People not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Bulgaria

Bulgaria: People not using safely managed sanitation facilities was 1.64 million people in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
1.64 million people
Change on year
down 4.6%
World rank
77th
of 150 countries
All-time high
3.61 million people
in 2000
All-time low
1.64 million people
in 2024
Years of data
25
2000–2024

People not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Bulgaria, 2000–2024

01.0M2.0M3.0M4.0M2000201220242000: 3.6M people2001: 3.5M people2002: 3.5M people2003: 3.4M people2004: 3.4M people2005: 3.3M people2006: 3.2M people2007: 3.2M people2008: 3.1M people2009: 3.0M people2010: 2.9M people2011: 2.8M people2012: 2.7M people2013: 2.6M people2014: 2.5M people2015: 2.4M people2016: 2.3M people2017: 2.2M people2018: 2.1M people2019: 2.1M people2020: 2.0M people2021: 1.9M people2022: 1.8M people2023: 1.7M people2024: 1.6M people

Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.

Analysis

Bulgaria recorded 1.64 million people for people not using safely managed sanitation facilities in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

The figure is down 4.6% on the previous year and down 35.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, people not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Bulgaria peaked at 3.61 million people in 2000 and was at its lowest, 1.64 million people, in 2024.

Bulgaria ranks 77th of 150 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 3.32 million people 3.02 million people 3.61 million people 10
2010s 2.49 million people 2.05 million people 2.93 million people 10
2020s 1.80 million people 1.64 million people 1.97 million people 5

Countries ranked near Bulgaria

  1. 74 Gambia 1.98 million people compare
  2. 75 Romania 1.94 million people compare
  3. 76 Guinea-Bissau 1.70 million people compare
  4. 78 North Macedonia 1.60 million people compare
  5. 79 United Kingdom 1.49 million people compare
  6. 80 Bosnia and Herzegovina 1.47 million people compare

See the full ranking of 150 places →

More reference data data for Bulgaria

All data for Bulgaria →

Frequently asked questions

What is people not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Bulgaria?
People not using safely managed sanitation facilities in Bulgaria was 1.64 million people in 2024, according to WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest people not using safely managed sanitation facilities recorded in Bulgaria?
The highest recorded value was 3.61 million people in 2000.
What is the lowest people not using safely managed sanitation facilities recorded in Bulgaria?
The lowest recorded value was 1.64 million people in 2024.
How does Bulgaria rank for people not using safely managed sanitation facilities?
Bulgaria ranks 77th out of 150 countries with data for 2024.
Is people not using safely managed sanitation facilities rising or falling in Bulgaria?
Over the last ten years it is down 35.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Bulgaria data come from?
The figures come from WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of People not using safely managed sanitation facilities. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
People not using safely managed sanitation facilities
Unit
people
Source
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
150 places, 3,667 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

People not using safely managed sanitation services might practice open defecation, use unimproved sanitation facilities, or use improved facilities that do not safely manage human waste.