Share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Ecuador

Ecuador: Share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents was 31.2% in 2020. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2020)
31.2%
World rank
31st
of 180 countries
All-time high
31.2%
in 2020
All-time low
0.0%
in 1950
Years of data
15
1950–2020

Share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Ecuador, 1950–2020

01020301950198520201950: 0 %1955: 0 %1960: 0 %1965: 0 %1970: 0 %1975: 0 %1980: 14.2 %1985: 25.9 %1990: 27.7 %1995: 28.8 %2000: 29.8 %2005: 30.3 %2010: 30.4 %2015: 30.7 %2020: 31.2 %

Source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

Ecuador recorded 31.2% for share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in 2020. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.

That represents a change of up 2.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Ecuador peaked at 31.2% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1950.

That places Ecuador 31st out of 180 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 2
1960s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 2
1970s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 2
1980s 20.1% 14.2% 25.9% 2
1990s 28.2% 27.7% 28.8% 2
2000s 30.0% 29.8% 30.3% 2
2010s 30.6% 30.4% 30.7% 2
2020s 31.2% 31.2% 31.2% 1

Countries ranked near Ecuador

  1. 28 Ghana 32.1% compare
  2. 29 Somalia 31.6% compare
  3. 30 Turkey 31.3% compare
  4. 32 Iraq 31.0% compare
  5. 33 Cameroon 31.0% compare
  6. 34 Brazil 30.8% compare

See the full ranking of 180 places →

More reference data data for Ecuador

All data for Ecuador →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Ecuador?
Share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Ecuador was 31.2% in 2020, according to European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents recorded in Ecuador?
The highest recorded value was 31.2% in 2020.
What is the lowest share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents recorded in Ecuador?
The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1950.
How does Ecuador rank for share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents?
Ecuador ranks 31st out of 180 countries with data for 2020.
Is share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents rising or falling in Ecuador?
Over the last ten years it is up 2.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Ecuador data come from?
The figures come from European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents. 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

Indicator
Share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents
Unit
%
Source
European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
180 places, 2,505 data points, 1950–2020
Last refreshed

Percentage of the total population living in cities with 1 million or more people. City boundaries are defined using a consistent global approach based on satellite imagery and population data.