Urban area over the long-term in Ireland

Ireland: Urban area over the long-term was 1,155 km² per grid cell in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
1,155 km² per grid cell
Change on year
up 1.3%
Rank
89th
of 202 regions
All-time high
1,155 km² per grid cell
in 2025
All-time low
0 km² per grid cell
in 1000
Years of data
108
1000–2025

Urban area over the long-term in Ireland, 1000–2025

02505007501.0k1.2k100015122025

Source: HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in km² per grid cell.

Analysis

The most recent figure for urban area over the long-term in Ireland is 1,155 km² per grid cell, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 108 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.3% on the previous year and up 13.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, urban area over the long-term in Ireland peaked at 1,155 km² per grid cell in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0 km² per grid cell, in 1000.

Ireland ranks 89th of 202 regions 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
1000s 0 km² per grid cell 0 km² per grid cell 0 km² per grid cell 1
1100s 0 km² per grid cell 0 km² per grid cell 0 km² per grid cell 1
1200s 0 km² per grid cell 0 km² per grid cell 0 km² per grid cell 1
1300s 0 km² per grid cell 0 km² per grid cell 0 km² per grid cell 1
1400s 0 km² per grid cell 0 km² per grid cell 0 km² per grid cell 1
1500s 0 km² per grid cell 0 km² per grid cell 0 km² per grid cell 1
1600s 0 km² per grid cell 0 km² per grid cell 0 km² per grid cell 1
1700s 34.38 km² per grid cell 34.38 km² per grid cell 34.38 km² per grid cell 1
1710s 57.57 km² per grid cell 57.57 km² per grid cell 57.57 km² per grid cell 1
1720s 74.15 km² per grid cell 74.15 km² per grid cell 74.15 km² per grid cell 1
1730s 90.56 km² per grid cell 90.56 km² per grid cell 90.56 km² per grid cell 1
1740s 107.02 km² per grid cell 107.02 km² per grid cell 107.02 km² per grid cell 1
1750s 123.74 km² per grid cell 123.74 km² per grid cell 123.74 km² per grid cell 1
1760s 137.25 km² per grid cell 137.25 km² per grid cell 137.25 km² per grid cell 1
1770s 150.69 km² per grid cell 150.69 km² per grid cell 150.69 km² per grid cell 1
1780s 183.83 km² per grid cell 183.83 km² per grid cell 183.83 km² per grid cell 1
1790s 237.74 km² per grid cell 237.74 km² per grid cell 237.74 km² per grid cell 1
1800s 276.78 km² per grid cell 276.78 km² per grid cell 276.78 km² per grid cell 1
1810s 342.69 km² per grid cell 342.69 km² per grid cell 342.69 km² per grid cell 1
1820s 435 km² per grid cell 435 km² per grid cell 435 km² per grid cell 1
1830s 513.34 km² per grid cell 513.34 km² per grid cell 513.34 km² per grid cell 1
1840s 584.3 km² per grid cell 584.3 km² per grid cell 584.3 km² per grid cell 1
1850s 512.21 km² per grid cell 512.21 km² per grid cell 512.21 km² per grid cell 1
1860s 460.18 km² per grid cell 460.18 km² per grid cell 460.18 km² per grid cell 1
1870s 453.83 km² per grid cell 453.83 km² per grid cell 453.83 km² per grid cell 1
1880s 460.79 km² per grid cell 460.79 km² per grid cell 460.79 km² per grid cell 1
1890s 441.17 km² per grid cell 441.17 km² per grid cell 441.17 km² per grid cell 1
1900s 440.61 km² per grid cell 440.61 km² per grid cell 440.61 km² per grid cell 1
1910s 455.27 km² per grid cell 455.27 km² per grid cell 455.27 km² per grid cell 1
1920s 476.27 km² per grid cell 476.27 km² per grid cell 476.27 km² per grid cell 1
1930s 335.9 km² per grid cell 335.9 km² per grid cell 335.9 km² per grid cell 1
1940s 356.37 km² per grid cell 356.37 km² per grid cell 356.37 km² per grid cell 1
1950s 390.51 km² per grid cell 368.1 km² per grid cell 403.67 km² per grid cell 10
1960s 437 km² per grid cell 405.98 km² per grid cell 472.63 km² per grid cell 10
1970s 536.44 km² per grid cell 482.98 km² per grid cell 593.97 km² per grid cell 10
1980s 638.38 km² per grid cell 604.86 km² per grid cell 651.88 km² per grid cell 10
1990s 684.81 km² per grid cell 654.16 km² per grid cell 728.19 km² per grid cell 10
2000s 819.5 km² per grid cell 745.45 km² per grid cell 932.41 km² per grid cell 10
2010s 1,009 km² per grid cell 949.74 km² per grid cell 1,070 km² per grid cell 10
2020s 1,119 km² per grid cell 1,084 km² per grid cell 1,155 km² per grid cell 6

Countries ranked near Ireland

  1. 86 Benin 1,225 km² per grid cell compare
  2. 87 Tunisia 1,211 km² per grid cell compare
  3. 88 Liberia 1,198 km² per grid cell compare
  4. 90 Cuba 1,140 km² per grid cell compare
  5. 91 Jordan 1,109 km² per grid cell compare
  6. 92 Slovakia 1,086 km² per grid cell compare

See the full ranking of 202 places →

More reference data data for Ireland

All data for Ireland →

Frequently asked questions

What is urban area over the long-term in Ireland?
Urban area over the long-term in Ireland was 1,155 km² per grid cell in 2025, according to HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest urban area over the long-term recorded in Ireland?
The highest recorded value was 1,155 km² per grid cell in 2025.
What is the lowest urban area over the long-term recorded in Ireland?
The lowest recorded value was 0 km² per grid cell in 1000.
How does Ireland rank for urban area over the long-term?
Ireland ranks 89th out of 202 regions with data for 2025.
Is urban area over the long-term rising or falling in Ireland?
Over the last ten years it is up 13.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Ireland data come from?
The figures come from HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Urban area over the long-term. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 108 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Urban area over the long-term
Unit
km² per grid cell
Source
HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
202 places, 21,816 data points, 1000–2025
Last refreshed

Total built-up area of a country over time.