Share of population living in urban areas in Romania

Romania: Share of population living in urban areas was 54.7% in 2020. ▲ Rising

Latest (2020)
54.7%
World rank
197th
of 236 countries
All-time high
56.0%
in 1995
All-time low
43.3%
in 1950
Years of data
15
1950–2020

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

02040601950198520201950: 43.3 %1955: 45.2 %1960: 46.7 %1965: 47.5 %1970: 49.3 %1975: 51.2 %1980: 52.9 %1985: 54.3 %1990: 55.7 %1995: 56 %2000: 55.6 %2005: 55.2 %2010: 54.8 %2015: 54.5 %2020: 54.7 %

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

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of population living in urban areas in Romania is 54.7%, measured in 2020.

That represents a change of down 0.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of population living in urban areas in Romania peaked at 56.0% in 1995 and was at its lowest, 43.3%, in 1950.

That places Romania 197th 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 44.2% 43.3% 45.2% 2
1960s 47.1% 46.7% 47.5% 2
1970s 50.2% 49.3% 51.2% 2
1980s 53.6% 52.9% 54.3% 2
1990s 55.9% 55.7% 56.0% 2
2000s 55.4% 55.2% 55.6% 2
2010s 54.7% 54.5% 54.8% 2
2020s 54.7% 54.7% 54.7% 1

Countries ranked near Romania

  1. 194 Fiji 55.6% compare
  2. 195 Guinea-Bissau 54.9% compare
  3. 198 Croatia 54.4% compare
  4. 199 Guinea 53.6% compare
  5. 200 Slovakia 53.5% compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More reference data data for Romania

All data for Romania →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of population living in urban areas in Romania?
Share of population living in urban areas in Romania was 54.7% 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 Romania?
The highest recorded value was 56.0% in 1995.
What is the lowest share of population living in urban areas recorded in Romania?
The lowest recorded value was 43.3% in 1950.
How does Romania rank for share of population living in urban areas?
Romania ranks 197th out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
Is share of population living in urban areas rising or falling in Romania?
Over the last ten years it is down 0.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Romania 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.