Afghanistan vs China: Share of population living in rural areas
Afghanistan
15.6%
in 2020
China
16.4%
in 2020
Afghanistan rank
178th
China rank
175th
Share of population living in rural areas over time
- Afghanistan
- China
How they compare
China currently reports 16.4% against 15.6% in Afghanistan, a difference of 0.8%.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 15 shared years of data; in 1950 it was Afghanistan ahead.
Afghanistan ranks 178th and China ranks 175th of 236 countries.
Across the 8 decades both report, Afghanistan averaged higher in 7 and China in 1.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Afghanistan | China | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 48.6% | 34.4% | 14.2% | Afghanistan |
| 1960s | 44.5% | 30.9% | 13.6% | Afghanistan |
| 1970s | 38.8% | 26.6% | 12.2% | Afghanistan |
| 1980s | 38.4% | 23.8% | 14.5% | Afghanistan |
| 1990s | 35.0% | 20.4% | 14.6% | Afghanistan |
| 2000s | 26.2% | 18.1% | 8.1% | Afghanistan |
| 2010s | 19.8% | 16.8% | 3.0% | Afghanistan |
| 2020s | 15.6% | 16.4% | 0.8% | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of population living in rural areas, Afghanistan or China?
- China, at 16.4% against 15.6% in Afghanistan as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of population living in rural areas between Afghanistan and China?
- 0.8%, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Afghanistan and China?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do Afghanistan and China rank globally for share of population living in rural areas?
- Afghanistan ranks 178th and China ranks 175th 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 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 rural areas. Rural areas are identified using satellite imagery and population data, applying the same definitions across countries.