8.10 million | 9.10 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 9.74 million | 9.20 million | 10.21 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 11.10 million | 10.31 million | 12.18 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 13.48 million | 12.50 million | 14.25 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 15.27 million | 14.51 million | 16.29 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.91 million | 16.44 million | 17.35 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Netherlands
More climate change data for Netherlands
- Spring temperature anomalies 1.61 °C (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies 2.86 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month -1.43 °C (2026)
- Share of global CO₂ emissions and population 0.2% (2100)
- Population, total, annual growth rate 0.523 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population, total, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Urban population, annual growth rate 0.8374 % change on previous year (2025)
- Urban population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Urban population, per capita 0.9594 units per person (2025)
- Precipitation anomalies, annual growth rate -175.91 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population in Netherlands?
- Urban population in Netherlands was 17.35 million in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population recorded in Netherlands?
- The highest recorded value was 17.35 million in 2025.
- What is the lowest urban population recorded in Netherlands?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.89 million in 1960.
- How does Netherlands rank for urban population?
- Netherlands ranks 50th out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban population rising or falling in Netherlands?
- Over the last ten years it is up 13.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Netherlands data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Urban 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. It is calculated using World Bank population estimates and urban ratios from the United Nations World Urbanization Prospects. Aggregation of urban and rural population may not add up to total population because of different country coverages.