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

Tanzania: Share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents was 11.2% in 2020. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2020)
11.2%
World rank
109th
of 180 countries
All-time high
11.2%
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 Tanzania, 1950–2020

02.557.5101950198520201950: 0 %1955: 0 %1960: 0 %1965: 0 %1970: 0 %1975: 0 %1980: 0 %1985: 0 %1990: 4.6 %1995: 5.2 %2000: 6 %2005: 7 %2010: 8.4 %2015: 10 %2020: 11.2 %

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

Analysis

Tanzania recorded 11.2% 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.

The figure is up 33.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Tanzania peaked at 11.2% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1950.

That places Tanzania 109th 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 4.9% 4.6% 5.2% 2
2000s 6.5% 6.0% 7.0% 2
2010s 9.2% 8.4% 10.0% 2
2020s 11.2% 11.2% 11.2% 1

Countries ranked near Tanzania

  1. 106 Madagascar 12.2% compare
  2. 107 Zimbabwe 12.1% compare
  3. 108 Belgium 12.0% compare
  4. 110 Czechia 11.2% compare
  5. 111 North Korea 11.0% compare
  6. 112 Uzbekistan 10.9% compare

See the full ranking of 180 places →

More reference data data for Tanzania

All data for Tanzania →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Tanzania?
Share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Tanzania was 11.2% 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 Tanzania?
The highest recorded value was 11.2% in 2020.
What is the lowest share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents recorded in Tanzania?
The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1950.
How does Tanzania rank for share of population living in cities with more than 1 million residents?
Tanzania ranks 109th 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 Tanzania?
Over the last ten years it is up 33.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Tanzania 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.