South Africa vs Syria: Share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents
South Africa
29.5%
in 2020
Syria
27.9%
in 2020
South Africa rank
40th
Syria rank
43rd
Share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents over time
- South Africa
- Syria
How they compare
South Africa currently reports 29.5% against 27.9% in Syria, a difference of 1.6%.
That makes South Africa's figure about 1.1 times Syria's.
The two have swapped places 3 times across 15 shared years of data; in 1950 it was Syria ahead.
South Africa ranks 40th and Syria ranks 43rd of 180 countries.
Across the 8 decades both report, South Africa averaged higher in 1 and Syria in 5.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | South Africa | Syria | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| 1960s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| 1970s | 4.7% | 8.0% | 3.3% | Syria |
| 1980s | 9.9% | 16.8% | 6.9% | Syria |
| 1990s | 12.6% | 25.9% | 13.3% | Syria |
| 2000s | 17.6% | 27.0% | 9.4% | Syria |
| 2010s | 24.7% | 27.1% | 2.4% | Syria |
| 2020s | 29.5% | 27.9% | 1.6% | South Africa |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents, South Africa or Syria?
- South Africa, at 29.5% against 27.9% in Syria as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents between South Africa and Syria?
- 1.6%, with South Africa ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for South Africa and Syria?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do South Africa and Syria rank globally for share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents?
- South Africa ranks 40th and Syria ranks 43rd of 180 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Percentage of the total population living in cities with 1 million or more people. City boundaries are defined using a consistent global approach based on satellite imagery and population data.