Finland vs Ireland: Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas
Finland
2.16 million people
in 2020
Ireland
2.25 million people
in 2020
Finland rank
99th
Ireland rank
97th
Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas over time
- Finland
- Ireland
How they compare
Ireland currently reports 2.25 million people against 2.16 million people in Finland, a difference of 87,990 people.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 15 shared years of data; in 1950 it was Finland ahead.
Finland ranks 99th and Ireland ranks 97th of 236 countries.
Across the 8 decades both report, Finland averaged higher in 7 and Ireland in 1.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Finland | Ireland | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 2.10 million people | 1.35 million people | 748,530 people | Finland |
| 1960s | 2.21 million people | 1.38 million people | 827,610 people | Finland |
| 1970s | 2.26 million people | 1.46 million people | 800,400 people | Finland |
| 1980s | 2.29 million people | 1.62 million people | 665,775 people | Finland |
| 1990s | 2.27 million people | 1.66 million people | 607,815 people | Finland |
| 2000s | 2.23 million people | 1.85 million people | 384,430 people | Finland |
| 2010s | 2.19 million people | 2.12 million people | 66,705 people | Finland |
| 2020s | 2.16 million people | 2.25 million people | 87,990 people | Ireland |
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, Finland or Ireland?
- Ireland, at 2.25 million people against 2.16 million people in Finland as of 2020.
- What is the difference in number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas between Finland and Ireland?
- 87,990 people, with Ireland ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Finland and Ireland?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do Finland and Ireland rank globally for number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas?
- Finland ranks 99th and Ireland ranks 97th 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.