Denmark vs Switzerland: Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas
Denmark
2.05 million people
in 2020
Switzerland
2.07 million people
in 2020
Denmark rank
103rd
Switzerland rank
102nd
Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas over time
- Denmark
- Switzerland
How they compare
Switzerland currently reports 2.07 million people against 2.05 million people in Denmark, a difference of 18,620 people.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 15 shared years of data; in 1950 it was Switzerland ahead.
Denmark ranks 103rd and Switzerland ranks 102nd of 236 countries.
Across the 8 decades both report, Denmark averaged higher in 1 and Switzerland in 7.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Denmark | Switzerland | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 1.80 million people | 1.90 million people | 101,570 people | Switzerland |
| 1960s | 1.86 million people | 2.00 million people | 141,030 people | Switzerland |
| 1970s | 1.92 million people | 2.07 million people | 151,035 people | Switzerland |
| 1980s | 1.99 million people | 2.10 million people | 105,550 people | Switzerland |
| 1990s | 2.02 million people | 2.09 million people | 69,335 people | Switzerland |
| 2000s | 2.04 million people | 2.06 million people | 21,265 people | Switzerland |
| 2010s | 2.04 million people | 2.04 million people | 200 people | Denmark |
| 2020s | 2.05 million people | 2.07 million people | 18,620 people | Switzerland |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas, Denmark or Switzerland?
- Switzerland, at 2.07 million people against 2.05 million people in Denmark as of 2020.
- What is the difference in number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas between Denmark and Switzerland?
- 18,620 people, with Switzerland ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Denmark and Switzerland?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do Denmark and Switzerland rank globally for number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas?
- Denmark ranks 103rd and Switzerland ranks 102nd of 236 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Estimated number of people living in rural areas. Rural areas are identified using satellite imagery and population data, applying the same definitions across countries.