Mali vs Sudan: Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas
Mali
11.49 million people
in 2020
Sudan
11.80 million people
in 2020
Mali rank
31st
Sudan rank
29th
Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas over time
- Mali
- Sudan
How they compare
Sudan currently reports 11.80 million people against 11.49 million people in Mali, a difference of 305,300 people.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 15 shared years of data; in 1950 it was Sudan ahead.
Mali ranks 31st and Sudan ranks 29th of 236 countries.
Across the 8 decades both report, Mali averaged higher in 2 and Sudan in 6.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Mali | Sudan | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 3.45 million people | 3.59 million people | 143,205 people | Sudan |
| 1960s | 3.93 million people | 4.32 million people | 390,935 people | Sudan |
| 1970s | 4.51 million people | 5.18 million people | 671,130 people | Sudan |
| 1980s | 5.43 million people | 6.33 million people | 905,260 people | Sudan |
| 1990s | 6.43 million people | 6.91 million people | 475,310 people | Sudan |
| 2000s | 7.69 million people | 7.66 million people | 27,990 people | Mali |
| 2010s | 9.70 million people | 9.13 million people | 567,895 people | Mali |
| 2020s | 11.49 million people | 11.80 million people | 305,300 people | Sudan |
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, Mali or Sudan?
- Sudan, at 11.80 million people against 11.49 million people in Mali as of 2020.
- What is the difference in number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas between Mali and Sudan?
- 305,300 people, with Sudan ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Mali and Sudan?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do Mali and Sudan rank globally for number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas?
- Mali ranks 31st and Sudan ranks 29th 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.