Finland vs Switzerland: Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas

Finland
2.16 million people
in 2020
Switzerland
2.07 million people
in 2020
Finland rank
99th
Switzerland rank
102nd

Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas over time

  • Finland
  • Switzerland
0500.0k1.0M1.5M2.0M2.5M195019852020

How they compare

Finland currently reports 2.16 million people against 2.07 million people in Switzerland, a difference of 91,720 people.

Across all 15 years both countries report, Finland has been ahead every year.

Finland ranks 99th and Switzerland ranks 102nd of 236 countries.

Finland has averaged higher in every one of the 8 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade Finland Switzerland Difference Ahead
1950s 2.10 million people 1.90 million people 203,490 people Finland
1960s 2.21 million people 2.00 million people 209,380 people Finland
1970s 2.26 million people 2.07 million people 191,515 people Finland
1980s 2.29 million people 2.10 million people 187,620 people Finland
1990s 2.27 million people 2.09 million people 183,940 people Finland
2000s 2.23 million people 2.06 million people 169,550 people Finland
2010s 2.19 million people 2.04 million people 147,605 people Finland
2020s 2.16 million people 2.07 million people 91,720 people Finland

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 Switzerland?
Finland, at 2.16 million people against 2.07 million people in Switzerland as of 2020.
What is the difference in number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas between Finland and Switzerland?
91,720 people, with Finland ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Finland and Switzerland?
15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
How do Finland and Switzerland rank globally for number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas?
Finland ranks 99th 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.

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Finland vs Switzerland: Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas. Statizoid, drawing on European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 06 September 2026, from https://population.statizoid.com/compare/population-of-cities-towns-and-villages/finland/switzerland/

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About this data

Indicator
Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas
Unit
people
Source
European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
236 places, 3,540 data points, 1950–2020
Last refreshed

Estimated number of people living in rural areas. Rural areas are identified using satellite imagery and population data, applying the same definitions across countries.