Lesotho vs Malawi: Share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas
Lesotho
12.4%
in 2020
Malawi
10.8%
in 2020
Lesotho rank
186th
Malawi rank
188th
Share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas over time
- Lesotho
- Malawi
How they compare
Lesotho currently reports 12.4% against 10.8% in Malawi, a difference of 1.6%.
That makes Lesotho's figure about 1.1 times Malawi's.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 15 shared years of data; in 1950 it was Malawi ahead.
Lesotho ranks 186th and Malawi ranks 188th of 236 countries.
Lesotho has averaged higher in every one of the 8 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Lesotho | Malawi | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| 1960s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| 1970s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| 1980s | 7.2% | 2.4% | 4.8% | Lesotho |
| 1990s | 10.0% | 5.3% | 4.7% | Lesotho |
| 2000s | 10.8% | 8.4% | 2.4% | Lesotho |
| 2010s | 11.1% | 10.2% | 0.8% | Lesotho |
| 2020s | 12.4% | 10.8% | 1.6% | Lesotho |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas, Lesotho or Malawi?
- Lesotho, at 12.4% against 10.8% in Malawi as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas between Lesotho and Malawi?
- 1.6%, with Lesotho ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Lesotho and Malawi?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do Lesotho and Malawi rank globally for share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas?
- Lesotho ranks 186th and Malawi ranks 188th 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 Share of population 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 share of the population living in cities. Cities are identified using satellite imagery and population data, applying the same definitions across countries.