Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Switzerland
Switzerland: Share of population living in urban and rural areas was 76.0% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Switzerland, 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 Switzerland stood at 76.0%. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population living in urban and rural areas in Switzerland peaked at 76.0% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 60.1%, in 1950.
Switzerland ranks 104th 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 Switzerland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 60.1% | — |
| 1955 | 61.6% | +2.5% |
| 1960 | 63.1% | +2.4% |
| 1965 | 65.3% | +3.5% |
| 1970 | 66.6% | +1.9% |
| 1975 | 67.2% | +0.9% |
| 1980 | 66.8% | -0.5% |
| 1985 | 67.5% | +1.0% |
| 1990 | 68.7% | +1.8% |
| 1995 | 70.5% | +2.6% |
| 2000 | 71.3% | +1.1% |
| 2005 | 72.2% | +1.3% |
| 2010 | 74.2% | +2.6% |
| 2015 | 75.1% | +1.3% |
| 2020 | 76.0% | +1.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 60.8% | 60.1% | 61.6% | 2 |
| 1960s | 64.2% | 63.1% | 65.3% | 2 |
| 1970s | 66.9% | 66.6% | 67.2% | 2 |
| 1980s | 67.2% | 66.8% | 67.5% | 2 |
| 1990s | 69.6% | 68.7% | 70.5% | 2 |
| 2000s | 71.8% | 71.3% | 72.2% | 2 |
| 2010s | 74.6% | 74.2% | 75.1% | 2 |
| 2020s | 76.0% | 76.0% | 76.0% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Switzerland
- 101 New Zealand 76.3% compare
- 102 Canada 76.2% compare
- 103 El Salvador 76.1% compare
- 105 Iceland 75.9% compare
- 106 Cyprus 75.7% compare
- 107 Liechtenstein 75.5% compare
More reference data data for Switzerland
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5507 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.2683 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.24 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 1.24 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.85 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.28 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.37 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 6.28 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.272 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population living in urban and rural areas in Switzerland?
- Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Switzerland was 76.0% 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 Switzerland?
- The highest recorded value was 76.0% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of population living in urban and rural areas recorded in Switzerland?
- The lowest recorded value was 60.1% in 1950.
- How does Switzerland rank for share of population living in urban and rural areas?
- Switzerland ranks 104th out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of population living in urban and rural areas rising or falling in Switzerland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Switzerland 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.