Share of population living in urban areas in Guam
Guam: Share of population living in urban areas was 84.5% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of population living in urban areas in Guam, 1950–2020
Source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Guam recorded 84.5% for share of population living in urban areas in 2020. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population living in urban areas in Guam peaked at 84.5% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 48.2%, in 1950.
That places Guam 58th out of 236 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.
Share of population living in urban areas in Guam, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 48.2% | — |
| 1955 | 50.0% | +3.7% |
| 1960 | 52.3% | +4.7% |
| 1965 | 55.7% | +6.5% |
| 1970 | 58.8% | +5.5% |
| 1975 | 61.8% | +5.1% |
| 1980 | 75.1% | +21.6% |
| 1985 | 75.1% | -0.1% |
| 1990 | 75.9% | +1.0% |
| 1995 | 77.0% | +1.5% |
| 2000 | 82.1% | +6.5% |
| 2005 | 82.6% | +0.6% |
| 2010 | 83.9% | +1.6% |
| 2015 | 83.5% | -0.5% |
| 2020 | 84.5% | +1.3% |
Guam compared with similar countries
- Guam's 84.5% is above the median for high income countries, which is 76.2%, 1.1× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Guam's 84.5% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 70.5%, 1.2× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 49.1% | 48.2% | 50.0% | 2 |
| 1960s | 54.0% | 52.3% | 55.7% | 2 |
| 1970s | 60.3% | 58.8% | 61.8% | 2 |
| 1980s | 75.1% | 75.1% | 75.1% | 2 |
| 1990s | 76.5% | 75.9% | 77.0% | 2 |
| 2000s | 82.3% | 82.1% | 82.6% | 2 |
| 2010s | 83.7% | 83.5% | 83.9% | 2 |
| 2020s | 84.5% | 84.5% | 84.5% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Guam
- 55 Iran 84.7% compare
- 56 Sri Lanka 84.7% compare
- 57 Burundi 84.6% compare
- 59 Afghanistan 84.4% compare
- 60 Netherlands 84.3% compare
- 61 Saudi Arabia 83.6% compare
More reference data data for Guam
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - IPCC Agriculture 0.0012 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Burning - Crop residues 0 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O (AR5) - IPCC Agriculture 0.004 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O (AR5) - Crop Residues 0.0037 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O (AR5) - Agricultural 0.0037 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O (AR5) - Burning - Crop 0.0003 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CH4) - IPCC Agriculture 0 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CH4) - Burning - Crop residues 0 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Direct emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population living in urban areas in Guam?
- Share of population living in urban areas in Guam was 84.5% 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 Guam?
- The highest recorded value was 84.5% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of population living in urban areas recorded in Guam?
- The lowest recorded value was 48.2% in 1950.
- How does Guam rank for share of population living in urban areas?
- Guam ranks 58th out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of population living in urban areas rising or falling in Guam?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Guam 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
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About this data
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.