Japan vs Mexico: Urban area over the long-term
Japan
13,979 km² per grid cell
in 2025
Mexico
17,056 km² per grid cell
in 2025
Japan rank
12th
Mexico rank
9th
Urban area over the long-term over time
- Japan
- Mexico
How they compare
Mexico currently reports 17,056 km² per grid cell against 13,979 km² per grid cell in Japan, a difference of 3,077 km² per grid cell.
That makes Mexico's figure about 1.2 times Japan's.
The two have swapped places 3 times across 108 shared years of data; in 1000 it was Japan ahead.
Japan ranks 12th and Mexico ranks 9th of 202 countries.
Across the 40 decades both report, Japan averaged higher in 33 and Mexico in 7.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Japan | Mexico | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1000s | 83.38 km² per grid cell | 0.0465 km² per grid cell | 83.33 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1100s | 17.02 km² per grid cell | 0.1572 km² per grid cell | 16.86 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1200s | 26.35 km² per grid cell | 0.5255 km² per grid cell | 25.83 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1300s | 45.09 km² per grid cell | 1.74 km² per grid cell | 43.35 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1400s | 86.16 km² per grid cell | 5.71 km² per grid cell | 80.45 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1500s | 170.93 km² per grid cell | 18.6 km² per grid cell | 152.33 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1600s | 358.43 km² per grid cell | 2.28 km² per grid cell | 356.15 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1700s | 628.27 km² per grid cell | 27.38 km² per grid cell | 600.89 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1710s | 675.08 km² per grid cell | 31.78 km² per grid cell | 643.29 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1720s | 664.37 km² per grid cell | 39.14 km² per grid cell | 625.24 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1730s | 649.32 km² per grid cell | 47.94 km² per grid cell | 601.37 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1740s | 629.03 km² per grid cell | 58.46 km² per grid cell | 570.57 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1750s | 602.97 km² per grid cell | 71.01 km² per grid cell | 531.95 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1760s | 567.2 km² per grid cell | 85.96 km² per grid cell | 481.24 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1770s | 526.91 km² per grid cell | 103.72 km² per grid cell | 423.2 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1780s | 483.65 km² per grid cell | 124.8 km² per grid cell | 358.85 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1790s | 439.36 km² per grid cell | 149.79 km² per grid cell | 289.56 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1800s | 396.06 km² per grid cell | 179.37 km² per grid cell | 216.69 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1810s | 396.06 km² per grid cell | 214.35 km² per grid cell | 181.71 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1820s | 396.06 km² per grid cell | 255.66 km² per grid cell | 140.4 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1830s | 396.06 km² per grid cell | 304.4 km² per grid cell | 91.66 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1840s | 396.06 km² per grid cell | 361.85 km² per grid cell | 34.21 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1850s | 396.06 km² per grid cell | 429.5 km² per grid cell | 33.44 km² per grid cell | Mexico |
| 1860s | 396.06 km² per grid cell | 509.1 km² per grid cell | 113.04 km² per grid cell | Mexico |
| 1870s | 396.06 km² per grid cell | 602.67 km² per grid cell | 206.61 km² per grid cell | Mexico |
| 1880s | 404.29 km² per grid cell | 712.57 km² per grid cell | 308.28 km² per grid cell | Mexico |
| 1890s | 450.7 km² per grid cell | 960.73 km² per grid cell | 510.03 km² per grid cell | Mexico |
| 1900s | 1,344 km² per grid cell | 1,260 km² per grid cell | 83.82 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1910s | 1,640 km² per grid cell | 1,590 km² per grid cell | 49.76 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1920s | 1,984 km² per grid cell | 1,659 km² per grid cell | 324.42 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1930s | 2,603 km² per grid cell | 1,961 km² per grid cell | 641.98 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1940s | 3,187 km² per grid cell | 2,107 km² per grid cell | 1,080 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1950s | 5,042 km² per grid cell | 2,659 km² per grid cell | 2,383 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1960s | 6,725 km² per grid cell | 3,295 km² per grid cell | 3,430 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1970s | 9,069 km² per grid cell | 4,608 km² per grid cell | 4,461 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1980s | 10,704 km² per grid cell | 6,528 km² per grid cell | 4,176 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 1990s | 11,979 km² per grid cell | 8,845 km² per grid cell | 3,134 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 2000s | 12,606 km² per grid cell | 11,424 km² per grid cell | 1,181 km² per grid cell | Japan |
| 2010s | 13,224 km² per grid cell | 14,281 km² per grid cell | 1,057 km² per grid cell | Mexico |
| 2020s | 13,841 km² per grid cell | 16,368 km² per grid cell | 2,528 km² per grid cell | Mexico |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher urban area over the long-term, Japan or Mexico?
- Mexico, at 17,056 km² per grid cell against 13,979 km² per grid cell in Japan as of 2025.
- What is the difference in urban area over the long-term between Japan and Mexico?
- 3,077 km² per grid cell, with Mexico ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and Mexico?
- 108 years are reported by both, from 1000 to 2025.
- How do Japan and Mexico rank globally for urban area over the long-term?
- Japan ranks 12th and Mexico ranks 9th 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.
Individual pages
About this data
Total built-up area of a country over time.