China vs India: Share of population living in urban areas
China
83.6%
in 2020
India
83.4%
in 2020
China rank
62nd
India rank
64th
Share of population living in urban areas over time
- China
- India
How they compare
China currently reports 83.6% against 83.4% in India, a difference of 0.2%.
Across all 15 years both countries report, China has been ahead every year.
China ranks 62nd and India ranks 64th of 236 countries.
China has averaged higher in every one of the 8 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | India | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 65.6% | 52.2% | 13.4% | China |
| 1960s | 69.1% | 58.0% | 11.1% | China |
| 1970s | 73.4% | 63.5% | 9.9% | China |
| 1980s | 76.2% | 68.5% | 7.7% | China |
| 1990s | 79.6% | 74.0% | 5.7% | China |
| 2000s | 81.9% | 78.4% | 3.5% | China |
| 2010s | 83.2% | 81.2% | 2.0% | China |
| 2020s | 83.6% | 83.4% | 0.3% | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of population living in urban areas, China or India?
- China, at 83.6% against 83.4% in India as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of population living in urban areas between China and India?
- 0.2%, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and India?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do China and India rank globally for share of population living in urban areas?
- China ranks 62nd and India ranks 64th 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 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.