Share of population living in urban areas in Brunei

Brunei: Share of population living in urban areas was 80.8% in 2020. ▲ Rising

Latest (2020)
80.8%
World rank
78th
of 236 countries
All-time high
81.0%
in 2015
All-time low
36.4%
in 1950
Years of data
15
1950–2020

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

0204060801950198520201950: 36.4 %1955: 41.1 %1960: 46 %1965: 50.4 %1970: 54.5 %1975: 57.2 %1980: 65.1 %1985: 65.2 %1990: 70.1 %1995: 71.9 %2000: 74.4 %2005: 75.5 %2010: 79.5 %2015: 81 %2020: 80.8 %

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

Analysis

Brunei recorded 80.8% for share of population living in urban areas in 2020.

The figure is up 1.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of population living in urban areas in Brunei peaked at 81.0% in 2015 and was at its lowest, 36.4%, in 1950.

Brunei ranks 78th of 236 countries on this measure, 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 38.8% 36.4% 41.1% 2
1960s 48.2% 46.0% 50.4% 2
1970s 55.9% 54.5% 57.2% 2
1980s 65.1% 65.1% 65.2% 2
1990s 71.0% 70.1% 71.9% 2
2000s 74.9% 74.4% 75.5% 2
2010s 80.3% 79.5% 81.0% 2
2020s 80.8% 80.8% 80.8% 1

Countries ranked near Brunei

  1. 75 Chile 81.8% compare
  2. 76 Colombia 81.5% compare
  3. 77 Puerto Rico 80.9% compare
  4. 79 Nigeria 80.6% compare
  5. 80 San Marino 80.5% compare
  6. 81 Algeria 79.8% compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More reference data data for Brunei

All data for Brunei →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of population living in urban areas in Brunei?
Share of population living in urban areas in Brunei was 80.8% 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 Brunei?
The highest recorded value was 81.0% in 2015.
What is the lowest share of population living in urban areas recorded in Brunei?
The lowest recorded value was 36.4% in 1950.
How does Brunei rank for share of population living in urban areas?
Brunei ranks 78th out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
Is share of population living in urban areas rising or falling in Brunei?
Over the last ten years it is up 1.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Brunei 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.