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

Netherlands: Share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents was 6.5% in 2020. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2020)
6.5%
World rank
122nd
of 180 countries
All-time high
6.5%
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 Netherlands, 1950–2020

02461950198520201950: 0 %1955: 0 %1960: 0 %1965: 0 %1970: 0 %1975: 0 %1980: 0 %1985: 0 %1990: 0 %1995: 0 %2000: 0 %2005: 6.1 %2010: 6.1 %2015: 6.3 %2020: 6.5 %

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

Analysis

Netherlands recorded 6.5% 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.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 5.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Netherlands peaked at 6.5% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1950.

Netherlands ranks 122nd of 180 countries on this measure, 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 3.0% 0.0% 6.1% 2
2010s 6.2% 6.1% 6.3% 2
2020s 6.5% 6.5% 6.5% 1

Countries ranked near Netherlands

  1. 119 Uganda 9.5% compare
  2. 120 Mozambique 9.5% compare
  3. 121 Burundi 9.0% compare
  4. 123 Niger 5.6% compare
  5. 124 Ethiopia 5.0% compare
  6. 125 Poland 4.9% compare

See the full ranking of 180 places →

More reference data data for Netherlands

All data for Netherlands →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Netherlands?
Share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Netherlands was 6.5% 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 Netherlands?
The highest recorded value was 6.5% in 2020.
What is the lowest share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents recorded in Netherlands?
The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1950.
How does Netherlands rank for share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents?
Netherlands ranks 122nd 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 Netherlands?
Over the last ten years it is up 5.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Netherlands 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.