Australia vs Brazil: Urban area over the long-term

Australia
20,727 km² per grid cell
in 2025
Brazil
36,495 km² per grid cell
in 2025
Australia rank
6th
Brazil rank
4th

Urban area over the long-term over time

  • Australia
  • Brazil
010.0k20.0k30.0k40.0k100015122025

How they compare

Brazil currently reports 36,495 km² per grid cell against 20,727 km² per grid cell in Australia, a difference of 15,768 km² per grid cell.

That makes Brazil's figure about 1.8 times Australia's.

The two have swapped places 4 times across 108 shared years of data; in 1000 it was Brazil ahead.

Australia ranks 6th and Brazil ranks 4th of 202 countries.

Across the 40 decades both report, Australia averaged higher in 6 and Brazil in 34.

Head to head by decade

Decade Australia Brazil Difference Ahead
1000s 0.0048 km² per grid cell 0.0907 km² per grid cell 0.0859 km² per grid cell Brazil
1100s 0.0145 km² per grid cell 0.3016 km² per grid cell 0.2871 km² per grid cell Brazil
1200s 0.0436 km² per grid cell 0.9935 km² per grid cell 0.9499 km² per grid cell Brazil
1300s 0.131 km² per grid cell 3.25 km² per grid cell 3.12 km² per grid cell Brazil
1400s 0.3936 km² per grid cell 10.54 km² per grid cell 10.14 km² per grid cell Brazil
1500s 1.18 km² per grid cell 36.43 km² per grid cell 35.24 km² per grid cell Brazil
1600s 3.57 km² per grid cell 5.18 km² per grid cell 1.61 km² per grid cell Brazil
1700s 10.57 km² per grid cell 9.65 km² per grid cell 0.922 km² per grid cell Australia
1710s 12.33 km² per grid cell 12.5 km² per grid cell 0.1727 km² per grid cell Brazil
1720s 14.38 km² per grid cell 15.83 km² per grid cell 1.45 km² per grid cell Brazil
1730s 16.78 km² per grid cell 20.16 km² per grid cell 3.38 km² per grid cell Brazil
1740s 19.58 km² per grid cell 25.8 km² per grid cell 6.22 km² per grid cell Brazil
1750s 22.84 km² per grid cell 33.2 km² per grid cell 10.36 km² per grid cell Brazil
1760s 26.65 km² per grid cell 42.95 km² per grid cell 16.3 km² per grid cell Brazil
1770s 31.1 km² per grid cell 55.86 km² per grid cell 24.75 km² per grid cell Brazil
1780s 36.34 km² per grid cell 73 km² per grid cell 36.67 km² per grid cell Brazil
1790s 42.59 km² per grid cell 95.89 km² per grid cell 53.3 km² per grid cell Brazil
1800s 47.18 km² per grid cell 126.54 km² per grid cell 79.36 km² per grid cell Brazil
1810s 52.43 km² per grid cell 177.46 km² per grid cell 125.03 km² per grid cell Brazil
1820s 60.64 km² per grid cell 238.69 km² per grid cell 178.05 km² per grid cell Brazil
1830s 75 km² per grid cell 331.98 km² per grid cell 256.97 km² per grid cell Brazil
1840s 108.96 km² per grid cell 441.38 km² per grid cell 332.42 km² per grid cell Brazil
1850s 218.19 km² per grid cell 569.25 km² per grid cell 351.06 km² per grid cell Brazil
1860s 498.17 km² per grid cell 718.31 km² per grid cell 220.14 km² per grid cell Brazil
1870s 840.17 km² per grid cell 891.83 km² per grid cell 51.66 km² per grid cell Brazil
1880s 1,253 km² per grid cell 1,087 km² per grid cell 166.55 km² per grid cell Australia
1890s 1,993 km² per grid cell 1,478 km² per grid cell 514.27 km² per grid cell Australia
1900s 2,708 km² per grid cell 1,962 km² per grid cell 746.2 km² per grid cell Australia
1910s 3,464 km² per grid cell 2,706 km² per grid cell 757.71 km² per grid cell Australia
1920s 4,200 km² per grid cell 4,087 km² per grid cell 112.29 km² per grid cell Australia
1930s 4,532 km² per grid cell 5,752 km² per grid cell 1,220 km² per grid cell Brazil
1940s 4,533 km² per grid cell 5,752 km² per grid cell 1,219 km² per grid cell Brazil
1950s 4,929 km² per grid cell 6,550 km² per grid cell 1,622 km² per grid cell Brazil
1960s 5,974 km² per grid cell 7,749 km² per grid cell 1,775 km² per grid cell Brazil
1970s 7,372 km² per grid cell 9,862 km² per grid cell 2,491 km² per grid cell Brazil
1980s 8,826 km² per grid cell 13,904 km² per grid cell 5,077 km² per grid cell Brazil
1990s 10,734 km² per grid cell 18,966 km² per grid cell 8,233 km² per grid cell Brazil
2000s 13,223 km² per grid cell 25,166 km² per grid cell 11,943 km² per grid cell Brazil
2010s 16,787 km² per grid cell 31,133 km² per grid cell 14,345 km² per grid cell Brazil
2020s 19,757 km² per grid cell 35,284 km² per grid cell 15,527 km² per grid cell Brazil

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher urban area over the long-term, Australia or Brazil?
Brazil, at 36,495 km² per grid cell against 20,727 km² per grid cell in Australia as of 2025.
What is the difference in urban area over the long-term between Australia and Brazil?
15,768 km² per grid cell, with Brazil ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Australia and Brazil?
108 years are reported by both, from 1000 to 2025.
How do Australia and Brazil rank globally for urban area over the long-term?
Australia ranks 6th and Brazil ranks 4th of 202 countries.
Where does this data come from?
HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Urban area over the long-term. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Australia vs Brazil: Urban area over the long-term. Statizoid, drawing on HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/compare/urban-area-long-term/australia/brazil/

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About this data

Indicator
Urban area over the long-term
Unit
km² per grid cell
Source
HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
202 places, 21,816 data points, 1000–2025
Last refreshed

Total built-up area of a country over time.