Do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Afghanistan

Afghanistan: Do more people live in urban or rural areas? was 25.9% in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
25.9%
Change on year
up 0.9%
World rank
222nd
of 238 countries
All-time high
25.9%
in 2025
All-time low
0.0%
in 1000
Years of data
108
1000–2025

Do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Afghanistan, 1000–2025

0102030100015122025

Source: HYDE (2023); United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

Afghanistan recorded 25.9% for do more people live in urban or rural areas? in 2025. That is the highest value across all 108 years on record.

The figure is up 0.9% on the previous year and up 6.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Afghanistan peaked at 25.9% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1000.

That places Afghanistan 222nd out of 238 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1000s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 1
1100s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 1
1200s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 1
1300s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 1
1400s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 1
1500s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 1
1600s 0.1% 0.1% 0.1% 1
1700s 0.2% 0.2% 0.2% 1
1710s 0.4% 0.4% 0.4% 1
1720s 0.4% 0.4% 0.4% 1
1730s 0.5% 0.5% 0.5% 1
1740s 0.5% 0.5% 0.5% 1
1750s 0.6% 0.6% 0.6% 1
1760s 0.7% 0.7% 0.7% 1
1770s 0.7% 0.7% 0.7% 1
1780s 0.8% 0.8% 0.8% 1
1790s 0.9% 0.9% 0.9% 1
1800s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 1
1810s 1.2% 1.2% 1.2% 1
1820s 1.3% 1.3% 1.3% 1
1830s 1.5% 1.5% 1.5% 1
1840s 1.7% 1.7% 1.7% 1
1850s 1.9% 1.9% 1.9% 1
1860s 2.1% 2.1% 2.1% 1
1870s 2.4% 2.4% 2.4% 1
1880s 2.7% 2.7% 2.7% 1
1890s 3.0% 3.0% 3.0% 1
1900s 3.4% 3.4% 3.4% 1
1910s 3.8% 3.8% 3.8% 1
1920s 4.3% 4.3% 4.3% 1
1930s 4.8% 4.8% 4.8% 1
1940s 5.4% 5.4% 5.4% 1
1950s 6.7% 5.8% 7.9% 10
1960s 9.4% 8.1% 10.8% 10
1970s 13.4% 11.2% 15.4% 10
1980s 16.5% 15.7% 17.1% 10
1990s 17.8% 17.3% 18.4% 10
2000s 19.8% 18.6% 21.7% 10
2010s 24.1% 22.3% 25.1% 10
2020s 25.5% 25.3% 25.9% 6

Countries ranked near Afghanistan

  1. 219 Eswatini 26.7% compare
  2. 220 Guyana 26.5% compare
  3. 221 Tajikistan 26.2% compare
  4. 223 Burundi 25.7% compare
  5. 224 Antigua and Barbuda 24.3% compare
  6. 225 Ethiopia 24.1% compare

See the full ranking of 239 places →

More reference data data for Afghanistan

All data for Afghanistan →

Frequently asked questions

What is do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Afghanistan?
Do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Afghanistan was 25.9% in 2025, according to HYDE (2023); United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest do more people live in urban or rural areas? recorded in Afghanistan?
The highest recorded value was 25.9% in 2025.
What is the lowest do more people live in urban or rural areas? recorded in Afghanistan?
The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1000.
How does Afghanistan rank for do more people live in urban or rural areas??
Afghanistan ranks 222nd out of 238 countries with data for 2025.
Is do more people live in urban or rural areas? rising or falling in Afghanistan?
Over the last ten years it is up 6.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Afghanistan data come from?
The figures come from HYDE (2023); United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Do more people live in urban or rural areas?. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 108 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Do more people live in urban or rural areas?
Unit
%
Source
HYDE (2023); United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
239 places, 24,444 data points, 1000–2025
Last refreshed

Share of the population living in urban areas, combining UN estimates with modelled historical data.