Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Uganda
Uganda: Share of population living in urban and rural areas was 69.6% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Uganda, 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 Uganda stood at 69.6%. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.
The figure is up 25.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population living in urban and rural areas in Uganda peaked at 69.6% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 14.4%, in 1950.
Uganda ranks 145th 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 Uganda, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 14.4% | — |
| 1955 | 16.5% | +14.3% |
| 1960 | 18.9% | +14.3% |
| 1965 | 21.5% | +14.0% |
| 1970 | 24.6% | +14.1% |
| 1975 | 27.5% | +11.8% |
| 1980 | 29.1% | +6.0% |
| 1985 | 32.2% | +10.8% |
| 1990 | 37.0% | +14.8% |
| 1995 | 41.6% | +12.3% |
| 2000 | 46.5% | +11.9% |
| 2005 | 50.6% | +8.8% |
| 2010 | 55.6% | +9.9% |
| 2015 | 61.8% | +11.1% |
| 2020 | 69.6% | +12.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 15.5% | 14.4% | 16.5% | 2 |
| 1960s | 20.2% | 18.9% | 21.5% | 2 |
| 1970s | 26.0% | 24.6% | 27.5% | 2 |
| 1980s | 30.7% | 29.1% | 32.2% | 2 |
| 1990s | 39.3% | 37.0% | 41.6% | 2 |
| 2000s | 48.5% | 46.5% | 50.6% | 2 |
| 2010s | 58.7% | 55.6% | 61.8% | 2 |
| 2020s | 69.6% | 69.6% | 69.6% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Uganda
More reference data data for Uganda
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.36 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 5.95 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 7.86 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.4214 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 7.86 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 4.57 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 5.13 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 29.65 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 42.22 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.29 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population living in urban and rural areas in Uganda?
- Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Uganda was 69.6% 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 Uganda?
- The highest recorded value was 69.6% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of population living in urban and rural areas recorded in Uganda?
- The lowest recorded value was 14.4% in 1950.
- How does Uganda rank for share of population living in urban and rural areas?
- Uganda ranks 145th out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of population living in urban and rural areas rising or falling in Uganda?
- Over the last ten years it is up 25.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Uganda 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.