Share of population living in urban areas in Bahamas

Bahamas: Share of population living in urban areas was 82.3% in 2020. ▲ Rising

Latest (2020)
82.3%
World rank
69th
of 236 countries
All-time high
82.3%
in 2020
All-time low
48.0%
in 1950
Years of data
15
1950–2020

Share of population living in urban areas in Bahamas, 1950–2020

0204060801950198520201950: 48 %1955: 50.4 %1960: 55.3 %1965: 60.9 %1970: 66 %1975: 68.9 %1980: 70.5 %1985: 74.7 %1990: 75.3 %1995: 75.1 %2000: 76.1 %2005: 76.4 %2010: 81 %2015: 81.3 %2020: 82.3 %

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

Analysis

Bahamas recorded 82.3% for share of population living in urban areas in 2020. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.

The figure is up 1.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of population living in urban areas in Bahamas peaked at 82.3% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 48.0%, in 1950.

That places Bahamas 69th out of 236 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 49.2% 48.0% 50.4% 2
1960s 58.1% 55.3% 60.9% 2
1970s 67.5% 66.0% 68.9% 2
1980s 72.6% 70.5% 74.7% 2
1990s 75.2% 75.1% 75.3% 2
2000s 76.3% 76.1% 76.4% 2
2010s 81.1% 81.0% 81.3% 2
2020s 82.3% 82.3% 82.3% 1

Countries ranked near Bahamas

  1. 66 Tajikistan 82.8% compare
  2. 67 Somalia 82.7% compare
  3. 68 Haiti 82.6% compare
  4. 70 Turkey 82.3% compare
  5. 71 Malaysia 82.3% compare
  6. 72 Australia 82.2% compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More reference data data for Bahamas

All data for Bahamas →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of population living in urban areas in Bahamas?
Share of population living in urban areas in Bahamas was 82.3% in 2020, according to European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of population living in urban areas recorded in Bahamas?
The highest recorded value was 82.3% in 2020.
What is the lowest share of population living in urban areas recorded in Bahamas?
The lowest recorded value was 48.0% in 1950.
How does Bahamas rank for share of population living in urban areas?
Bahamas ranks 69th out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
Is share of population living in urban areas rising or falling in Bahamas?
Over the last ten years it is up 1.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Bahamas data come from?
The figures come from European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of population living in urban areas. 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 urban areas
Unit
%
Source
European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
236 places, 3,540 data points, 1950–2020
Last refreshed

Estimated share of the population living in urban areas (the sum of cities and towns and suburbs). Urban areas are identified using satellite imagery and population data, applying the same definitions across countries.