Malawi vs Norway: Share of population living in urban areas
Malawi
64.4%
in 2020
Norway
64.5%
in 2020
Malawi rank
166th
Norway rank
164th
Share of population living in urban areas over time
- Malawi
- Norway
How they compare
Norway currently reports 64.5% against 64.4% in Malawi, a difference of 0.1%.
Across all 15 years both countries report, Norway has been ahead every year.
Malawi ranks 166th and Norway ranks 164th of 236 countries.
Norway has averaged higher in every one of the 8 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Malawi | Norway | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 7.8% | 50.9% | 43.1% | Norway |
| 1960s | 10.4% | 52.9% | 42.5% | Norway |
| 1970s | 13.9% | 54.6% | 40.6% | Norway |
| 1980s | 22.2% | 55.2% | 33.0% | Norway |
| 1990s | 34.9% | 56.8% | 21.9% | Norway |
| 2000s | 43.2% | 60.0% | 16.8% | Norway |
| 2010s | 55.9% | 63.0% | 7.2% | Norway |
| 2020s | 64.4% | 64.5% | 0.1% | Norway |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of population living in urban areas, Malawi or Norway?
- Norway, at 64.5% against 64.4% in Malawi as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of population living in urban areas between Malawi and Norway?
- 0.1%, with Norway ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Malawi and Norway?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do Malawi and Norway rank globally for share of population living in urban areas?
- Malawi ranks 166th and Norway ranks 164th 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.