Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Afghanistan
Afghanistan: Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents was 6.41 million people in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Afghanistan, 1950–2020
Source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
In 2020, number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Afghanistan stood at 6.41 million people. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.
The figure is up 70.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Afghanistan peaked at 6.41 million people in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0 people, in 1950.
Afghanistan ranks 44th of 182 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 0 people | 0 people | 0 people | 2 |
| 1960s | 0 people | 0 people | 0 people | 2 |
| 1970s | 0 people | 0 people | 0 people | 2 |
| 1980s | 1.30 million people | 1.12 million people | 1.47 million people | 2 |
| 1990s | 2.04 million people | 1.90 million people | 2.19 million people | 2 |
| 2000s | 3.00 million people | 2.71 million people | 3.28 million people | 2 |
| 2010s | 4.02 million people | 3.77 million people | 4.28 million people | 2 |
| 2020s | 6.41 million people | 6.41 million people | 6.41 million people | 1 |
Countries ranked near Afghanistan
More reference data data for Afghanistan
- Spring temperature anomalies 3.05 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month -0.1923 °C (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies 0.6919 °C (2026)
- Elected parliament 0 (2025)
- Universal right to vote in practice 0 (2025)
- Free country 0 (2025)
- Civil liberties rating 7 (2025)
- Universal right to vote 2 (2025)
- Autumn temperature anomalies 1.44 °C (2025)
- Democracy 0 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Afghanistan?
- Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Afghanistan was 6.41 million people in 2020, according to European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents recorded in Afghanistan?
- The highest recorded value was 6.41 million people in 2020.
- What is the lowest number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents recorded in Afghanistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 people in 1950.
- How does Afghanistan rank for number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents?
- Afghanistan ranks 44th out of 182 countries with data for 2020.
- Is number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents rising or falling in Afghanistan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 70.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Afghanistan 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 Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
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.