Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Jamaica
Jamaica: Share of population living in urban and rural areas was 72.4% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Jamaica, 1950–2020
Source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of population living in urban and rural areas in Jamaica is 72.4%, measured in 2020.
That represents a change of down 3.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population living in urban and rural areas in Jamaica peaked at 75.7% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 65.0%, in 1950.
Jamaica ranks 133rd of 236 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
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 Jamaica, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 65.0% | — |
| 1955 | 67.6% | +3.9% |
| 1960 | 68.8% | +1.8% |
| 1965 | 70.2% | +2.1% |
| 1970 | 71.3% | +1.5% |
| 1975 | 72.6% | +1.8% |
| 1980 | 73.7% | +1.5% |
| 1985 | 73.5% | -0.2% |
| 1990 | 73.8% | +0.4% |
| 1995 | 75.2% | +1.9% |
| 2000 | 75.7% | +0.6% |
| 2005 | 75.5% | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 75.0% | -0.7% |
| 2015 | 74.5% | -0.6% |
| 2020 | 72.4% | -2.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 66.3% | 65.0% | 67.6% | 2 |
| 1960s | 69.5% | 68.8% | 70.2% | 2 |
| 1970s | 71.9% | 71.3% | 72.6% | 2 |
| 1980s | 73.6% | 73.5% | 73.7% | 2 |
| 1990s | 74.5% | 73.8% | 75.2% | 2 |
| 2000s | 75.6% | 75.5% | 75.7% | 2 |
| 2010s | 74.8% | 74.5% | 75.0% | 2 |
| 2020s | 72.4% | 72.4% | 72.4% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Jamaica
More reference data data for Jamaica
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.045 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.1808 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.2582 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0003 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.2582 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1508 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.0583 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.8486 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.19 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0015 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population living in urban and rural areas in Jamaica?
- Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Jamaica was 72.4% 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 Jamaica?
- The highest recorded value was 75.7% in 2000.
- What is the lowest share of population living in urban and rural areas recorded in Jamaica?
- The lowest recorded value was 65.0% in 1950.
- How does Jamaica rank for share of population living in urban and rural areas?
- Jamaica ranks 133rd out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of population living in urban and rural areas rising or falling in Jamaica?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Jamaica 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.