Urban area over the long-term in Rwanda

Rwanda: Urban area over the long-term was 369.67 km² per grid cell in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
369.67 km² per grid cell
Change on year
up 3.8%
World rank
138th
of 202 countries
All-time high
369.67 km² per grid cell
in 2025
All-time low
0.0001 km² per grid cell
in 1000
Years of data
108
1000–2025

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

0100200300400100015122025

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

Analysis

Rwanda recorded 369.67 km² per grid cell for urban area over the long-term in 2025. That is the highest value across all 108 years on record.

That represents a change of up 3.8% on the previous year and up 49.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, urban area over the long-term in Rwanda peaked at 369.67 km² per grid cell in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0.0001 km² per grid cell, in 1000.

That places Rwanda 138th out of 202 countries with data for 2025, 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
1000s 0.0001 km² per grid cell 0.0001 km² per grid cell 0.0001 km² per grid cell 1
1100s 0.0002 km² per grid cell 0.0002 km² per grid cell 0.0002 km² per grid cell 1
1200s 0.0009 km² per grid cell 0.0009 km² per grid cell 0.0009 km² per grid cell 1
1300s 0.003 km² per grid cell 0.003 km² per grid cell 0.003 km² per grid cell 1
1400s 0.0103 km² per grid cell 0.0103 km² per grid cell 0.0103 km² per grid cell 1
1500s 0.0345 km² per grid cell 0.0345 km² per grid cell 0.0345 km² per grid cell 1
1600s 0.1121 km² per grid cell 0.1121 km² per grid cell 0.1121 km² per grid cell 1
1700s 0.3391 km² per grid cell 0.3391 km² per grid cell 0.3391 km² per grid cell 1
1710s 0.4046 km² per grid cell 0.4046 km² per grid cell 0.4046 km² per grid cell 1
1720s 0.4661 km² per grid cell 0.4661 km² per grid cell 0.4661 km² per grid cell 1
1730s 0.5337 km² per grid cell 0.5337 km² per grid cell 0.5337 km² per grid cell 1
1740s 0.6076 km² per grid cell 0.6076 km² per grid cell 0.6076 km² per grid cell 1
1750s 0.688 km² per grid cell 0.688 km² per grid cell 0.688 km² per grid cell 1
1760s 0.7752 km² per grid cell 0.7752 km² per grid cell 0.7752 km² per grid cell 1
1770s 0.8693 km² per grid cell 0.8693 km² per grid cell 0.8693 km² per grid cell 1
1780s 0.9705 km² per grid cell 0.9705 km² per grid cell 0.9705 km² per grid cell 1
1790s 1.08 km² per grid cell 1.08 km² per grid cell 1.08 km² per grid cell 1
1800s 1.2 km² per grid cell 1.2 km² per grid cell 1.2 km² per grid cell 1
1810s 1.32 km² per grid cell 1.32 km² per grid cell 1.32 km² per grid cell 1
1820s 1.45 km² per grid cell 1.45 km² per grid cell 1.45 km² per grid cell 1
1830s 1.59 km² per grid cell 1.59 km² per grid cell 1.59 km² per grid cell 1
1840s 1.74 km² per grid cell 1.74 km² per grid cell 1.74 km² per grid cell 1
1850s 1.9 km² per grid cell 1.9 km² per grid cell 1.9 km² per grid cell 1
1860s 2.02 km² per grid cell 2.02 km² per grid cell 2.02 km² per grid cell 1
1870s 2.14 km² per grid cell 2.14 km² per grid cell 2.14 km² per grid cell 1
1880s 2.28 km² per grid cell 2.28 km² per grid cell 2.28 km² per grid cell 1
1890s 2.49 km² per grid cell 2.49 km² per grid cell 2.49 km² per grid cell 1
1900s 2.49 km² per grid cell 2.49 km² per grid cell 2.49 km² per grid cell 1
1910s 2.49 km² per grid cell 2.49 km² per grid cell 2.49 km² per grid cell 1
1920s 2.49 km² per grid cell 2.49 km² per grid cell 2.49 km² per grid cell 1
1930s 2.96 km² per grid cell 2.96 km² per grid cell 2.96 km² per grid cell 1
1940s 3.59 km² per grid cell 3.59 km² per grid cell 3.59 km² per grid cell 1
1950s 5.85 km² per grid cell 4.53 km² per grid cell 7.41 km² per grid cell 10
1960s 9.79 km² per grid cell 7.79 km² per grid cell 12.37 km² per grid cell 10
1970s 18.42 km² per grid cell 13.12 km² per grid cell 24.51 km² per grid cell 10
1980s 32.54 km² per grid cell 25.69 km² per grid cell 41.18 km² per grid cell 10
1990s 53.87 km² per grid cell 40.06 km² per grid cell 92.86 km² per grid cell 10
2000s 141.65 km² per grid cell 108.33 km² per grid cell 178.3 km² per grid cell 10
2010s 242.17 km² per grid cell 194.91 km² per grid cell 292.07 km² per grid cell 10
2020s 336.42 km² per grid cell 303.95 km² per grid cell 369.67 km² per grid cell 6

Countries ranked near Rwanda

  1. 135 Latvia 421.38 km² per grid cell compare
  2. 136 Gambia 416.31 km² per grid cell compare
  3. 137 Burundi 390.75 km² per grid cell compare
  4. 139 Moldova 368.49 km² per grid cell compare
  5. 140 Estonia 365.48 km² per grid cell compare

See the full ranking of 202 places →

More reference data data for Rwanda

All data for Rwanda →

Frequently asked questions

What is urban area over the long-term in Rwanda?
Urban area over the long-term in Rwanda was 369.67 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 Rwanda?
The highest recorded value was 369.67 km² per grid cell in 2025.
What is the lowest urban area over the long-term recorded in Rwanda?
The lowest recorded value was 0.0001 km² per grid cell in 1000.
How does Rwanda rank for urban area over the long-term?
Rwanda ranks 138th out of 202 countries with data for 2025.
Is urban area over the long-term rising or falling in Rwanda?
Over the last ten years it is up 49.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Rwanda 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.

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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.