Tonga vs Western Sahara: Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas
Tonga
41,669 people
in 2020
Western Sahara
54,285 people
in 2020
Tonga rank
184th
Western Sahara rank
181st
Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas over time
- Tonga
- Western Sahara
How they compare
Western Sahara currently reports 54,285 people against 41,669 people in Tonga, a difference of 12,616 people.
That makes Western Sahara's figure about 1.3 times Tonga's.
The two have swapped places 5 times across 15 shared years of data; in 1950 it was Tonga ahead.
Tonga ranks 184th and Western Sahara ranks 181st of 236 countries.
Across the 8 decades both report, Tonga averaged higher in 5 and Western Sahara in 3.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Tonga | Western Sahara | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 25,529 people | 12,976 people | 12,553 people | Tonga |
| 1960s | 30,284 people | 21,345 people | 8,939 people | Tonga |
| 1970s | 34,540 people | 34,774 people | 234.1 people | Western Sahara |
| 1980s | 42,237 people | 39,492 people | 2,745 people | Tonga |
| 1990s | 41,823 people | 27,907 people | 13,916 people | Tonga |
| 2000s | 43,246 people | 38,622 people | 4,624 people | Tonga |
| 2010s | 44,036 people | 44,920 people | 883.9 people | Western Sahara |
| 2020s | 41,669 people | 54,285 people | 12,616 people | Western Sahara |
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, Tonga or Western Sahara?
- Western Sahara, at 54,285 people against 41,669 people in Tonga as of 2020.
- What is the difference in number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas between Tonga and Western Sahara?
- 12,616 people, with Western Sahara ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Tonga and Western Sahara?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do Tonga and Western Sahara rank globally for number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas?
- Tonga ranks 184th and Western Sahara ranks 181st 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.