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

Netherlands: Do more people live in urban or rural areas? was 95.9% in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
95.9%
Change on year
up 0.3%
World rank
21st
of 238 countries
All-time high
95.9%
in 2025
All-time low
0.5%
in 1000
Years of data
108
1000–2025

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

020406080100100015122025

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

In 2025, do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Netherlands stood at 95.9%. That is the highest value across all 108 years on record.

That represents a change of up 0.3% on the previous year and up 6.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Netherlands peaked at 95.9% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0.5%, in 1000.

That places Netherlands 21st out of 238 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 108 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1000s 0.5% 0.5% 0.5% 1
1100s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 1
1200s 2.2% 2.2% 2.2% 1
1300s 4.1% 4.1% 4.1% 1
1400s 4.7% 4.7% 4.7% 1
1500s 10.4% 10.4% 10.4% 1
1600s 22.0% 22.0% 22.0% 1
1700s 33.6% 33.6% 33.6% 1
1710s 34.5% 34.5% 34.5% 1
1720s 35.4% 35.4% 35.4% 1
1730s 36.4% 36.4% 36.4% 1
1740s 37.3% 37.3% 37.3% 1
1750s 38.2% 38.2% 38.2% 1
1760s 39.1% 39.1% 39.1% 1
1770s 40.0% 40.0% 40.0% 1
1780s 40.9% 40.9% 40.9% 1
1790s 41.9% 41.9% 41.9% 1
1800s 42.8% 42.8% 42.8% 1
1810s 43.7% 43.7% 43.7% 1
1820s 44.6% 44.6% 44.6% 1
1830s 45.5% 45.5% 45.5% 1
1840s 46.4% 46.4% 46.4% 1
1850s 47.4% 47.4% 47.4% 1
1860s 48.3% 48.3% 48.3% 1
1870s 49.2% 49.2% 49.2% 1
1880s 50.1% 50.1% 50.1% 1
1890s 51.0% 51.0% 51.0% 1
1900s 52.0% 52.0% 52.0% 1
1910s 52.9% 52.9% 52.9% 1
1920s 53.8% 53.8% 53.8% 1
1930s 54.7% 54.7% 54.7% 1
1940s 55.6% 55.6% 55.6% 1
1950s 58.1% 56.6% 59.8% 10
1960s 60.9% 59.9% 61.8% 10
1970s 63.9% 62.1% 64.8% 10
1980s 67.2% 65.0% 68.8% 10
1990s 72.0% 69.0% 77.1% 10
2000s 82.8% 78.5% 86.2% 10
2010s 90.1% 87.4% 93.9% 10
2020s 95.1% 94.3% 95.9% 6

Countries ranked near Netherlands

  1. 18 San Marino 97.2% compare
  2. 23 Uruguay 95.7% compare
  3. 24 United States Virgin Islands 95.4% compare

See the full ranking of 239 places →

More reference data data for Netherlands

All data for Netherlands →

Frequently asked questions

What is do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Netherlands?
Do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Netherlands was 95.9% 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 Netherlands?
The highest recorded value was 95.9% in 2025.
What is the lowest do more people live in urban or rural areas? recorded in Netherlands?
The lowest recorded value was 0.5% in 1000.
How does Netherlands rank for do more people live in urban or rural areas??
Netherlands ranks 21st out of 238 countries with data for 2025.
Is do more people live in urban or rural areas? rising or falling in Netherlands?
Over the last ten years it is up 6.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Netherlands 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.