Share of population living in urban areas in Chad

Chad: Share of population living in urban areas was 51.5% in 2020. ▲ Rising

Latest (2020)
51.5%
World rank
204th
of 236 countries
All-time high
53.2%
in 2015
All-time low
37.4%
in 1950
Years of data
15
1950–2020

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

02040601950198520201950: 37.4 %1955: 38.2 %1960: 39.2 %1965: 40.4 %1970: 41.6 %1975: 43 %1980: 44.8 %1985: 46.3 %1990: 48.4 %1995: 50.5 %2000: 52.3 %2005: 52.8 %2010: 53 %2015: 53.2 %2020: 51.5 %

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

Analysis

Chad recorded 51.5% for share of population living in urban areas in 2020.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of population living in urban areas in Chad peaked at 53.2% in 2015 and was at its lowest, 37.4%, in 1950.

That places Chad 204th out of 236 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 37.8% 37.4% 38.2% 2
1960s 39.8% 39.2% 40.4% 2
1970s 42.3% 41.6% 43.0% 2
1980s 45.5% 44.8% 46.3% 2
1990s 49.5% 48.4% 50.5% 2
2000s 52.5% 52.3% 52.8% 2
2010s 53.1% 53.0% 53.2% 2
2020s 51.5% 51.5% 51.5% 1

Countries ranked near Chad

  1. 201 Tanzania 53.5% compare
  2. 202 Moldova 53.4% compare
  3. 203 Zambia 53.2% compare
  4. 205 Bosnia and Herzegovina 51.2% compare
  5. 206 Slovenia 50.3% compare
  6. 207 Mozambique 50.0% compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More reference data data for Chad

All data for Chad →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of population living in urban areas in Chad?
Share of population living in urban areas in Chad was 51.5% 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 Chad?
The highest recorded value was 53.2% in 2015.
What is the lowest share of population living in urban areas recorded in Chad?
The lowest recorded value was 37.4% in 1950.
How does Chad rank for share of population living in urban areas?
Chad ranks 204th out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
Is share of population living in urban areas rising or falling in Chad?
Over the last ten years it is down 2.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Chad 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.