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

Libya: Share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents was 16.7% in 2020. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2020)
16.7%
World rank
87th
of 180 countries
All-time high
17.7%
in 2015
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 Libya, 1950–2020

051015201950198520201950: 0 %1955: 0 %1960: 0 %1965: 0 %1970: 0 %1975: 0 %1980: 0 %1985: 0 %1990: 0 %1995: 0 %2000: 0 %2005: 0 %2010: 16.1 %2015: 17.7 %2020: 16.7 %

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

Analysis

Libya recorded 16.7% for share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in 2020.

The figure is up 3.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Libya peaked at 17.7% in 2015 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1950.

That places Libya 87th out of 180 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.

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 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 2
1990s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 2
2000s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 2
2010s 16.9% 16.1% 17.7% 2
2020s 16.7% 16.7% 16.7% 1

Countries ranked near Libya

  1. 84 Russia 17.1% compare
  2. 85 Mali 16.8% compare
  3. 86 Hungary 16.7% compare
  4. 88 Haiti 16.4% compare
  5. 89 Serbia 16.4% compare
  6. 90 Afghanistan 16.4% compare

See the full ranking of 180 places →

More reference data data for Libya

All data for Libya →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Libya?
Share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Libya was 16.7% 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 Libya?
The highest recorded value was 17.7% in 2015.
What is the lowest share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents recorded in Libya?
The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1950.
How does Libya rank for share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents?
Libya ranks 87th 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 Libya?
Over the last ten years it is up 3.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Libya 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.