Urban population in Spain
Spain: Urban population was 39.74 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Urban population in Spain, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
Analysis
The most recent figure for urban population in Spain is 39.74 million, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 66 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.3% on the previous year and up 8.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population in Spain peaked at 39.74 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 17.19 million, in 1960.
Spain ranks 26th 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 in Spain, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 17.19 million | — |
| 1961 | 17.56 million | +2.2% |
| 1962 | 17.98 million | +2.4% |
| 1963 | 18.44 million | +2.6% |
| 1964 | 18.96 million | +2.8% |
| 1965 | 19.53 million | +3.0% |
| 1966 | 20.10 million | +2.9% |
| 1967 | 20.71 million | +3.0% |
| 1968 | 21.33 million | +3.0% |
| 1969 | 21.86 million | +2.5% |
| 1970 | 22.37 million | +2.4% |
| 1971 | 22.86 million | +2.2% |
| 1972 | 23.32 million | +2.0% |
| 1973 | 23.78 million | +2.0% |
| 1974 | 24.24 million | +1.9% |
| 1975 | 24.70 million | +1.9% |
| 1976 | 25.16 million | +1.8% |
| 1977 | 25.60 million | +1.8% |
| 1978 | 26.03 million | +1.7% |
| 1979 | 26.44 million | +1.6% |
| 1980 | 26.82 million | +1.4% |
| 1981 | 27.18 million | +1.3% |
| 1982 | 27.50 million | +1.2% |
| 1983 | 27.78 million | +1.0% |
| 1984 | 28.04 million | +0.9% |
| 1985 | 28.27 million | +0.8% |
| 1986 | 28.48 million | +0.7% |
| 1987 | 28.67 million | +0.7% |
| 1988 | 28.83 million | +0.6% |
| 1989 | 28.97 million | +0.5% |
| 1990 | 29.09 million | +0.4% |
| 1991 | 29.24 million | +0.5% |
| 1992 | 29.45 million | +0.7% |
| 1993 | 29.66 million | +0.7% |
| 1994 | 29.85 million | +0.6% |
| 1995 | 30.03 million | +0.6% |
| 1996 | 30.20 million | +0.6% |
| 1997 | 30.37 million | +0.6% |
| 1998 | 30.54 million | +0.6% |
| 1999 | 30.71 million | +0.6% |
| 2000 | 30.90 million | +0.6% |
| 2001 | 31.18 million | +0.9% |
| 2002 | 31.69 million | +1.7% |
| 2003 | 32.36 million | +2.1% |
| 2004 | 33.03 million | +2.1% |
| 2005 | 33.71 million | +2.1% |
| 2006 | 34.41 million | +2.1% |
| 2007 | 35.17 million | +2.2% |
| 2008 | 35.86 million | +2.0% |
| 2009 | 36.30 million | +1.2% |
| 2010 | 36.57 million | +0.7% |
| 2011 | 36.78 million | +0.6% |
| 2012 | 36.88 million | +0.3% |
| 2013 | 36.81 million | -0.2% |
| 2014 | 36.76 million | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 36.79 million | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 36.87 million | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 37.01 million | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 37.22 million | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 37.52 million | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 37.74 million | +0.6% |
| 2021 | 37.85 million | +0.3% |
| 2022 | 38.21 million | +0.9% |
| 2023 | 38.74 million | +1.4% |
| 2024 | 39.23 million | +1.3% |
| 2025 | 39.74 million | +1.3% |
Spain compared with similar countries
- Spain's 39.74 million is above the median for high income countries, which is 2.24 million, 17.7× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Spain's 39.74 million is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 3.59 million, 11.1× the median. (57 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 19.37 million | 17.19 million | 21.86 million | 10 |
| 1970s | 24.45 million | 22.37 million | 26.44 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 28.05 million | 26.82 million | 28.97 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 29.91 million | 29.09 million | 30.71 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 33.46 million | 30.90 million | 36.30 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 36.92 million | 36.57 million | 37.52 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 38.59 million | 37.74 million | 39.74 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Spain
More climate change data for Spain
- Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Synthetic fertilizers (Agricultural) 944.68 million kg (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 31,851 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 7,475 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 24,376 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 28.21 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 870.55 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 8,160 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 6,530 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 1,630 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 24.64 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population in Spain?
- Urban population in Spain was 39.74 million in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population recorded in Spain?
- The highest recorded value was 39.74 million in 2025.
- What is the lowest urban population recorded in Spain?
- The lowest recorded value was 17.19 million in 1960.
- How does Spain rank for urban population?
- Spain ranks 26th out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban population rising or falling in Spain?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Spain 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.