Do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Tonga
Tonga: Do more people live in urban or rural areas? was 21.2% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Tonga, 1000–2025
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 Tonga stood at 21.2%.
That represents a change of down 9.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Tonga peaked at 23.5% in 2011 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1000.
Tonga ranks 229th of 238 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | 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 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 1 |
| 1700s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1710s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1720s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1730s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1740s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1750s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 1 |
| 1760s | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 1 |
| 1770s | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 1 |
| 1780s | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.3% | 1 |
| 1790s | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 1 |
| 1800s | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 1 |
| 1810s | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.6% | 1 |
| 1820s | 0.7% | 0.7% | 0.7% | 1 |
| 1830s | 0.9% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 1 |
| 1840s | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1 |
| 1850s | 1.4% | 1.4% | 1.4% | 1 |
| 1860s | 1.7% | 1.7% | 1.7% | 1 |
| 1870s | 2.2% | 2.2% | 2.2% | 1 |
| 1880s | 2.7% | 2.7% | 2.7% | 1 |
| 1890s | 3.4% | 3.4% | 3.4% | 1 |
| 1900s | 4.2% | 4.2% | 4.2% | 1 |
| 1910s | 5.3% | 5.3% | 5.3% | 1 |
| 1920s | 6.6% | 6.6% | 6.6% | 1 |
| 1930s | 8.2% | 8.2% | 8.2% | 1 |
| 1940s | 10.3% | 10.3% | 10.3% | 1 |
| 1950s | 15.6% | 13.4% | 17.8% | 10 |
| 1960s | 19.6% | 18.3% | 20.2% | 10 |
| 1970s | 20.3% | 20.2% | 20.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 21.3% | 20.6% | 22.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 22.7% | 22.2% | 23.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 23.2% | 23.0% | 23.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 23.1% | 22.3% | 23.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 21.3% | 21.1% | 21.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Tonga
More reference data data for Tonga
- Universal right to vote in practice 2 (2025)
- Consumer price index 174.32 2010 = 100 (2025)
- Universal right to vote 2 (2025)
- Competitive elections 1 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
- Elected parliament 1 (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected 1 (2025)
- Democracy 7 (2025)
- Civil liberties rating 2 (2025)
- Free country 2 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Tonga?
- Do more people live in urban or rural areas? in Tonga was 21.2% 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 Tonga?
- The highest recorded value was 23.5% in 2011.
- What is the lowest do more people live in urban or rural areas? recorded in Tonga?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1000.
- How does Tonga rank for do more people live in urban or rural areas??
- Tonga ranks 229th out of 238 countries with data for 2025.
- Is do more people live in urban or rural areas? rising or falling in Tonga?
- Over the last ten years it is down 9.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Tonga 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
Share of the population living in urban areas, combining UN estimates with modelled historical data.