Russia vs Spain: Share of population living in urban areas

Russia
78.8%
in 2020
Spain
78.6%
in 2020
Russia rank
85th
Spain rank
88th

Share of population living in urban areas over time

  • Russia
  • Spain
020406080195019852020

How they compare

Russia currently reports 78.8% against 78.6% in Spain, a difference of 0.2%.

Across all 15 years both countries report, Russia has been ahead every year.

Russia ranks 85th and Spain ranks 88th of 236 countries.

Russia has averaged higher in every one of the 8 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade Russia Spain Difference Ahead
1950s 72.2% 67.3% 4.8% Russia
1960s 75.3% 69.4% 5.9% Russia
1970s 76.7% 71.7% 5.0% Russia
1980s 77.9% 73.5% 4.4% Russia
1990s 78.2% 74.4% 3.8% Russia
2000s 78.5% 75.9% 2.7% Russia
2010s 78.5% 77.5% 1.1% Russia
2020s 78.8% 78.6% 0.2% Russia

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher share of population living in urban areas, Russia or Spain?
Russia, at 78.8% against 78.6% in Spain as of 2020.
What is the difference in share of population living in urban areas between Russia and Spain?
0.2%, with Russia ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Russia and Spain?
15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
How do Russia and Spain rank globally for share of population living in urban areas?
Russia ranks 85th and Spain ranks 88th 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

Indicator
Share of population living in urban areas
Unit
%
Source
European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
236 places, 3,540 data points, 1950–2020
Last refreshed

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.