Netherlands vs Somalia: Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas
Netherlands
2.77 million people
in 2020
Somalia
2.89 million people
in 2020
Netherlands rank
88th
Somalia rank
87th
Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas over time
- Netherlands
- Somalia
How they compare
Somalia currently reports 2.89 million people against 2.77 million people in Netherlands, a difference of 116,610 people.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 15 shared years of data; in 1950 it was Netherlands ahead.
Netherlands ranks 88th and Somalia ranks 87th of 236 countries.
Across the 8 decades both report, Netherlands averaged higher in 7 and Somalia in 1.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Netherlands | Somalia | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 2.38 million people | 1.15 million people | 1.23 million people | Netherlands |
| 1960s | 2.46 million people | 1.32 million people | 1.14 million people | Netherlands |
| 1970s | 2.53 million people | 1.49 million people | 1.03 million people | Netherlands |
| 1980s | 2.63 million people | 2.03 million people | 592,760 people | Netherlands |
| 1990s | 2.69 million people | 1.88 million people | 818,610 people | Netherlands |
| 2000s | 2.67 million people | 2.01 million people | 659,620 people | Netherlands |
| 2010s | 2.75 million people | 2.35 million people | 400,355 people | Netherlands |
| 2020s | 2.77 million people | 2.89 million people | 116,610 people | Somalia |
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, Netherlands or Somalia?
- Somalia, at 2.89 million people against 2.77 million people in Netherlands as of 2020.
- What is the difference in number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas between Netherlands and Somalia?
- 116,610 people, with Somalia ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Netherlands and Somalia?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do Netherlands and Somalia rank globally for number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas?
- Netherlands ranks 88th and Somalia ranks 87th 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.