Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Congo
Congo: Share of population living in urban and rural areas was 91.7% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Congo, 1950–2020
Source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2020, share of population living in urban and rural areas in Congo stood at 91.7%. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.
The figure is up 5.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population living in urban and rural areas in Congo peaked at 91.7% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 72.0%, in 1950.
Congo ranks 24th of 236 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.
Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Congo, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 72.0% | — |
| 1955 | 74.1% | +2.8% |
| 1960 | 76.2% | +2.9% |
| 1965 | 78.4% | +2.9% |
| 1970 | 80.7% | +2.9% |
| 1975 | 83.0% | +2.8% |
| 1980 | 84.4% | +1.7% |
| 1985 | 85.9% | +1.8% |
| 1990 | 85.4% | -0.6% |
| 1995 | 85.0% | -0.4% |
| 2000 | 85.6% | +0.7% |
| 2005 | 85.9% | +0.4% |
| 2010 | 87.4% | +1.7% |
| 2015 | 89.6% | +2.6% |
| 2020 | 91.7% | +2.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 73.0% | 72.0% | 74.1% | 2 |
| 1960s | 77.3% | 76.2% | 78.4% | 2 |
| 1970s | 81.8% | 80.7% | 83.0% | 2 |
| 1980s | 85.1% | 84.4% | 85.9% | 2 |
| 1990s | 85.2% | 85.0% | 85.4% | 2 |
| 2000s | 85.7% | 85.6% | 85.9% | 2 |
| 2010s | 88.5% | 87.4% | 89.6% | 2 |
| 2020s | 91.7% | 91.7% | 91.7% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Congo
More reference data data for Congo
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0199 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.1866 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.2108 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0031 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.2108 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0668 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.0724 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.9126 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.08 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.017 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population living in urban and rural areas in Congo?
- Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Congo was 91.7% in 2020, according to European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of population living in urban and rural areas recorded in Congo?
- The highest recorded value was 91.7% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of population living in urban and rural areas recorded in Congo?
- The lowest recorded value was 72.0% in 1950.
- How does Congo rank for share of population living in urban and rural areas?
- Congo ranks 24th out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of population living in urban and rural areas rising or falling in Congo?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Congo data come from?
- The figures come from European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of population living in urban and rural areas. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
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.