Spain vs Turkey: Urban area over the long-term

Spain
6,890 km² per grid cell
in 2025
Turkey
7,698 km² per grid cell
in 2025
Spain rank
21st
Turkey rank
19th

Urban area over the long-term over time

  • Spain
  • Turkey
02.0k4.0k6.0k8.0k100015122025

How they compare

Turkey currently reports 7,698 km² per grid cell against 6,890 km² per grid cell in Spain, a difference of 808 km² per grid cell.

That makes Turkey's figure about 1.1 times Spain's.

The two have swapped places 1 time across 108 shared years of data; in 1000 it was Spain ahead.

Spain ranks 21st and Turkey ranks 19th of 202 countries.

Across the 40 decades both report, Spain averaged higher in 38 and Turkey in 2.

Head to head by decade

Decade Spain Turkey Difference Ahead
1000s 94.4 km² per grid cell 45.26 km² per grid cell 49.14 km² per grid cell Spain
1100s 114.38 km² per grid cell 34.63 km² per grid cell 79.75 km² per grid cell Spain
1200s 104.29 km² per grid cell 42.66 km² per grid cell 61.63 km² per grid cell Spain
1300s 380.03 km² per grid cell 51.24 km² per grid cell 328.79 km² per grid cell Spain
1400s 180.26 km² per grid cell 42.96 km² per grid cell 137.3 km² per grid cell Spain
1500s 128.02 km² per grid cell 48.12 km² per grid cell 79.9 km² per grid cell Spain
1600s 211.64 km² per grid cell 63.92 km² per grid cell 147.72 km² per grid cell Spain
1700s 244.37 km² per grid cell 70.39 km² per grid cell 173.98 km² per grid cell Spain
1710s 279.68 km² per grid cell 80.23 km² per grid cell 199.44 km² per grid cell Spain
1720s 291.5 km² per grid cell 89.15 km² per grid cell 202.35 km² per grid cell Spain
1730s 303.8 km² per grid cell 99.05 km² per grid cell 204.75 km² per grid cell Spain
1740s 316.61 km² per grid cell 110.06 km² per grid cell 206.55 km² per grid cell Spain
1750s 329.93 km² per grid cell 122.29 km² per grid cell 207.64 km² per grid cell Spain
1760s 334.24 km² per grid cell 135.88 km² per grid cell 198.37 km² per grid cell Spain
1770s 338.51 km² per grid cell 150.97 km² per grid cell 187.54 km² per grid cell Spain
1780s 342.74 km² per grid cell 167.75 km² per grid cell 174.99 km² per grid cell Spain
1790s 346.9 km² per grid cell 186.38 km² per grid cell 160.52 km² per grid cell Spain
1800s 351 km² per grid cell 207.09 km² per grid cell 143.9 km² per grid cell Spain
1810s 402.06 km² per grid cell 230.1 km² per grid cell 171.96 km² per grid cell Spain
1820s 456.02 km² per grid cell 255.67 km² per grid cell 200.34 km² per grid cell Spain
1830s 533.39 km² per grid cell 290.6 km² per grid cell 242.79 km² per grid cell Spain
1840s 578.88 km² per grid cell 329.23 km² per grid cell 249.64 km² per grid cell Spain
1850s 683.02 km² per grid cell 372.9 km² per grid cell 310.12 km² per grid cell Spain
1860s 809.28 km² per grid cell 421.87 km² per grid cell 387.41 km² per grid cell Spain
1870s 912.78 km² per grid cell 475.18 km² per grid cell 437.61 km² per grid cell Spain
1880s 1,025 km² per grid cell 521.62 km² per grid cell 503.69 km² per grid cell Spain
1890s 1,140 km² per grid cell 553.02 km² per grid cell 586.97 km² per grid cell Spain
1900s 1,234 km² per grid cell 553.02 km² per grid cell 681.29 km² per grid cell Spain
1910s 1,397 km² per grid cell 553.02 km² per grid cell 844.35 km² per grid cell Spain
1920s 1,575 km² per grid cell 553.02 km² per grid cell 1,022 km² per grid cell Spain
1930s 1,831 km² per grid cell 553.02 km² per grid cell 1,278 km² per grid cell Spain
1940s 2,110 km² per grid cell 553.02 km² per grid cell 1,557 km² per grid cell Spain
1950s 2,595 km² per grid cell 688.84 km² per grid cell 1,906 km² per grid cell Spain
1960s 3,219 km² per grid cell 1,098 km² per grid cell 2,121 km² per grid cell Spain
1970s 4,091 km² per grid cell 1,742 km² per grid cell 2,349 km² per grid cell Spain
1980s 4,735 km² per grid cell 2,832 km² per grid cell 1,904 km² per grid cell Spain
1990s 4,999 km² per grid cell 4,190 km² per grid cell 809.18 km² per grid cell Spain
2000s 5,554 km² per grid cell 5,287 km² per grid cell 266.64 km² per grid cell Spain
2010s 6,300 km² per grid cell 6,429 km² per grid cell 128.95 km² per grid cell Turkey
2020s 6,773 km² per grid cell 7,387 km² per grid cell 613.68 km² per grid cell Turkey

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher urban area over the long-term, Spain or Turkey?
Turkey, at 7,698 km² per grid cell against 6,890 km² per grid cell in Spain as of 2025.
What is the difference in urban area over the long-term between Spain and Turkey?
808 km² per grid cell, with Turkey ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Spain and Turkey?
108 years are reported by both, from 1000 to 2025.
How do Spain and Turkey rank globally for urban area over the long-term?
Spain ranks 21st and Turkey ranks 19th 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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Spain vs Turkey: 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/spain/turkiye/

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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.