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

Bulgaria: Do more people live in urban or rural areas? was 74.2% in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
74.2%
Change on year
up 0.3%
World rank
91st
of 238 countries
All-time high
74.2%
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 Bulgaria, 1000–2025

020406080100015122025

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

Bulgaria recorded 74.2% for do more people live in urban or rural areas? in 2025. That is the highest value across all 108 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 1.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Bulgaria peaked at 74.2% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1000.

That places Bulgaria 91st out of 238 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.

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 0.1% 0.1% 0.1% 1
1600s 0.3% 0.3% 0.3% 1
1700s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 1
1710s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 1
1720s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 1
1730s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 1
1740s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 1
1750s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 1
1760s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 1
1770s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 1
1780s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 1
1790s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 1
1800s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 1
1810s 1.2% 1.2% 1.2% 1
1820s 1.5% 1.5% 1.5% 1
1830s 1.9% 1.9% 1.9% 1
1840s 2.4% 2.4% 2.4% 1
1850s 3.0% 3.0% 3.0% 1
1860s 3.7% 3.7% 3.7% 1
1870s 4.6% 4.6% 4.6% 1
1880s 5.8% 5.8% 5.8% 1
1890s 7.2% 7.2% 7.2% 1
1900s 9.0% 9.0% 9.0% 1
1910s 11.3% 11.3% 11.3% 1
1920s 14.1% 14.1% 14.1% 1
1930s 17.7% 17.7% 17.7% 1
1940s 22.1% 22.1% 22.1% 1
1950s 31.4% 27.1% 35.7% 10
1960s 43.8% 37.1% 50.6% 10
1970s 57.4% 52.3% 61.5% 10
1980s 65.0% 62.1% 67.3% 10
1990s 67.6% 67.0% 68.0% 10
2000s 70.0% 68.3% 71.3% 10
2010s 73.0% 71.5% 73.7% 10
2020s 73.7% 73.3% 74.2% 6

Countries ranked near Bulgaria

  1. 88 Russia 75.3% compare
  2. 89 Brunei 75.0% compare
  3. 90 Finland 74.5% compare
  4. 92 Dominica 74.0% compare
  5. 93 Netherlands Antilles 73.5% compare
  6. 94 Djibouti 73.0% compare

See the full ranking of 239 places →

More reference data data for Bulgaria

All data for Bulgaria →

Frequently asked questions

What is do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Bulgaria?
Do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Bulgaria was 74.2% 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 Bulgaria?
The highest recorded value was 74.2% in 2025.
What is the lowest do more people live in urban or rural areas? recorded in Bulgaria?
The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1000.
How does Bulgaria rank for do more people live in urban or rural areas??
Bulgaria ranks 91st out of 238 countries with data for 2025.
Is do more people live in urban or rural areas? rising or falling in Bulgaria?
Over the last ten years it is up 1.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Bulgaria 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.