New Zealand vs Switzerland: Share of population living in urban and rural areas
New Zealand
76.3%
in 2020
Switzerland
76.0%
in 2020
New Zealand rank
101st
Switzerland rank
104th
Share of population living in urban and rural areas over time
- New Zealand
- Switzerland
How they compare
New Zealand currently reports 76.3% against 76.0% in Switzerland, a difference of 0.3%.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 15 shared years of data; in 1950 it was New Zealand ahead.
New Zealand ranks 101st and Switzerland ranks 104th of 236 countries.
Across the 8 decades both report, New Zealand averaged higher in 7 and Switzerland in 1.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | New Zealand | Switzerland | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 63.9% | 60.8% | 3.0% | New Zealand |
| 1960s | 67.0% | 64.2% | 2.8% | New Zealand |
| 1970s | 69.1% | 66.9% | 2.3% | New Zealand |
| 1980s | 70.3% | 67.2% | 3.1% | New Zealand |
| 1990s | 71.6% | 69.6% | 2.0% | New Zealand |
| 2000s | 73.4% | 71.8% | 1.6% | New Zealand |
| 2010s | 74.2% | 74.6% | 0.4% | Switzerland |
| 2020s | 76.3% | 76.0% | 0.3% | New Zealand |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of population living in urban and rural areas, New Zealand or Switzerland?
- New Zealand, at 76.3% against 76.0% in Switzerland as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of population living in urban and rural areas between New Zealand and Switzerland?
- 0.3%, with New Zealand ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for New Zealand and Switzerland?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do New Zealand and Switzerland rank globally for share of population living in urban and rural areas?
- New Zealand ranks 101st and Switzerland ranks 104th of 236 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Share of population living in urban and rural areas. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Estimated share of the population living in urban areas (the sum of cities and towns and suburbs). Urban areas are identified using satellite imagery and population data, applying the same definitions across countries.