Share of population living in urban areas in Qatar

Qatar: Share of population living in urban areas was 93.3% in 2020. ▲ Rising

Latest (2020)
93.3%
World rank
20th
of 236 countries
All-time high
93.3%
in 2020
All-time low
57.6%
in 1950
Years of data
15
1950–2020

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

0204060801001950198520201950: 57.6 %1955: 57.7 %1960: 58.9 %1965: 62.4 %1970: 65.7 %1975: 69.1 %1980: 73.5 %1985: 77.4 %1990: 80 %1995: 83.1 %2000: 86.3 %2005: 88.3 %2010: 92.9 %2015: 93.3 %2020: 93.3 %

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

Analysis

In 2020, share of population living in urban areas in Qatar stood at 93.3%. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of population living in urban areas in Qatar peaked at 93.3% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 57.6%, in 1950.

That places Qatar 20th out of 236 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top 10%.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 57.7% 57.6% 57.7% 2
1960s 60.6% 58.9% 62.4% 2
1970s 67.4% 65.7% 69.1% 2
1980s 75.5% 73.5% 77.4% 2
1990s 81.5% 80.0% 83.1% 2
2000s 87.3% 86.3% 88.3% 2
2010s 93.1% 92.9% 93.3% 2
2020s 93.3% 93.3% 93.3% 1

Countries ranked near Qatar

  1. 17 Palestine 94.1% compare
  2. 18 Israel 93.6% compare
  3. 19 Jordan 93.5% compare
  4. 21 Nauru 92.4% compare
  5. 22 Cayman Islands 92.3% compare
  6. 23 Rwanda 92.1% compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More reference data data for Qatar

All data for Qatar →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of population living in urban areas in Qatar?
Share of population living in urban areas in Qatar was 93.3% 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 Qatar?
The highest recorded value was 93.3% in 2020.
What is the lowest share of population living in urban areas recorded in Qatar?
The lowest recorded value was 57.6% in 1950.
How does Qatar rank for share of population living in urban areas?
Qatar ranks 20th out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
Is share of population living in urban areas rising or falling in Qatar?
Over the last ten years it is up 0.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Qatar 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.