Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Poland
Poland: Share of population living in urban and rural areas was 60.0% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Poland, 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 Poland is 60.0%, measured in 2020.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population living in urban and rural areas in Poland peaked at 60.0% in 2015 and was at its lowest, 49.3%, in 1950.
That places Poland 180th out of 236 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.
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 Poland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 49.3% | — |
| 1955 | 51.6% | +4.7% |
| 1960 | 53.9% | +4.5% |
| 1965 | 55.3% | +2.7% |
| 1970 | 56.3% | +1.7% |
| 1975 | 57.2% | +1.7% |
| 1980 | 58.2% | +1.7% |
| 1985 | 58.7% | +0.9% |
| 1990 | 59.3% | +1.0% |
| 1995 | 59.9% | +1.0% |
| 2000 | 60.0% | +0.1% |
| 2005 | 59.8% | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 59.8% | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 60.0% | +0.5% |
| 2020 | 60.0% | -0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 50.4% | 49.3% | 51.6% | 2 |
| 1960s | 54.6% | 53.9% | 55.3% | 2 |
| 1970s | 56.7% | 56.3% | 57.2% | 2 |
| 1980s | 58.5% | 58.2% | 58.7% | 2 |
| 1990s | 59.6% | 59.3% | 59.9% | 2 |
| 2000s | 59.9% | 59.8% | 60.0% | 2 |
| 2010s | 59.9% | 59.8% | 60.0% | 2 |
| 2020s | 60.0% | 60.0% | 60.0% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Poland
More reference data data for Poland
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 2.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.499 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 9.36 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.8896 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 9.36 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 8.77 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 5.77 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 2.57 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 43.86 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 4.84 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population living in urban and rural areas in Poland?
- Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Poland was 60.0% 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 Poland?
- The highest recorded value was 60.0% in 2015.
- What is the lowest share of population living in urban and rural areas recorded in Poland?
- The lowest recorded value was 49.3% in 1950.
- How does Poland rank for share of population living in urban and rural areas?
- Poland ranks 180th out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of population living in urban and rural areas rising or falling in Poland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Poland 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.
Download this data
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.