Lesotho vs South Africa: Number of people living in urban and rural areas, per square kilometre
Lesotho
32.49 people per square kilometre
in 2023
South Africa
33.13 people per square kilometre
in 2023
Lesotho rank
138th
South Africa rank
136th
Number of people living in urban and rural areas, per square kilometre over time
- Lesotho
- South Africa
How they compare
South Africa currently reports 33.13 people per square kilometre against 32.49 people per square kilometre in Lesotho, a difference of 0.64 people per square kilometre.
Across all 63 years both countries report, South Africa has been ahead every year.
Lesotho ranks 138th and South Africa ranks 136th of 215 countries.
South Africa has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Lesotho | South Africa | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.89 people per square kilometre | 7.48 people per square kilometre | 5.59 people per square kilometre | South Africa |
| 1970s | 4.22 people per square kilometre | 10.06 people per square kilometre | 5.84 people per square kilometre | South Africa |
| 1980s | 6.03 people per square kilometre | 14.08 people per square kilometre | 8.05 people per square kilometre | South Africa |
| 1990s | 10.18 people per square kilometre | 19.4 people per square kilometre | 9.22 people per square kilometre | South Africa |
| 2000s | 14.58 people per square kilometre | 24.17 people per square kilometre | 9.59 people per square kilometre | South Africa |
| 2010s | 23.02 people per square kilometre | 29.1 people per square kilometre | 6.09 people per square kilometre | South Africa |
| 2020s | 30.84 people per square kilometre | 32.4 people per square kilometre | 1.57 people per square kilometre | South Africa |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher number of people living in urban and rural areas, per square kilometre, Lesotho or South Africa?
- South Africa, at 33.13 people per square kilometre against 32.49 people per square kilometre in Lesotho as of 2023.
- What is the difference in number of people living in urban and rural areas, per square kilometre between Lesotho and South Africa?
- 0.64 people per square kilometre, with South Africa ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Lesotho and South Africa?
- 63 years are reported by both, from 1961 to 2023.
- How do Lesotho and South Africa rank globally for number of people living in urban and rural areas, per square kilometre?
- Lesotho ranks 138th and South Africa ranks 136th of 215 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Statizoid (derived), published as Number of people living in urban and rural areas, per square kilometre. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Number of people living in urban and rural areas divided by Land area (sq. km), matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.