Share of population living in urban areas in Tanzania
Tanzania: Share of population living in urban areas was 53.5% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of population living in urban areas in Tanzania, 1950–2020
Source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Tanzania recorded 53.5% 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 12.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population living in urban areas in Tanzania peaked at 53.5% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 14.8%, in 1950.
That places Tanzania 201st 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.
Share of population living in urban areas in Tanzania, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 14.8% | — |
| 1955 | 16.1% | +8.7% |
| 1960 | 17.6% | +9.5% |
| 1965 | 19.4% | +10.4% |
| 1970 | 21.6% | +11.4% |
| 1975 | 24.3% | +12.5% |
| 1980 | 28.2% | +15.8% |
| 1985 | 31.6% | +12.4% |
| 1990 | 35.0% | +10.5% |
| 1995 | 38.9% | +11.3% |
| 2000 | 42.4% | +8.9% |
| 2005 | 44.8% | +5.7% |
| 2010 | 47.4% | +5.8% |
| 2015 | 50.6% | +6.7% |
| 2020 | 53.5% | +5.7% |
Tanzania compared with similar countries
- Tanzania's 53.5% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 71.3%, 75% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Tanzania's 53.5% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 69.4%, 77% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 15.4% | 14.8% | 16.1% | 2 |
| 1960s | 18.5% | 17.6% | 19.4% | 2 |
| 1970s | 23.0% | 21.6% | 24.3% | 2 |
| 1980s | 29.9% | 28.2% | 31.6% | 2 |
| 1990s | 36.9% | 35.0% | 38.9% | 2 |
| 2000s | 43.6% | 42.4% | 44.8% | 2 |
| 2010s | 49.0% | 47.4% | 50.6% | 2 |
| 2020s | 53.5% | 53.5% | 53.5% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Tanzania
More reference data data for Tanzania
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.6405 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 11.44 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 14.14 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.7582 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 14.14 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 2.15 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.26 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 59.37 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 72.45 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 4.13 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population living in urban areas in Tanzania?
- Share of population living in urban areas in Tanzania was 53.5% 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 Tanzania?
- The highest recorded value was 53.5% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of population living in urban areas recorded in Tanzania?
- The lowest recorded value was 14.8% in 1950.
- How does Tanzania rank for share of population living in urban areas?
- Tanzania ranks 201st out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of population living in urban areas rising or falling in Tanzania?
- Over the last ten years it is up 12.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Tanzania 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
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.